Wolves don’t match offer for Tyus Jones, guard headed to Memphis

The Tyus Jones era in Minnesota has come to a close.

Jones, who was a restricted free agent, was offered a reported three-year deal worth $28 million by Memphis earlier this week. Minnesota decided not to match the deal, so the fifth-year guard will join the Grizzlies.

“We sincerely thank Tyus for his contributions on the court and Tyus and the entire Jones family for their genuine impact on the Twin Cities community,” Timberwolves president of basketball operations Gersson Rosas said in a statement Tuesday night. “We wish them nothing but the best in Memphis.”

Jones played 68 games for Minnesota last season and started a career-high 23 contests. He averaged 6.9 points, 4.8 assists, 2.0 rebounds and 1.2 steals per game while shooting 41.5% from the field and 31.7% from deep. The 23-year-old also set an all-time NBA single-season record with a 6.96 assist-to-turnover ratio in 2018-19.

Jones grew up in Apple Valley, Minn., and won a state title with Apple Valley High School in 2013. He went on to play college basketball at Duke University and led the Blue Devils to a national championship in 2015. Minnesota traded up into the first round of the 2015 NBA draft to select Jones 24th overall.

Now that Jones and Derrick Rose, who signed with Detroit in free agency, are gone, the Timberwolves are left with Jeff Teague, Shabazz Napier and Tyrone Wallace as the point guards on roster.