Memphis Grizzlies: Mike Conley Not Interested In Being Involved With A Rebuild

The Memphis Grizzlies are headed towards an offseason of uncertainty with big changes coming. It appears as if Mike Conley may be on his way out of town.

Mike Conley isn’t the type of guy who will come out and demand a trade, but he has made it known he wants to start competing for championships. He doesn’t have confidence that the Memphis Grizzlies can make that happen for him.

Conley had a very impressive season especially after the trade deadline as he certainly has improved his trade value even more. With just two years remaining on his deal there will be a number of teams interested in acquiring him.

This season he played in 70 games for the first time since 2014-15 and probably could’ve played in more if it wasn’t for him resting so often. He was very good in those games as well as he averaged 21.1 points, 6.4 assists, 3.4 rebounds, and 1.3 steals per game. He does so much for this team and he can bring that to any playoff contender he may be traded to.

Conley doesn’t have any interest in staying in Memphis for a rebuild. That doesn’t mean he has anything against the city or the organization, but it just seems as if this part of his career has run its course. There should be no hard feelings, but it’s time to move on.

The Grizzlies absolutely shouldn’t trade him just to do so, but the suitors will be there. The majority of the teams with interest should be teams that feel they can compete for a championship.

Mike Conley is a special player and means a lot to this organization, but they have to do what’s best for them. That doesn’t mean they trade him somewhere he won’t enjoy, but he certainly does not get to pick where he ends up. He didn’t know how to react to the Woj Bomb on Thursday afternoon.

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The Grizzlies made big changes to their organization as head coach J.B. Bickerstaff was fired while general manager Chris Wallace was demoted to a scouting role. They had many other changes to the front office while other changes are sure to follow as the fill out the rest of their front office and coaching staff.

It’s hard to envision these changes happening unless they were considering some big changes to the roster as well. Not necessarily a lot of new faces, but the overall makeup of the team will be different.

This signals that the Grizzlies might be ready to give Jaren Jackson Jr. the keys as the next franchise star of this organization. He had a great rookie season, but he did miss the end of the season due to a deep thigh bruise.

He is a special talent, but it might be the guys who played well to end the season that make the future so bright. Guys such as Delon Wright and Jonas Valanciunas all played well and the front office is expected to make retaining them a priority.

Mike Conley wants to play for a title contender and that won’t be in Memphis, and the organization is okay with that. They know he gave his all for this city and they also like the core that they are building. It wouldn’t be a shock if he returns to Memphis next season, but after the changes to the front office and the firing of J.B. Bickerstaff, I don’t envision a scenario that Conley would stay with the Grizzlies.