Some of us began this July expecting that Rudy Gay would end up as a punchline. An afterthought in NBA free agency, a Plan G that teams would only resort to once LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, Chris Bosh, Joe Johnson, Amare Stoudemire and Carlos Boozer
had all been snatched up. Gay was bound to spend the next five years of
his life overpaid and underperforming, and he'd probably do it in a
market like New York or Chicago that had missed out on the star it
really wanted.
Or not.
As it turned out, Gay was actually the first max free agent of the season, snatched up by his Memphis Grizzlies with a five-year, $84 million extension on the morning of the July 1 beginning of free agency. Chris Wallace and the Grizz worked quickly and got their man without skipping a beat.
Four years after he was selected at No. 8 overall in the 2006 draft by the Rockets and summarily shipped to Memphis, Gay became a restricted free agent this summer. He was free to negotiate with other teams, and all the usual suspects in the LeBron sweepstakes were rumored to be contenders for Gay as well. But under restricted free agency, the Grizzlies reserved the right to match any offer.
So when Wallace and Grizz owner Michael Heisley came out with a max offer on opening day of free agency, you knew they meant business. And Gay knew he was sticking around.
Gay never got the chance to explore New York, Chicago, L.A. or Miami. He's a Grizzly through 2015 whether he likes it or not.
So he might as well make the most of it.
The Grizzlies have still never made the postseason during Gay's four years, but they keep getting closer. Last season they won 40 games and contended for a playoff spot until late in the season; with all the youth on their roster, they should only get better in time.
Gay was one of four starters in Memphis last season under 25. Himself 23, he was part of a deadly wing scoring duo with O.J. Mayo, who turned 22 in October. Marc Gasol, who turned 25 in January, was a monster in the middle. Mike Conley, 22, continued to grow as a starting point guard.
There's depth in that bench — Sam Young, Darrell Arthur, Ronnie Brewer, Hasheem Thabeet. All young, and all with the potential to keep getting better.
And in the mother of all surprises, the "veteran leader" of the Grizzlies is Zach Randolph, a guy who was getting suspended for instigating brawls a year ago. It sounds crazy, but it works in Memphis.
Believe it or not, Rudy Gay is in an environment where he can win. He won't be in the Finals next spring, but he's a big part of a Grizzlies team that's on the rise and should make the playoffs next season. While many of the teams around them in the Western Conference — San Antonio, Dallas, Phoenix — just keep getting older, the Grizzlies are just now entering their prime.
Gay won't be a celebrity in Memphis the way he could have been in one of the bigger markets. But he just might turn some heads on the court over the next five years.
