Quentin Grimes chose to gamble on himself by taking his $8.7 million qualifying offer – a risk that the Philadelphia 76ers, as well as their fans, are eager to see unfold.
Jake Fischer reported on The Stein Line Sunday that Grimes opted into his qualifying offer because the 76ers didn’t believe he was worth the $25 million annual salary range his camp sought. Both parties were so far apart in negotiations that Philadelphia didn’t see the need to offer a contract to Grimes until the week before training camp began.
How we got here
Grimes aimed for a lucrative deal this summer after averaging nearly 22 points per game in 28 contests for the 76ers last season. However, there was one problem – he was a restricted free agent. Philadelphia had the power to match any offer Grimes would receive from another team, which left him with little leverage.
The market for restricted free agents quickly soured throughout the offseason as teams grew fearful of splurging on players below all-star status because of the roster-building limitations of the first and second tax aprons. As a result, Grimes received zero competitive offers, which enabled the 76ers to sit tight.
“There was a fairly widespread belief that Philly would eventually make a one-year pitch sufficiently lucrative (in the, say, $15 million range) that would have convinced Grimes, like Kuminga, to surrender his right to block any trade this season that comes with the qualifier,” Fischer said. “But I'm told the Sixers never came close to that range. Philadelphia's highest offer on a one-year pact, sources say, topped out at $9 million.”
Accepting his qualifying offer was the only power play Grimes could execute. By doing so, Grimes has a no-trade clause and will become an unrestricted free agent after the 2025-26 season. This allows him to truly see what he is worth without the 76ers’ interference.
What’s next?
Grimes desires to play himself into a hefty paycheck, but the path towards doing so is far from straight and narrow. He’ll have to compete for minutes with Jared McCain when he returns after suffering a torn UCL in late September as well as VJ Edgecombe who started alongside Tyrese Maxey in Philadelphia’s first two preseason games.
Grimes already finds himself at a disadvantage, having not been with the team for the start of training camp and preseason. Fischer reported that he flew to Philadelphia on Saturday and will be ready to join the 76ers when they return from Abu Dhabi. While Grimes will likely slot in at starting shooting guard, at least until McCain comes back, Grimes will have two hungry young guards nipping at his toes.
If the 24-year-old underperforms, he could end up costing himself millions of dollars in annual value.