Memphis Grizzlies Roundtable: Who should be the final two roster cuts?
Wade Baldwin and Jarell Martin
I’m going to try and avoid the obvious financial reasons for the last two roster spots and focus on who has shown me the least in pre-season. Financial reasons have to be factored in but I’m trying to not make them the primary reason.
Jarell Martin is an athletic specimen who should fit in nicely with the Grizzlies up-tempo style, but this hasn’t translated to on-the-court performance. Martin failed miserably against Houston playing a small center role. With Parsons looking like the most likely backup PF, where will he fit into the roster? Another season in the G-League won’t help him prepare, and there aren’t many minutes on the big roster. Martin seems like the odd man out.
Andrew Harrison and Wade Baldwin looked to be fighting Mario Chalmers for the reserve PG role. However with Chalmers seemingly winning the backup job and Harrison looking solid at two positions, Wade Baldwin has clearly lost his spot. The team already has point guard lined up for the Memphis Hustle in Kobi Simmons, so it may be that Wade is the odd man out.
Hopefully Wallace can find a way to trade him rather than an outright release since Harrison and Chalmers are both on one-year deals. A year from now, the team had better be able to show something from the 2016 1st round draft pick.
The outsider in this equation is Deyonta Davis. As a second-round pick, he should be inexpensive if released. He has shown no grasp of the NBA game offensively and gets lost on defense. Still, he’s a shot-blocker and young. It may be too early to give up on him now. If he survives the cuts, he’ll be among the last to do so. — Chip Crain (@Chipc3)