Richie Saunders is still waiting on his first NBA contract, and the timing has made his situation one of the more unusual storylines of the preseason.
The former BYU standout and No. 32 overall pick has not signed with the Memphis Grizzlies, even with the regular season only two weeks away. He is one of five unsigned players from the 2026 draft, while the other four have already either headed overseas or returned to college.
All signs still point to Saunders eventually landing in Memphis. The delay, though, comes down to a complicated mix of injury recovery, roster math and money.
Saunders tore his ACL in February, which ended his college season and pushed part of his rehab into what would have been his rookie year. Even with that injury, Memphis clearly valued him highly. The Grizzlies took him two picks into the second round and, according to the reporting, turned away trade offers for No. 32 because they wanted him.
That faith makes sense when you look at the player. Saunders is a 6-foot-5 sharpshooter with the kind of hustle that fits Memphis’ “grit and grind” identity. Grizzlies general manager Zach Kleiman made it clear the team sees him as a real fit.
“Richie, we’re very excited to have him with the group,” Memphis general manager Zach Kleiman said at the team’s media day in September. “It’s wait and see in terms of what exactly his onboarding is going to look like.
“Richie is a player we think is a strong identity fit with this group on and off the court. He is attacking his ACL recovery and continues to progress well. We’ll be smart with his case, and we’re excited to have him join us once we get to that point in time.”
The catch is that Memphis doesn’t have room right now. The Grizzlies have 18 players on standard contracts, not counting Saunders, and that number has to be trimmed to 15 within the next two weeks. Three players will need to be traded or waived just to get under the limit.
That makes a two-way deal the likeliest path for Saunders at the start. Teams can carry up to three players on two-way contracts, and those spots are designed for players who can move between the NBA and G-League. For Saunders, that setup would let him work back into game shape while giving Memphis flexibility.
But the contract issue is where things get sticky. A two-way deal pays far less than a standard rookie contract, and BYU’s Daily Universe noted that Saunders would be the highest-drafted player in league history to sign a two-way for his first NBA deal. The holdup appears tied to guaranteed money.
A two-way player can receive less than six figures guaranteed at signing, though that number rises to more than $300,000 if he is not waived before the regular season. That stands in sharp contrast to the deal signed by the player taken right after him, No. 33 pick Isaiah Evans, who agreed to a four-year, $9.26 million rookie contract with the Minnesota Timberwolves, including more than $6 million guaranteed at signing.
Even with the ACL recovery, Saunders still looks like an NBA player when he gets back to full strength. His shotmaking, defense and motor have drawn praise, with CBS Sports’ Adam Finkelstein saying Saunders “is gonna be an NBA player for a long time,” according to the source.
Before the injury, Saunders was putting together a strong senior season at BYU, averaging 18.8 points, 6.0 rebounds and 1.8 steals per game. He also shot nearly 40% from 3-point range across four seasons in Provo.
Saunders said in June that Memphis had already made him feel at home.
“(I’ve been welcomed by the Grizzlies with) open arms,” Saunders said after the draft at his introductory press conference in June. “Everybody’s been super friendly, and it’s clear everybody has the right goal and right mindset of winning and playing hard.”
“I’m just grateful to be here. I’m grateful to finish my rehab here and be playing when I’m playing, and be able to just work alongside these guys and alongside the rest of the team and bring what I bring to the table and help win games.”
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