Should The Grizzlies Bring Mike Miller Back To Town?

Following his departure from the Miami Heat, which was a result of the team using it's one time amnesty clause, Mike Miller is fresh on the hunt for another contender to sign with and there have been reports linking him to quite a few teams with title dreams. However, some of these teams may have certain advantages against their rivals in getting Miller to sign on the dotted line.

Among the teams that have potential interest in adding Miller to their rotations, including the Oklahoma City Thunder, Houston Rockets, Memphis Grizzlies, Los Angeles Clippers, San Antonio Spurs, Golden State Warriors, and the Cleveland Cavaliers, I see three that really stick out to me as being possible front runners.

Miller has openly stated since his release that he would explore signing with the Clippers, a decision fueled by his desire to re-unite with new Clippers head coach Doc Rivers, whom Miller played for back in Orlando early in his career. While the Clippers may have mutual interest with Miller, I'm not convinced they would sign him after their medical staff evaluates him. He has been plagued by injury/illness in recent seasons, making it a gamble for any team to sign him. However, I think he is due for a pretty healthy season and for him to be ignited by the fact he isn't in South Beach anymore.

The Thunder, who according to Ken Berger, might be the front-runners, as he said Miller has been telling friends he was signing with Oklahoma City. The Thunder obviously makes sense as a destination, since many still have them pegged as the front-runner in the West this season. While Miller could be brought in to replace some of the output the team lost when Kevin Martin went to Minnesota, that could lead the team to push Miller too far with minutes, practices, etc. with his known injury history.

The Grizzlies would make sense because Miller still owns property here and has plenty of friends in the region from his previous stint with the franchise from 2002 until 2008. While Memphis might not be as close to winning a title as the repeating champion Heat, the San Antonio Spurs (their latest victim), or the Oklahoma City Thunder, the addition of a shooter like Miller could potentially be the team's missing piece from making it to the NBA Finals and potentially bringing a title to town.

Miller would give the Grizzlies a threat that would make it much easier for the team to space the floor on offense and make things easier for Zach Randolph and Marc Gasol inside the paint. Also, with both of the Grizzlies' front court stars being terrific passers for their size, they could get the ball back out to Miller and more often that not, end up with open look from a player with a career average of 40% from downtown and was a scorching 45% during the 2011-12 season.

Miller would also bring a championship mentality to the team, which would be another major positive in bringing him back. Tony Allen brought it from his run with the Boston Celtics, and the team has improved every season since he signed here. Bringing Tayshaun Prince in this past season definitely didn't hurt like many critics thought it would, as the team made it to the Western Conference Finals for the first time in franchise history with him. Bringing in Miller may just be the final piece to pushing the Grizzlies to the championship level.

With so many teams being interested in the two-time NBA champion, it may take at least a few days for a deal to be reached with any franchise. Miller could sign virtually anywhere because he really could play for virtually nothing this season, as he will still be receiving his salary for this season he was scheduled to receive, which is in the area of $6.2 million. With Miller already reeling in that money, he will likely sign with a team for the veteran minimum.

Hopefully, when it comes down to it, Miller will choose to come play back somewhere he feels at home and already has a network of close friends. The Grizzlies could guarantee him a role as sixth man and have him relieve Tony Allen and Tayshaun Prince for about 20 minutes a game or so, depending on what the team medical staff thinks will be best for extending his career and avoiding more injuries.

While teams like the Spurs and Thunder might give him better odds of winning a title, would he be as fond of one of those cities as much as he is of Memphis? As I mentioned, I believe Miller could be the last piece we need to finally get to the main event and make the NBA Finals, and hopefully when he is evaluating the rosters of his suitors, he will realize the same thing when he gets to the Grizzlies roster.