When the Memphis Grizzlies traded Dillon Brooks to the Houston Rockets, they needed another player to step up as the enforcer for this team. They needed a player that had no problem being in the middle of everything, while also stepping up for the rest of the team.
It took them just one season without Brooks to find their new villain. Zach Edey doesn’t play about his teammates and the Cleveland Cavaliers found that out on Sunday.
After Desmond Bane and Donovan Mitchell got tangled up on the sideline, closest to the Cavaliers bench, a shoving match ensued. Edey was one of the first Grizzlies players barging into the scene and making his presence known.
From a camera angle courtside, you could see Edey was right in the middle of it, needing practically the entire Grizzlies coaching staff to pull him back. Even as Bane moved away, Edey refused to get punked.
Zach edey crying “he went after my player” lmfao https://t.co/GjLJJ32z4h pic.twitter.com/lHFJcfEmPg
— Mark Smaldino (@MDSmalls23) February 24, 2025
It’s not the first time Edey has been in a middle of a fracas during his breakout rookie season. He’s practically been the perfect replacement for Brooks from an enforcer standpoint. Brooks wasted no time trying to get in players’ heads throughout the game.
He didn’t even shy away from a chance to poke at LeBron James. I’m not saying Edey is that bold, but he’s continuing to send the message: Don’t mess with Zach Edey; and don’t mess with his teammates.
Zach Edey being the enforcer for the Memphis Grizzlies is a good and bad thing
Truthfully, every team needs a player like Draymond Green, Brooks and Edey. While Green typically takes it a bit too far, having a player that defends his teammates, while not backing down can sometimes be important.
More times than most, those players are menaces on defense and know how to get players to tick without going too far. And as long as punches aren’t thrown and no dirty plays are made, a player coming to his teammates defense is always good.
Again, there’s limits to how far it goes. Basketball is a physical sport and sometimes emotions take over. As long as things are within reason, it’s never bad having a player being the enforcer and antagonizer.
And the Grizzlies have been needing to find a new one after Brooks. It seems Edey has proclaimed himself the new antagonizer for the Grizzlies. Memphis fans will love him, but the rest of the NBA? Not so much.