A reporter at the Cleveland Plain Dealer turned heads recently when he revealed two high-profile Memphis Grizzlies players may not be as untouchable as many fans thought. “Grizzlies small forwards Dillon Brooks and Kyle Anderson are available for the right price,” sources told The Plain Dealer’s Chris Fedor in a story published August 22, 2021.
Trading Kyle Anderson makes a ton of sense when you factor in his expiring contract after this season, his age relative to Ja Morant and Jaren Jackson, Jr., and his productivity is at a career-high.
Memphis Grizzlies wing Dillon Brooks is a centerpiece of the team’s roster, making a trade seem puzzling
What seems to be the most puzzling is making Dillon Brooks available — a player who was called the “soul of the Memphis Grizzlies” in a story by columnist Mark Giannotto of the Memphis Commercial Appeal as recently as April 2021.
I’ve gone through a few trade scenarios focusing on Kyle Anderson in a previous post. Here, we’ll be focusing on trades involving Memphis Grizzlies star Dillon Brooks. There should be plenty of interest among the league for Brooks — he averaged 25.8 points per game in the first-round playoff series against Utah.
Brooks is not only capable of being a volume shooter that can get you buckets, but he also sets the tone defensively for the team. He sets hard screens, he dives for those 50-50 balls — he is the exact player you want on your team when you’re in the playoff trenches.
If the Memphis Grizzlies are to trade Dillon Brooks, the team will need to get a significant asset in return. Who would be willing to pay the price required to relinquish Dillon Brooks?
Let’s find out.