to play in the upcoming abbreviated basketball season.
Grizzlies’ General Manager Chris Wallace last week named three players that are his priority to re-sign for the season: center Marc Gasol, a Spaniard, is the top priority, followed by free agents Haddadi and Shane Battier.
Haddadi is now playing ball for an Iranian team under a contract that allows him to leave at any time to rejoin the National Basketball Association (NBA). Wallace said Haddadi is now working on his return. “It’s all preliminary right now. It’ll ramp up over the next week,” Wallace said.
There have been doubts about Haddadi’s interest in returning. First, he has gotten very little playing time with Memphis. Second, he faces a misdemeanor criminal charge for beating up his girlfriend. And, third, he now faced a quarter-million-dollar civil suit from that ex-girlfriend.
The NBA season was partly canceled during a labor dispute between owners and players. That has now been resolved. The season, which had been due to start in October, will now start up Christmas Day.