Grizzlies swap veteran forward for 40-year-old Taj Gibson, shaking up their roster as youth takes center stage in Memphis.
The Memphis Grizzlies bought out veteran forward Kyle Anderson on Thursday, and within hours had a replacement lined up: Taj Gibson, a 40-year-old big man who hasn't played in the league this season.
Anderson, 32, spent less than a month with the Grizzlies after arriving Feb. 3 as part of the Jaren Jackson Jr. trade that also sent Walter Clayton Jr., Taylor Hendricks and Georges Niang to Memphis from Utah. He appeared in four games before the two sides agreed to part ways, and he is expected to sign with the Minnesota Timberwolves once he clears waivers, according to ESPN.
Anderson averaged 9.3 points, 3.5 rebounds and 1.5 steals in those four games and shot 78.9% from the field. But with the Grizzlies sitting at 21-36 — 11th in the Western Conference — there was little reason to hold onto a veteran whose future clearly lies elsewhere.
For Gibson, it's a return to the league for his 17th season. He played 37 games for the Charlotte Hornets last season, averaging 2.9 points and 3.2 rebounds in limited minutes. Over a career that has included stops with the Chicago Bulls, Oklahoma City Thunder, Minnesota Timberwolves, New York Knicks, Washington Wizards, Detroit Pistons and Hornets, he has averaged 8.4 points and 5.7 rebounds per game.
Gibson signed a two-year deal.
Anderson's reunion with Minnesota will be his second. He spent the 2022-23 and 2023-24 seasons with the Timberwolves, averaging 7.8 points, 4.3 rebounds and 4.5 assists across 148 games. He was part of the team that reached the Western Conference finals in 2024, and coach Chris Finch repeatedly praised him as a steadying force — on the court and in the locker room.
Anderson left that summer when Minnesota couldn't match a three-year, $27 million offer from Golden State. He spent parts of last season with the Warriors and Miami Heat before landing in Utah at the start of this year. In 20 games with the Jazz, he averaged 7.1 points, 3.3 rebounds and 3.1 assists.
For Memphis, the Anderson departure highlights a tension the franchise has quietly been navigating all season. General manager Zach Kleiman spoke earlier this month about the importance of veteran voices around a young core that includes GG Jackson II, Jaylen Wells and Cedric Coward. Anderson, he said, fit that profile.
Now he's gone.
The Grizzlies have leaned heavily on those young players defensively since trading Jackson and dealing with the absence of center Zach Edey. Wells has been tasked with guarding some of the league's best perimeter players, while GG Jackson has taken a noticeable step forward on that end of the floor. Coward has flashed promise as a rookie. But the departure of a 12-year veteran — one who can guard multiple positions and run an offense — is not a neutral transaction, regardless of where Memphis is in the standings.
Gibson can provide depth and toughness in the frontcourt. Whether he can fill the same mentorship role is a different matter.
The Grizzlies face the Mavericks at American Airlines Center on Friday at 7:30 p.m. CST.