'191': What should the Grizzlies do with 25th pick?
The Memphis Grizzlies' draft history shows you never know what to expect. What could Zach Kleiman do with the 25th pick?
The NBA draft is officially one week away. It’s definitely a great time of year, one where followers of the league can feel promise and upside as new blood comes into the league.
It feels extra sweet for the Memphis Grizzlies given their recent success. They’ve surrounded Ja Morant and Jaren Jackson Jr. with Brandon Clarke, Desmond Bane, Xavier Tillman, Santi Aldama, and David Roddy through the draft. And they still have promise with wing prospects Ziaire Williams and Jake LaRavia.
This year’s draft, however, feels different in terms of activity. In 2021, the Grizzlies generated buzz by trading up for the 10th pick — with smoke about climbing higher. They walked into the 2022 draft with 2 first round picks and made a plethora of moves to turn the 22nd and 29th picks and De’Anthony Melton into the 19th (LaRavia), 23rd (Roddy), and Danny Green (which became Luke Kennard).
Now, no one knows what the Grizzlies will do, and there’s a preference to trade it entirely for a veteran at the 3.
With a week to go, let’s get to the ‘191’ with their draft options.
1 Question: Which past trend will the Grizzlies lean this draft?
The Grizzlies have options at the 25th pick, and all of them laid out correlates with their transactional history.
Will they go move up from 25th to go get their guy like they did with Clarke, Williams, Aldama, and LaRavia?
With a first-round selection, will they roll with a more polished prospect ready to go? Or will they lean more with upside?
Will they target someone that may be a reach by the consensus — similar to Aldama and Roddy?
Finally, will the Grizzlies use the 25th pick to go get a veteran? If so, what caliber of player will come here? It won’t be able to serve as a standalone asset, as money-matching salary and extra draft picks will be needed to nab a difference maker.
There are multiple directions the Grizzlies could take in this year’s draft, and the front office will keep their cards to their chest until they make their moves.
9 options with the 25th pick
Trade the pick. The Memphis Grizzlies need more veterans and a starting small forward. The 25th pick is their best asset to do so. In addition, there’s a plethora of young prospects competing for minutes next season — Ziaire, Roddy, LaRavia, Kenneth Lofton Jr. Will throwing another young player in the mix? I’m not sure. If they end up making a pick at (or around) 25, it won’t be a reason to outrage. It’s another opportunity for the Grizzlies to develop another rotation player within its system predicated around its successful talent identification and developmental programs.
Brice Sensabaugh. The Memphis Grizzlies need to bolster their halfcourt offense. Sensabaugh is one of the best players in this class at putting the ball in the hoop. He adds scoring pop that’s needed in the Grizzlies’ wing rotation. His defense and skillset outside of scoring may slide him down the board, but he’d be the best player on the board at 25.
Kris Murray. Murray fits a Grizzlies draft strategy of targeting productive college players without any regard for a player’s age. He’ll be 23 by opening night this season, but he has the requisite skills to thrive as a 3-and-D wing that identifies gaps in the defense to score as a cutter. He could be a day-1 rotation player, whether it’s in Memphis or elsewhere.
Jett Howard. Jett Howard has slipped a bit, with concerns of his defense and ankle injuries looming. However, he’d be a young prospect with catch-and-shoot upside, as well as some potential as a shot creator.
Brandin Podziemski. Brandin Podziemski checks a lot of boxes. He has shooting pop, he’s a committee rebounder, he can facilitate as a playmaker, and he generates defensive events. He doesn’t have a lot of size to play the wing, but he’d be a good combo guard to develop — as the Grizzlies don’t have any guards in it “prospect” tier.
Colby Jones. Colby Jones has often been dubbed a “Grizzlies guy” in the draft process. He’s a high-floor prospect with good scoring efficiency, rebounding, passing, and defense. He could be a 3-and-D combo guard that fits right in a backcourt of Ja Morant, Desmond Bane, and Luke Kennard.
Trade Up. In his recent mock draft, ESPN’s Jonathan Givony reported that the Grizzlies are interested in moving up into the late lottery or middle of the first round. If the Grizzlies trade up to go get their guy, it wouldn’t be ideal, but we can’t rule it out. Potential targets? Kobe Bufkin, Nick Smith Jr., Jalen Hood-Scifino, or Leonard Miller.
GG Jackson. One of the most polarizing picks in the draft, it’d be hard to be upset at nabbing GG Jackson with this pick. As an 18-year old prospect, he possesses incredibly tantalizing scoring ability and size. Though, there are questions about his game aside from scoring, and if he’s willing to scale his game down to the team’s needs. It’d be a total pre-draft move, as analysts described him as the potential #1 pick if he stayed in 2024 class.
Olivier-Maxence Prosper. “O-Max” Prosper has soared up draft boards due to his intriguing tools and shooting potential to be a good 3-and-D player as a 6’7” wing with 7’1” wingspan. If the Grizzlies make any sort of “reach” for their guy — a strategy in past drafts — it’s for Prosper. He’s a competitive, high-character guy that fits the mold of players they’ve targeted in recent years.
1 Take: If the Grizzlies use a 1st-round pick, either at 25 or higher/lower, a combo guard would be intriguing.
You should always want to draft for the best player available. However, you want to give players the proper environment to thrive. A logjam could encourage competition, which is always awesome, but it could block the pathway for players to even get an opportunity to grow.
The Grizzlies have a boatload of players to look at for the 3 and 4. Ziaire Williams and Vince Williams Jr. could play the 2 as well, but they don’t have another combo guard they’re developing.
A developmental combo guard is beneficial for a number of reasons. Obviously, you want someone to scale down to contribute in catch-and-shoot and cutting scenarios, while contributing defensively. However, a combo guard can — ideally — run the offense in pitches and add more creation juice to the offense. Down the road, they can be someone that could play alongside Ja Morant and Desmond Bane, a team-building focus going forward.
The names that fit the mold have been mentioned: Brandin Podziemski, Colby Jones, Nick Smith Jr., or Jalen Hood-Schifino. Another prospect that I want to mention here is Duke’s Dariq Whitehead — who has promise as a creator and shooter, but may fall due to medical issues (recently had his 2nd foot procedure).
Regardless, the Memphis Grizzlies have options with their 25th pick this season — whether it’s with selecting another young complementary player next to Ja Morant, Jaren Jackson, and Desmond Bane… or using it to add a veteran one to bolster its immediate championship chances.
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