10 players who could help a contender on an NBA 10-day contract

On Thursday, Jan. 5, NBA teams can officially begin signing players to a 10-day contract. Which unsigned free agents could help a contender?

The NBA 10-day contract becomes officially available to teams on Thursday, Jan. 5. These deals can be used on open roster spots for a variety of purposes — plugging a short-term hole because of an injury, taking a flyer on a flawed but high-upside youngster, or addressing specific weaknesses like depth, shooting or veteran experience.

Here are a few players available for an NBA 10-day contract who could help a team right now

Jeremy Lamb struggled last season, was traded from the Pacers to the Kings in the Domantas Sabonis deal and remained unsigned when his contract expired. But he has good size on the wing, some facility as a secondary creator and is a decent 3-point shooter.

Sharife Cooper struggled to make shots in his brief time with the Hawks but the electric playmaker is shooting 25-of-50 from the field and 4-of-10 from beyond the arc in three G League games this season, averaging 27.0 points, 6.7 assists and 4.3 rebounds.

Carmelo Anthony may have no interest in anything but a guaranteed deal for the rest of the season but he still hasn’t found the right fit. He averaged 13.3 points per game and made 37.5 percent of his 3s last season for the Lakers.

Wayne Ellington doesn’t have a lot of diversity in his game but he’s a career 38.2 percent 3-point shooter. Any team looking for some inexpensive floor spacing should certainly give him a look.

Ben McLemore isn’t quite as accomplished a movement shooter or spot-up threat as Lamb, but he’s made 36.3 percent of his career 3s, he’s still just 29 years old and held up reasonably well as a wing defender for the Blazers last season.

Isaiah Thomas has played for seven different teams since leaving the Boston Celtics, most for just a handful of games. It’s hard to imagine he has much less to offer with his size and injury concerns but he’d happily hoist up some shots for a team that’s thin on guard depth.

Paul Millsap has seen his value as a versatile defender decline with age but he’s still a fairly mobile 4 who can hit the glass and move the ball on offense. For a team looking for some experienced frontcourt depth, he might not be a bad option.

Grant Riller is an undersized guard with average athleticism by NBA standards but a lot of NBA Draftniks loved him as a sleeper in the 2020 draft. He’s currently in the G League, averaging 31 points, 5.0 assists and 4.3 rebounds per game on 49.2/42.9/94.1 shooting splits.

Trevelin Queen is another savvy wing creator showing out in the G League right now. He looked like he might have something going, appearing in 10 games with the Houston Rockets last season before getting squeezed out by their young backcourt.

Vernon Carey Jr. appeared in 32 games over the last three seasons, for the Wizards and Hornets but has found himself unsigned and back in the G League. The bruising big man is averaging 26.3 points, 8.0 rebounds, 3.0 assists and 1.7 steals while shooting 67.4 percent from the field.

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