Zach Kleiman is taking the path less traveled in the worst way possible. In fact, the only other general manager in the NBA to take the path Kleiman has this year is Nico Harrison. Yeah, that is terrible company to be in these days.
Kleiman wasted however long the news conference was on Saturday, addressing his abrupt decision to fire Memphis Grizzlies coach Taylor Jenkins as the Grizzlies are the No. 5 seed in the West with nine games left in the regular season.
It’s as bone-headed of a decision as Harrison made when he traded Luka Doncic for Anthony Davis. It wasn’t a bad decision; just incredibly terrible timing. Essentially he felt Jenkins lost the locker room so much he wouldn’t be able to win a playoff series this year.
As Kleiman addressed reporters in the aftermath of his knee-jerk decision, he simply took accountability and deflected just about every other question that asked why he made the decision now, what went into the decision and who was involved in it.
Grizzlies general manager Zach Kleiman spoke this morning on the Taylor Jenkins dismissal and was asked if any of the players were consulted on the firing. “No,” he said. “This decision is mine and mine only.”
— Dave McMenamin (@mcten) March 29, 2025
Sure, he wasn’t going to take the public inside the front office and locker room and create dissension on a team that already looks fragile. But he shed no light on why this decision was so dire, it needed to be done with no clear direction at the most important time of the season.
Zach Kleiman was once an Executive of the Year and his latest move shows he’s far from those days
I tell you what, if Kleiman is half as good at managing his staff as he is eyeing talent in the NBA Draft, maybe we shouldn’t question why he pulled the plug on Jenkins on March 28. After all, in one season, GG Jackson looked like a young wing player that would wiggle his way into the core.
Jaylen Wells has made an argument for rookie of the year as has Zach Edey. He knows talent. But we haven’t quite seen if he can manage his staff when necessary. He brought Jenkins on to do exactly what he did.
At the time, Kleiman probably thought the Grizzlies could win more than just one playoff series under the winningest coach in Memphis history. Yet things got real bad in Memphis. The Grizzlies struggled against the good teams in the league and struggled to put together an offense that can win a playoff series.
He’s right, it’s his job to make those decisions, but if he didn’t even consult the players, let alone the core of Jaren Jackson, Jr., Desmond Bane and Ja Morant at least, there’s some bigger issues going on.
That also means, he’ll ultimately have to live with his mistake if the Grizzlies not only fall in the Western conference standings, but if Tuomas Iisalo doesn’t pan out, either this year or next if he gets the interim tag removed, it will be the decision that will haunt the Grizzlies for quite some time.