NBA Trade Deadline Portfolio 2018: Memphis Grizzlies
By Jeff Siegel
The Memphis Grizzlies seem poised to be sellers at the upcoming trade deadline after announcing that Mike Conley will miss the rest of the season.
While not flush with high-end talent, the Grizzlies have a handful of rotation-level players who could help some of the league’s contenders. Marc Gasol, Tyreke Evans and Brandan Wright will draw varying levels of interest around the league, as will swingman James Ennis and versatile big man JaMychal Green. Gasol has the most value as the best player of the bunch on a reasonable contract for his skill set, but Evans seems to be the most likely to move at the deadline, with multiple suitors interested in his services and the Grizzlies’ desire to move him for a modicum of value before he becomes a free agent this summer.
Conley may have some value on the trade market as well, though news of his surgery will depress that slightly and might make a trade untenable.
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An Evans deal seems almost inevitable at this point. The Grizzlies don’t need him in their efforts to make their way down the Western Conference standings and he certainly won’t be around next season after signing a one-year contract last summer. A contender that needs help with secondary creation off the bench will be willing to pay an asset for him; it’s just about which contender it is and which asset the Grizzlies covet most.
A low first-rounder seems like a bit too much for half a season from Evans, but perhaps a contender would throw in a bad contract to even things out. A team like the Oklahoma City Thunder might jump at a chance to get rid of Kyle Singler, but not at the cost of a first-round pick. If they got Evans in the deal, that becomes a more palatable option even though he’ll be a free agent in July. Something similar may work for the Utah Jazz and Joe Johnson’s expiring $10.5 million contract or the $10+ million left on Jason Smith’s deal in Washington.
Gasol is extremely interesting as a potential trade candidate, as valuing the three years and $72.4 million remaining on his contract (the last year is a player option) is a difficult exercise. There haven’t been any rumors surrounding Gasol being on the block in Memphis, but it might be time to cash in on him before he ages and while he’d still be a positive asset that could bring back a first-rounder and a young prospect to kickstart the Grizzlies’ rebuilding efforts. Gasol is having arguably the worst year of his career and has shown signs of failure on the defensive end but he could still bring immense value to a playoff team in need of a center. The Cleveland Cavaliers and Milwaukee Bucks should absolutely be sniffing around on Gasol to see what it would take for Memphis to part with their homegrown star.
Those same teams might look at Wright as a very poor man’s Gasol. His contract expires after this season and he could be a stopgap option for the remainder of the season at a low expense. For instance, if Cleveland wanted to use the Brooklyn Nets pick to go after help on the wing, Wright could be available for a small asset to help soak up minutes while Kevin Love is out injured.
Ennis is a name that has popped up in trade discussions as yet another expiring contract the Grizzlies would consider moving for a second-round pick or as part of a larger deal to help with salary matching. Despite a recent injury, he’s having a career year and could be a valuable bench player for a contending team that finds themselves weak on the wing. There are never enough wings to go around in today’s NBA, and Memphis might be able to extract value from a team looking for cheap help in that area.
Green’s contract extends into next season — which might be a problem for teams aiming to use their 2018 cap space — but his deal declines to $7.9 million. He’s not a darling of the advanced stats community but he might work for a team that needs some spacing and rebounding from the power forward position. If the Bulls are able to move Nikola Mirotic before the absolute last minute, Green might be a target for them. Or perhaps the New Orleans Pelicans would be interested in him now that their talks with the Chicago Bulls over Mirotic have broken down.
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For any and all of these players, the Grizzlies should target two things: draft picks and young players who haven’t had a chance to shine in their current situations. Whether they move on from Gasol and decide to hit the reset button completely or cash in on their expiring assets, stocking their cupboard with future assets is their primary objective at the deadline.