Recently acquired guard Cole Anthony has agreed to a buyout plan with the Memphis Grizzlies and plans to join the Milwaukee Bucks after he clears waivers.
Memphis and Anthony’s representatives finalized the terms of the buyout on Saturday, paving the way for the 25 year old to sign a 1 year deal with Milwaukee once he completes the waiver process. The former Magic guard was acquired as part of a package for Desmond Bane earlier this summer.
The Grizzlies desire to create space to sign Jaren Jackson Jr. to a new deal is what initially prompted the two sides to come together to work out an agreement to terminate the contract. The Portland, OR, native averaged 9.4pts/3reb/2.9ast/0.7stl per game with Orlando in 2024-25. However he once again saw his minutes per game shrink for the 3rd consecutive season, averaging nearly 18.4 minutes per contest last year.
If all goes according to plan, Anthony will join a Milwaukee roster that’s dedicated its offseason towards proving that they’re committed to winning in an effort to keep superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo appeased. The club waived veteran guard Damian Lillard in a surprise move, then brought in Myles Turner in a subsequent deal.
The club said goodbye to longtime centre Brook Lopez, who joined the Clippers on a 2 year, $18M deal, but brought back PF Bobby Portis, and Gary Trent Jr. As currently constructed, Milwaukee had some fairly evident voids amongst their guards for minutes in 2025-26, which should allow Anthony to earn a larger role with the club out of the gates.
Currently under contract at point guard are Jamaree Bouyea, and Kevin Porter Jr., though Bouyea’s deal is currently a 2-way contract.
Photo: Jose Garcia. This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 2.0 Generic license.