NBA Draft 2019: 5 targets for the Memphis Grizzlies

As the Memphis Grizzlies look at add a notable piece, here are five targets for them in the 2019 NBA Draft.

If anything, a surprising 12-5 start to the 2018-19 season seemed to rob the Memphis Grizzlies of the chance to get one of the top picks in June’s NBA Draft, and they were still a .500 team (18-18 when the calendar flipped to 2019. But they went 15-31 from there, and lottery luck was on their side as they jumped to the second overall pick. The pick was top-eight protected, and if it had fallen outside the top-eight it would have gone to the Boston Celtics to finally complete the Jeff Green trade.

As of right now, the No. 2 overall pick is Memphis’ only pick in the 2019 draft. They will get one of the best players in this year’s class, to add to 2018 fourth overall pick Jaren Jackson Jr. as the building blocks of a new era for the franchise. A trade is always possible, but it should take a lot to move the Grizzlies off the No. 2 pick if they have a specific player in mind (and early indications are they do).

With a lone, top-level pick, but some possibility to add a pick or two in the second round if they make a deal, here are five targets for the Grizzlies in the 2019 NBA Draft.

5. Zion Williamson, PF, Duke

Williamson is not falling past No. 1 overall to the New Orleans Pelicans, unless he somehow suffers a freak injury over the next month-plus. And as it relates to the Grizzlies, he would be a repetitive fit alongside Jackson in the frontcourt.

But on the incredibly remote chance the Pelicans go another direction, or trade the pick and somehow open the door for someone else to go No. 1, Memphis should happily take Williamson at No. 2 and figure out the fit later.

As some might say, there’s a “non-zero” chance Williamson winds up in Memphis. It’s a fraction of a fraction of a percent, but there is a chance.