Over the past few days, NBA rumors have made it very clear that the Memphis Grizzlies are looking alter their roster in order to charge through the Western Conference standings.
After starting the season with a brief stint as the NBA’s best record, the Memphis Grizzlies continue to find themselves in the thick of NBA rumors due to their recent free fall.
Memphis is a loser of three consecutive games and nine of the last 13. It is an understatement to say that the Grizzlies are in desperate need of positive energy — in addition to the scoring of points.
In speaking of scoring points, the Memphis Grizzlies have not reached the 100-point total since December 7th, which was a big win versus the New Orleans Pelicans.
On the defensive end, they have given up their top spot as the NBA’s best team defense, and now place second behind the Indiana Pacers with an allowance of 102.4 points per game.
The Grizzlies are in a funk and it is evident that their Front Office is trying to shake it off via roster changes. While the Joakim Noah signing made perfect sense, especially given the team’s open roster spot at that point in time, Memphis is now thinking deeper.
It all began with the weekend’s NBA rumors surrounding a three-team trade that ultimately fell through. Stemming from that deal now, the Memphis Grizzlies have steered their focus from Kelly Oubre to Austin Rivers, both of which became members of the Phoenix Suns this week.
Though the Oubre thought was put to rest (for now), the Austin Rivers idea remains up in the air. First, it was expected, then it appears as if it was premature reporting, though the Grizzlies have had interest in the guard.
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Rivers had not been released by Phoenix when the NBA rumors dropped on Tuesday, but the move was finally made later on Tuesday evening. It will be a interesting to see if there is any new smoke signals from the Memphis Grizzlies in relation to bringing aboard Austin Rivers.
Even if Memphis elects to pass on Rivers, it is absolutely clear that they are looking to make roster moves in the very near future, though they do not currently have any open roster spots. This means they would have to free space via trade or roster cut.
The Grizzlies fell to 16-14 on the season after Monday’s 110-93 loss to the Golden State Warriors. No matter how stellar Memphis’ defense may be, this particular match proves a major point. This club needs to add scoring outside of their current starting core.
If the past few days are any indication, fully expect the Memphis Grizzlies to continue to arise in NBA rumors — via trades and the waiver wire both.
Monday’s loss pushed Memphis out of the Western Conference‘s top-eight, which is all the more reason to make changes. They remain 2.0 games behind the fourth-ranked Los Angeles Lakers and 4.5 games below the conference-leading Denver Nuggets.
Each game continues to become more critical for the Grizzlies, and they must find a way to collect multiple victories on their current four-game road trip. This is a vital stretch in their 2018-19 season schedule.