Quentin Grimes reportedly agrees to $60 million deal with Lakers, ending Sixers contract saga
Grimes’ departure suggests that the Sixers will immediately lean on rookie-to-be Labaron Philon Jr., the Alabama guard they selected 22nd overall to pair with Tyrese Maxey and VJ Edgecombe.
Quentin Grimes will not return to the 76ers, instead agreeing to a four-year, $60 million contract with the Los Angeles Lakers, ESPN reported Wednesday afternoon.
Grimes’ departure is not a surprise after the Sixers agreed to sign forward Dean Wade to a four-year, $39 million contract late Tuesday, a league source confirmed to The Inquirer. Reports surfaced earlier Tuesday that the Lakers were targeting signing Grimes, who will reunite with former Dallas Mavericks teammate Luka Doncic. It is also a significant raise for Grimes, who played last season on his $8.7 million qualifying offer after a messy restricted free agency.
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Grimes was primarily the Sixers’ sixth man during a 2025-26 season he described multiple times as “solid.” The 26-year-old was part of a terrific three-guard lineup, and reignited his aggressive scoring ability when All-NBA guard Tyrese Maxey missed three weeks in March with a finger injury.
But Grimes shot a career-low 33.4% from three-point range, while also averaging 13.4 points, 3.6 rebounds, and 3.3 assists in 29.4 minutes in 75 games. And other than an excellent Game 5 performance on both ends of the Sixers’ first-round upset of the Boston Celtics, he was not good enough during the playoffs for a Sixers second unit that desperately needed scoring production.
When asked shortly after last month’s season-ending Game 4 loss to the New York Knicks about how he viewed his free agency and ideal basketball setup, Grimes was not exactly forthcoming.
“I haven’t even really thought about that, honestly,” Grimes said. “… talking to my agents and everything, we’ll kind of figure out what’s the best situation moving forward.”
After joining the Sixers at the 2025 trade deadline, Grimes became a go-to scorer for an injured team that had shifted to “tank” mode to increase odds of landing a high draft pick. He averaged 21.9 points, 5.2 rebounds, 4.5 assists, and 1.5 steals in 28 games with the Sixers that season, including a 46-point outburst at his hometown Houston Rockets.
Grimes then entered restricted free agency, which turned into a months-long saga. He skipped the Sixers’ training camp and preseason games in Abu Dhabi and eventually signed his one-year qualifying offer to become an unrestricted free agent this summer. Grimes then parted ways with agent David Bauman and is now represented by Creative Arts Agency.
Grimes’ departure suggests that the Sixers will immediately lean on rookie-to-be Labaron Philon Jr., the Alabama guard they selected 22nd overall in last week’s draft to link with the dynamic Maxey and VJ Edgecombe. The Sixers also lost sharpshooting guard Jared McCain in a controversial trade at the February deadline.
Fellow Sixers free agent Kelly Oubre Jr., a starting forward for three seasons in Philly, remains uncommitted to return or sign with a new team. He will reportedly meet with at least the Sixers, Lakers, Indiana Pacers, and Portland Trail Blazers. Backup center Andre Drummond, reserve forward Trendon Watford, and veteran guard Kyle Lowry (who is expected to retire) are the Sixers’ other unrestricted free agents.
The Sixers on Wednesday morning also agreed to sign reserve center Ariel Hukporti to a one-year, $3.4 million contract, The Inquirer confirmed. That means the Sixers have about $2.6 million remaining of that midlevel exception, which can be used to sign an outside player. They also still have the $5.5 million biannual exception. They entered free agency with limited financial flexibility, with Maxey ($40.8 million), former NBA Most Valuable Player Joel Embiid ($57.7 million), and former perennial All-Star Paul George ($54.1 million) all on max contracts that account for the vast majority of the salary cap of nearly $165 million.
The Sixers finished last season seventh in the Eastern Conference standings (45-37) and, after a stunning rally from down three games to one to beat Boston, were swept by the eventual NBA champion Knicks.
