Jodie Meeks

Smith at the five spot and Meeks at off-guard represent deep bench depth for the Wizards, yet there is a reason both have been pushed out. In theory, both are shooting options on a team that could use some of those, particularly in the front court, but Smith lost his shot last season, and although he was relatively healthy all year, he barely featured in favour of two power forward line-ups. Meeks meanwhile featured a lot, but scored his fewest points and recorded his worst VORP since his rookie season, eight years ago. Troy Brown and Austin Rivers have been acquired to provide wing options for a reason, and while they are not the decent shooters that Meeks (normally) is, there is not enough in it to grant Meeks an automatic spot alone. With both players on expiring contracts and the Wizards considerably over the luxury tax thresholds, both seem unlikely to finish out these contracts; if they are not salary dumped, they will surely be bought out, and it is very likely they will actually endure both.

Mahinmi by contrast is not expiring, yet he like Biyombo above is a decent candidate for a Deng stretch. It is too late to stretch his salary for this season, and considering that doing so would have kept him on the books until 2023, it would not have been a good outcome for anyone involved other than the dodging of 2018/19 tax dollars (something that can be done in other ways if required, albeit with difficulty). He does however also have a large $15,450,051 salary for next season, fully guaranteed. It is already a large salary for a player who does not do many things, yet it is further made cumbersome by the fact that the Wizards have as-near-as-is $92.5 million committed already to John Wall, Bradley Beal and Otto Porter alone. At a time that they need to be financially prudent and to free up some spending money to improve a team that already looks fairly capped out, they are paying $15.5 million to a limited reserve. So if Mahinmi is prepared to give any of that back in order to speed up the stretching of his contract that seems quite likely to happen next summer anyway (and allow him to join a different, better team while remaining salary neutral), the Wizards will probably listen.

Jodie Meeks
SG, 6’4, 210lbs, 29 years old, 8 years of experience

Once again missing much of the season due to injury, Meeks at least brought his shot back with him from the inactive list. He hit 40.9% from three-point range and, with both his shot and the motion that leads to it, he is a key floor spacing piece on any team. However, a year and a bit missed due to two procedures on the same foot seems to have slightly slowed him, a loss most evident on the defensive end, at which he was worryingly marginal anyway. Meeks now enters free agency with a quality jump shot and a recent injury history in what should be his prime. Contending teams will want him for his movement and spot-ups, but with the injuries in mind, his next deal perhaps ought to be a short one.

Player Plan: Expiring $6.54 million contract. Having lost so much time due to injury over the course of his last contract, he will get a pay cut from that, perhaps more than the minimum from someone gambling that he stays healthy, but otherwise a minimum salary candidate. Would be ideal for, say, the Thunder, and could be a free agency steal.

Jodie Meeks

The Sixers obtained Meeks from the Bucks at the trade deadline in one of John Hammond's overly fiddly moves. (He trades away Meeks for no reason partway through his rookie year, but then trades a future second to bring in Chris Douglas-Roberts a few months later? What was wrong with Meeks?) Jodie instantly became one of the Sixers's best shooters, and in that respect he fills a need. He didn't get a huge amount of opportunity with Philly kast year, and probably won't do this year either for as long as Willie Green is around. However, Green's contract expires after this season. And once it does, if Meeks is still around, he might (ought) get the chance to take Green's place.

Milwaukee made another trade late in the day when they traded recent second round draft pick Jodie Meeks along with defunct big man Francisco Elson to Philadelphia in exchange for Primoz Brezec, Royal Ivey and an unprotected 2010 second round pick. They did this because in acquiring Salmons to go along with Jerry Stackhouse, Carlos Delfino and Charlie Bell, the Bucks had already acquired four potential shooting guard options to take any minute that Meeks might see. I don't know why any team needs all four of those very average and somewhat similar players at that one position, but Milwaukee decided that they do, which spelled the end for Meeks' opportunities. So a second rounder, trade exception and slight salary reduction is ample compensation.

Perhaps more importantly, they did the deal to get out from under Meeks' contract next season. He will only be earning the minimum salary, but it is guaranteed, and there's no point guaranteeing the future salary of a player to whom you can't guarantee a single minute of playing time. I would rather have Meeks than the second rounder, but with that depth chart, you can understand it. It's a good pickup for the Sixers, albeit the only pickup for the Sixers. Which is problematic.