Grizzlies, Tyreke Evans hope reunion extends beyond this season

Tyreke Evans patiently waited.

The veteran guard expected to be traded Thursday afternoon before the NBA deadline, and the Grizzlies decided to keep him. But Evans didn’t fret about every rumor or watch the clock.

“I know it’s a business. I know how things work and how organizations can be sometime,” said Evans, who appeared happy to rejoin the Grizzlies at practice Friday. “I wasn’t really shocked. My friends were more worried than me.”

Calkins:Tyreke Evans isn't leaving Grizzlies, so GM Chris Wallace should

Evans will suit up Sunday for the Grizzlies’ road game against the Oklahoma City Thunder.

Grizzlies general manager Chris Wallace declined several deals because there wasn’t enough value.  

“We felt the offers weren’t sufficient for a player of Tyreke’s caliber,” Wallace said. “There’s no late second-round pick that’s going to come in and average 19 points a game for you next year… We want to keep going with Tyreke. It’s been a great relationship so far.”

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Evans becomes an unrestricted free agent following the regular season. He is playing this season for $3.3 million and should command a contract that starts at a team’s roughly $9 million mid-level exception.

The Grizzlies hope they’re the squad Evans chooses in the offseason.

“We’ve always valued him,” Grizzlies interim coach J.B. Bickerstaff said.

Yet Memphis removed Evans from the team for a week after pulling him off the court while they chased a first-round pick. He was sent home following a Jan. 31 game at Indiana that began a four-game road trip.

Evans, though, indicated that there are no hard feelings and hopes to reach a long-term deal with the Grizzlies this summer.

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“Memphis gave me a chance to get my game back where I want it to be,” Evans said.

Evans returns averaging 19.5 points, five assists and five rebounds. He’s the best playmaker for the Grizzlies, who have dropped five straight games and scored less than 90 points in the last three.

“Tyreke makes us a better team,” Grizzlies center Marc Gasol said. “I’m happy to have him here. It’s a surprise because we said goodbye. But everybody understood what was happening.”

Wallace acknowledged they could eventually lose Evans for nothing in return. Still, the Grizzlies are confident that the marriage will continue despite the brief separation.

“This enhances our ability to retain Tyreke,” Wallace said. “It’s a gamble that he goes and you don’t get anything in return. But we think he’s a high-caliber player… We felt a bird in the hand was better than what picks might mean down the road.”