TITLE: Caldwell-Pope Opts Into $21.6M Final Year With Grizzlies
SLUG: caldwell-pope-opts-into-216m-final-year-with-grizzlies
CONTENT:
Memphis Grizzlies guard Kentavious Caldwell-Pope has picked up his player option for the 2026/27 season, locking in a $21.6 million salary, according to ESPN’s Shams Charania.
The decision keeps the 33-year-old under contract for one more year before he reaches unrestricted free agency in the summer of 2027. League observers expected Caldwell-Pope to opt in, as matching the option figure on the open market was considered unlikely.
Caldwell-Pope arrived in Memphis last offseason in the trade that sent Desmond Bane to Orlando. In 51 games for the Grizzlies this past season, the 13-year veteran averaged 8.4 points, 2.7 assists and 2.5 rebounds across 21.3 minutes, shooting 41.0% from the field, 31.6% from three and 91.3% at the foul line.
A two-time NBA champion—winning titles with the Lakers in 2020 and the Nuggets in 2023—Caldwell-Pope signed a three-year, $66 million deal with the Magic in 2024 but has seen his scoring and three-point efficiency slide over the last two campaigns. Durability had been a hallmark of his career until this season, when finger surgery in February ended his year and pushed his games-missed total past eight for the first time.
With an expiring contract that does not align with Memphis’s rebuilding timeline, Caldwell-Pope is expected to surface in trade discussions as the league calendar advances.
Source: Hoops Rumors
