Grizzlies: Where my head is with the 32nd pick?
The Grizzlies have the 32nd pick in the draft, and it could look more like a play to add some more assets.
The second round of the NBA Draft is a week from today. The Memphis Grizzlies are in an advantageous position with the 32nd pick, on top of the 3rd and 16th picks.
When assessing it, I’m more enamored with 32nd as the asset rather than the pick. The Grizzlies really don’t have room for three rookies on the main roster, as the 32nd pick is typically reserved for a high-end second-rounder on the second-round exception. From a roster perspective, would you rather keep Olivier-Maxence Prosper and/or GG Jackson or the 32nd pick in the draft? I’d go with the former.
The Grizzlies have two directions here that feel likely.
First is trading up by consolidating 16 and 32 to move up the board. As discussed earlier this month, they could look to teams like the Golden State Warriors to move up.
Second is trading down from 32, where they can go down to the middle of the board and acquire more assets. They only have six second-round picks between now and 2032. They could use more. While the Grizzlies could get second-round picks in other ways, trading down from 32 is the most sensible pathway.
As always expressed, second-round picks aren’t about just the players here — even as the Grizzlies have found value there with Jaylen Wells, Cam Spencer, GG Jackson, among others. It’s currency. They’ve used second-round picks to trade up on numerous occasions, and to target Luke Kennard at the deadline. Teams have leveraged second-round picks to get upgrades — see Minnesota and Charlotte with Ayo Dosunmu and Coby White just four months ago.
I’m less excited about the 32d pick, and more about asset management with it — including getting to be one of the first teams to sign a priority two-way player.
With that said, something I haven’t done yet for the Grizzlies and the draft, here are the players I like in a possible trade-down in the second round.
Richie Saunders: Saunders is fascinating because he’s a first-round talent, but he’s older (25 years old) and coming off a torn ACL injury. However, the Grizzlies should totally look to negotiate a two-way contract for him to rehab from injury and play with the Hustle next season — then converting him to a four-year special that takes him through his prime age. He’s a dribble-pass-shoot wing that can crash the glass and create turnovers. He’s a real shooter. I’m worried about his defensive translation, but his turnover creation does extend the margins a bit.
Izaiyah Nelson: If the Grizzlies want to emphasize the possession game, go look at Nelson. He crushes the offensive glass, and he generates stocks at a high level. He’s scheme-versatile and is a smaller 5 that can play fast. He may be small for the 5, but he also needs to prove he can play the 4 in pinches. Nonetheless, he’s a guy that ticks boxes with his analytics, motor, and speed.
Baba Miller: Miller took a big step forward with his senior year. He’s a big 4 that can make high-level reads and crash the glass. I’m worried about his real equity on the perimeter on both sides of the floor. Can he cover in space well enough to take 3’s and 4’s? Can he shoot the ball in any capacity? Nonetheless, his feel and rebounding are worth betting on.
Maliq Brown: Brown is one of the most productive defensive prospects in quite some time — third in Barttorvik’s database in defensive box plus/minus (+8.1). He can defend in space and is aggressive defending in schemes. He has quick hands and generates tons of turnovers. He’s a sneaky good playmaker that throws creative darts — sometimes to a fault (13.4 AST%, 24.1 TOV%, 1.4 AST/TO ratio). He’s a savvy two-way playmaker, but he has to find his offensive equity as an undersized 5.
Trevon Brazile: Brazile would be a fascinating depth play for Memphis due to his ability to play both the 4 and 5. He’s an easy lob target due to his high catch radius. He’s a willing shooter as well, creating pick-and-roll diversity. He can create defensive events and is mobile in space, but true role definition can be questioned. Regardless, Brazile would be a play for enhancing the speed and athleticism in the frontcourt.
Felix Okpara: The Grizzlies have rarely targeted centers with raw athleticism and with projection towards two-way rim-influence (lob threat and rim protection combination). Okpara would fit that mold as an athletic center that crashes the glass, has scheme versatility, and can finish plays. He’s raw with his feel, and the Grizzlies should target more frontcourt playmaking. Nonetheless, Okpara is a play towards being bigger, more physical, and stronger.
Nate Bittle: Bittle isn’t a great athlete, which hurts his potential role upside. However, he would provide a strong intersection of three-point shooting, rebounding, positional playmaking, play-finishing, and rim protection as a near 7-footer. The 3-point accuracy isn’t desirable (31.9 percent), but he shoots them and has good touch indicators. He reminds me of Jock Landale.
If the Grizzlies trade down, they can also do a draft-and-stash — although the pool of international players isn’t quite as strong as previous years. Maybe they can target Vsevolod Ischenkotheb, a player with a cool profile from just an initial glance. One cool sidebar, how cool would it be to draft-and-stash a player who then plays for Paris Basketball, Tuomas Iisalo’s former club?
The Grizzlies don’t even have to do anything until the first round is over. For all we know, someone like Zuby Ejiofor or Tarris Reed could fall to the second round, and either of those bigs would be awesome to back up Zach Edey. Maybe Sergio De La Torre falls and can become a draft-and-stash candidate — although The Stein Line’s Jake Fischer reported that Minnesota (28) and New York (31) have interest in him.
Regardless, due to the Grizzlies’ roster situation and the value of cost-controlled depth within the CBA, I’d expect the 32nd pick to become a handy asset that could help Memphis move around the board and potentially add more second-round picks to their asset collection.
You can also read more about these prospects in my third annual NBA Draft Guide, where I outline my top-75 players in this class and provide 60 single-page scouting reports for my top-60. It includes all the players mentioned here, except for Ischenko.
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Would be nice to trade up from 16