NBA Free Agency: Jodie Meeks signs two-year deal with Washington Wizards
By John Buhler
Veteran wing Jodie Meeks has reportedly agreed to a two-year deal worth $7 million to play for the Washington Wizards in his unrestricted free agency.
The Washington Wizards may have had an outstanding starting five, but their bench was atrocious in the 2017 NBA Playoffs. Washington forced a Game 7 with the top-seeded Boston Celtics in the conference semifinals, but upgraded his terrible bench was a top-tier concern for general manager Ernie Grunfeld in free agency.
Grunfeld seems to have done that with this under-the radar free agency move. According to Shams Sharania of The Vertical, “Free agent Jodie has agreed to a two-year, $7 million deal with the Washington Wizards.”
Meeks will likely come off the bench at the two-guard to backup starting shooting guard Bradley Beal. In eight NBA seasons, Meeks has averaged 9.8 points per game and is a career 37.6 3-point shooter. He last played with the Orlando Magic.
Free agent Jodie Meeks has agreed to a two-year, $7 million deal with the Washington Wizards, league sources tell The Vertical.
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) July 2, 2017
So what information can we extract beyond this two-year, $7 million deal for Meeks? Well, it almost certainly means that the Wizards are not going to match Bojan Bogdanovic’s offer sheet in his restricted free agency. Washington traded for Bogdanovic from the Brooklyn Nets last February with the hopes he’d come up big for them off the bench. He did not.
Add in that Washington traded for former New Orleans Pelicans backup point guard Tim Frazier and this signing of Meeks could ensure that Brandon Jennings is not coming back to the Wizards. Keep in mind that Jennings spent the first part of 2016-17 on a one-year deal with the New York Knicks. He was not able to recapture his on-court magic he once displayed with the Milwaukee Bucks.
Next: NBA Free Agency Tracker 2017
Overall, Meeks is a good value signing for the Wizards that adds depth to their weak bench. Washington made that an offseason priority. If they can bring back small forward Otto Porter Jr. in his restricted free agency, it’s almost impossible for Washington to have a bad summer in any capacity in terms of roster construction.