Thursday 3 October 2019 17:28, UK
The Memphis Grizzlies hope No 2 Draft pick Ja Morant can lift the team back into playoff contention.
The splintering of the 'Grit 'n' Grind' era continued in earnest when the Grizzlies traded Marc Gasol to the Toronto Raptors at the trade deadline and continued their rebuild. Memphis fell off the radar, plunging into the Draft lottery and preparing for major changes in the offseason.
The Grizzlies gravitated toward rookie Jaren Jackson Jr, an athletic big who had moments, enough to at least give hope for the future. Jackson showed a decent shooting touch, though not enough 'grind' to confuse him with Zach Randolph. Regardless, he symbolised a new direction for the club beginning to distance themselves from their former personality into something altogether different.
Mike Conley, the lone holdover, stayed healthy enough to play 70 games and led the club in scoring (21.1 points per game) and once again fell short of an All-Star nod.
He was flanked by Jonas Valanciunas, a low-post center obtained from Toronto in the Gasol trade, who was solid in his abbreviated time in Memphis (19.9 PPG, 10.7 RPG).
Otherwise the Grizzlies experienced the usual shuffling of players and inconsistency that comes with such a transition. A series of journeymen, tapped-out veterans and unproven young players came and went as the Grizzlies suited up 29 players last season.
By the season's end, they were a mish-mash with few assets and ultimately came to the conclusion that new faces were necessary not only on the floor, but on the bench and in the front office.
The long-anticipated changing of the high command finally happened when Chris Wallace was stripped of his GM duties and JB Bickerstaff was fired as coach. Owner Robert Pera created a shake-up designed to give the Grizzlies a new vision and leadership with hopes that the small-market team can accelerate into the next phase with a bolder and meaningful plan.
Jason Wexler is the new team president, and Zach Kleiman is the new VP of basketball operations. While the Grizzlies will operate by committee, Kleiman will function as the day-to-day basketball guy and point man for all things personnel.
He is just 30 years old yet grew steadily in the ranks, interning with two NBA teams, armed with a law degree from Duke and employed in a New York law firm before embarking on the basketball administrative side full-time.
If that hiring was not unconventional enough, the Grizzlies added Taylor Jenkins as coach at age 34. Jenkins came through the ranks of the San Antonio Spurs, where he was their G League coach and then followed former Spurs assistant Mike Budenholzer on the bench in Atlanta and Milwaukee.
The new administration immediately went to work on the roster, seizing advantage of the club's cap flexibility to remake the rotation, but everything began with the selection of Ja Morant with the No 2 overall pick.
While Morant was selected after the New Orleans Pelicans took Zion Williamson at No 1, the Grizzlies were not complaining. This time a year ago, Morant was not on the radar, but he became a highlight star at Murray State and soon soared up the charts. Smitten by his athleticism and playmaking ability, NBA scouts projected Morant as a potential franchise player and solid No 2 choice behind Williamson. The Grizzlies agreed.
He will immediately replace Conley, who was sent to the Utah Jazz for a package that included the No 23 pick.
The Grizzlies used that pick in a swap to get Brandon Clarke, who starred at Gonzaga and should see decent minutes at forward as a rookie. Clarke made a big splash early by earning MVP honours in the Las Vegas Summer League.
Then the Grizzlies made some minor deals with potentially big implications. The first involved taking Andre Iguodala and a protected first-round pick as a sweetener from the Warriors. Obviously, Iguodala is not in the Grizzlies' future plans and is more valuable to them as a trade chip. The question is when he will be traded, and how much the Grizzlies can get for him.
Memphis also made an offer sheet for Tyus Jones that was too rich for the Minnesota Timberwolves to match and got him for three years and $28m - a steep price for a young back-up. But all it cost Memphis was money, and the Grizzlies are gambling that Jones will be worth it with more playing time.
The other risk is with Josh Jackson, a former No 4 pick who was a major disappointment in two seasons with the Phoenix Suns.
Jackson shot poorly in Phoenix and developed off-court issues that damaged his value. He is only 22, though, and the cost was low and because the Grizzlies are in the business of player development, he became a worthwhile project. There are similar hopes for De'Anthony Melton, a poor shooter but a player who brings solid defensive instincts and can be groomed into a specialist and possible rotational player.
Grayson Allen, on the other hand, is a solid shooter - or at least he showed as much in college at Duke a few years ago. His lone season in Utah was spiced by an unexpected 40-point effort in the final regular-season game. Otherwise, he was a bench fixture, playing only 38 games. Again, the Grizzlies are on a search for diamonds in the rough, and perhaps Allen, who came in the Conley trade along with Jae Crowder, will qualify.
The transformation of the Grizzlies was completed, then, by a busy summer's end and the club will bear no resemblance to the squad that captured the affection of the city and routinely made the playoffs with a style that no longer fit today's NBA.
The new era will depend on how quickly Morant and Jackson can develop chemistry and how wisely the Grizzlies can add to the talent core.
Veteran NBA writer Shaun Powell has worked for newspapers and other publications for more than 25 years. Follow him on Twitter at https://twitter.com/Powell2daPeople
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