NBA Draft: Zion Williamson Could Nix Memphis Grizzlies’ Opportunity to Land Ja Morant

The Memphis Grizzlies are decided on Ja Morant, but he may not be available for them to select if Zion Williamson returns to Duke.

Tuesday’s NBA Draft Lottery was one for the ages with three surprise teams leaping into the top-four. This included the Memphis Grizzlies defying their eight position odds and snatching the second overall pick in the 2019 NBA Draft.

With Zion Williamson and Ja Morant being the top two names in this year’s Draft, the top two teams on the Draft Board own the opportunity to select a sure-fire franchise-altering player. This is the perfect jump-start for the Grizzlies and their impending rebuild project.

This new restructured Front Office that the Memphis Grizzlies are entrusting nowadays is off to an excellent start. It could only become better if they score an A+ with the hire of a new head coach, which is still in process.

Perhaps the most relaxing and satisfying item to come within the first month of the new-look Front Office’s tenure took place on Wednesday afternoon, less than 24 hours after the franchise learned of their NBA Draft position. Rather than overthinking the decision at No. 2, the Memphis Grizzlies are said to be fully focused on Murray State’s Ja Morant, according to Jonathan Givony of ESPN.

Rather than wasting time in contemplating Morant or R.J. Barrett, the Memphis Grizzlies are taking the safe path. They know who they want to be their point guard of the future, which would enable them to have an incredible one-two punch of Ja Morant and sophomore-to-be Jaren Jackson Jr.

You could say that the Grizzlies’ golden opportunity is too good to be true. On Wednesday, the biggest sports headline involved Zion Williamson and his potential to return to Duke for his sophomore collegiate season.

As Zion surely hopes to suit up for a large-market NBA franchise, the New Orleans Pelicans are probably not anywhere on his list of preferred destinations. Since it is not up to him to decide where he lands, he could potentially hold out and return to school.

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Due to new rules pertaining to the NBA Draft and NCAA eligibility, a player can last up to 10 days prior to the Draft before making the decision to hire an agent and remain in the pool or alternatively return to college. If Williamson wants to become a villain before he plays an NBA regular season game, this is the perfect way to do it.

For the Memphis Grizzlies, this scenario would be devastating. If Zion Williamson were to return to Duke, that would put their chance of a Ja Morant selection at risk. Though the Pelicans already have Jrue Holiday, it would be hard for that struggling franchise to turn down the potential of another NBA All-Star talent in Morant.

This would not be the end of the world for the Memphis Grizzlies, but it would put a damper on the mood in the city. Their next choice would be to select Duke’s R.J. Barrett, which could pay major dividends in itself. However, Morant is widely considered to be the safer bet in weighing which prospect has the greater star potential.

While this news about Zion Williamson’s entrance into the NBA should force NBA fans to take a short pause, it does not make much sense for him to return to Duke. Zion is in for a huge payday once he signs his NBA contract. Plus, the endorsements. Talk about a flood of money coming his way. Regardless of which NBA team’s jersey he will first don, he will be an instant favorite across the basketball world.

Fans of the Memphis Grizzlies should not worry about the Zion Williamson discussions from Wednesday. If anything, Zion should do like other top NBA Draft picks of the past and hold out, forcing the original team (New Orleans Pelicans) to trade the prospect (Zion Williamson) in return of a large trade package.

The last thing the Pelicans need right now is a second disgruntled star player. Yet, for the Memphis Grizzlies, it is great to see an interdivisional foe continue to be stuck in the mud. The Grizzlies appear to be on the rise while the Pelicans may be settled at the bottom for quite some time.