Ben McLemore signs with Memphis Grizzlies: 5 big questions
After starting his career in Sacramento, Ben McLemore has joined the Memphis Grizzlies via free agency. Here are five questions for him and the Grizzlies.
After getting drafted out of Kansas as a top prospect, Ben McLemore has had a shaky start to his career in Sacramento. McLemore has spent four seasons with the Kings, under various head coaches.
In his first season, McLemore averaged nearly nine points per game in 55 starts, but he was only shooting 38 percent. This past season, which was his fourth, the Kings’ shooting guard scoring eight points per game, in 26 starts, but his shooting percentage was up to 43 percent.
The Kansas product had a lot of potential coming out, with his 6-foot-5 frame and ability to score and defend. With the Kings’ poor leadership, the young career of McLemore is off to a rocky start. He hasn’t had proper direction from his coaches and has been mixed in as a starter or sixth man and hasn’t had the stability to succeed.
After Sacramento’s front office — led by Vlade Divac — decided to decline his fifth-year option, it seemed like McLemore was on his way out of Northern California. There were numerous suitors, but the former King landed in Memphis for a two-year deal worth $10.7 million.
As McLemore looks to find a new start in Memphis, let’s take a look at five questions we can ask the shooting guard and his new team.
5. Will Ben McLemore be a starter or a bench player in Memphis?
Heading into 2017-18, the starter at shooting guard was unknown for the Grizzlies. The defensive star, Tony Allen, was the long-time starter for Memphis at the two-guard spot. But, Allen is a free agent and exploring other options. The other options on the roster are Wayne Selden and Troy Daniels.
I would think that David Fizdale would lean for the more experienced player in this case, which would be their newly-acquired shooting guard, Ben McLemore. The other starters in the Memphis lineup should be Mike Conley, Chandler Parsons and Marc Gasol around McLemore.
Although Selden and Daniels are other options for the shooting guard position, I think Memphis needs shooting around the current lineup they have and McLemore can provide that. This past season, he shot 38 percent from the three-point line, but it’s gone up six percent since his rookie season.
McLemore has been an on and off starter with the Kings, but I think in Memphis, Fizdale is going to call up his number on a nightly basis. With a stable organization and offensive system, the ex-King should start to flourish next season.