The Grizzlies’ 2023 Draft: What do they need, and who can fill those roles?

“Did we really need to triple down on youth at the beginning of the season?” Memphis Grizzlies General Manager Zach Kleiman asked rhetorically in his exit interviews in late April. In sports, regret is often an emotion left unstated: within the machismo punditry of American athletics, regret and humility are gawked at as signifiers of weakness. The quote serves to convey a sense of self-aware, self-afflicted purgatory. Humility to supplant ire, a PR stratagem.

Suspended in this purgatory, and increasingly ready to be slammed back down to the Earth, are the effects of Ja Morant’s 25-game suspension, a looming Dillon Brooks trade with festering questions about possible return value, and the aftermath of Steven Adams’ injuries over the past two years. That doesn’t even include questionable futures for former Grizzlies first-round picks like Jake LaRavia and David Roddy.

They also have a nearly filled roster (currently 14 out of the maximum 15), a new CBA and its consequences, an aggressively middling off-season free-agent class, and a draft filled to the brim with NBA-ready role-players. Players like LaRavia and Roddy could still become something, but losing Coach Darko Rajakovic, who handled much of the Grizzlies’ developmental heavy lifting to Toronto last week, along with Kleiman’s aforementioned “youth” quote, muddies their waters.

The Grizzlies don’t exactly have a clear or concise objective for this draft, largely because they have a metric ton of possible options. Thus, writing about the draft right now might be all for naught. The possible finagling needed to get decent returns on a Dillon Brooks sign-and-trade might require the reallocation of the Grizzlies’ picks this year.

Who knows how much confidence the front office has in a development staff that might be gearing up for a transitional year. Also, the sun might explode tomorrow, killing all forms of life within our solar system. So I’m gonna try anyway.

I’ve compiled a list of six categories of players the Grizzlies are possibly looking for. Each respective group will be given a bit of an introduction/overview. Prospects likely to be drafted on Thursday will fall into one of said six categories. I’ll highlight my favorite one out of the grouping, giving the chosen prospect a bit of a deeper dive, and then a list of some other possible options that I don’t like quite as much. So, this is kind of a hybrid off-season primer and draft overview. Let’s kick things off by addressing what they could do with the point guard spot.

Group A- NBA-Ready PG’s for Ja Morant’s Suspension

You couldn’t really ask for a better Ja Morant replacement than Tyus Jones to start out next season. He’s seasoned, the team has famously done well under his command, and his combination of playmaking and defense makes him both a solid starter and a continually great counterbalance to Ja Morant’s minutes. That being said, Tyus might not be enough, and he might not even be in Memphis for long.

The 25-game suspension to Morant might necessitate a backup PG who’s ready for a bit more run than what Vince Williams Jr. and Jacob Gilyard are ready for, plus rumors have begun to swell surrounding a Jones trade, citing his low usage in the playoffs and the fact he has one year left on his contract. Additionally, Desmond Bane at PG minutes is great when that glass box needs to be busted, but losing Dillon Brooks, plus the lack of shot-creating wings (to be spoken about in more depth for a later category) will necessitate some more wing minutes from Bane.

The free-agent options for PG are there, but a little shaky. Take a look at this list for the 2023 class: there are four Unrestricted-Free-Agent options I could see Memphis exploring on that list: Dennis Schroder,  Reggie Jackson, Gabe Vincent, and Jevon Carter. But, there’s a caveat: are any of those players ok with only having a solid place on the roster until Ja comes back?

More than likely not, since they’re all established rotation players. After those four, the options are pretty abysmal  (Tyus’ brother Tre Jones and Ayo Dosunmu are options I like as well, but their RFA contracts and solid play last year mean they’ll probably be picked up again by the Spurs and Bulls respectively).

So, back to the drafting board. My pick for this spot has got to be Anthony Black.

It would require trading up: Black is projected to go around the eight-to-twelve range on Thursday, but it’s a bet on a really fun prospect who’s going to need what the Grizzlies already have, which is shot-taker/makers and solid team defense. He’s got a solid frame at 210 lbs., has quick hands, and stays super active on defense, especially on-ball.

He’s also gritty (which is a Pavlovian tick to Grizzlies fans that I am exploiting purposefully): Arkansas upset Kansas (and generally had a really fun squad) because of sheer effort, fighting through screens, staying in front of guys, the works, and Black was a huge part of that. Offensively, he’s a creative and willing passer, with really nice attack speed (which would serve the Grizzlies’ fast-paced offense without uprooting its foundations).

This could be a pick that would offer both a backup PG prospect with Tyus aging (and perhaps later on wanting a starting role on another team, since he would indeed be deserving of one) and as a solution to the suspension.

If Black falls to the 10th pick, I could certainly see the Grizzlies manifesting a trade package to slide into that spot and steal Black, especially since the Mavericks, who are scheduled to pick 10th, could very well be looking to trade down. Might be a little pie-in-the-sky, but given the other options in a weaker PG draft, it might serve the Grizzlies well to bet on youth one more time.

Other options I like:

• Kobe Bufkin- Crazy 8-foot wingspan combo guard, 52% shooter (45% from three). Would necessitate a trade-up and doesn’t excite me with the ball or on defense as much as Black.
• Marcus Sasser- Suggested to me by Ben Pfiefer (who’s one of the best Twitter follows if you’re looking for draft stuff and Survivor takes) Would be a great pickup if trade-up packages fall short and Memphis is stuck at 25. Great defender on a Houston team that went up against some underrated offenses last season. Movement shooting upside, solid pull-up which is an option due to Sasser’s “sick handle” according to Sam Vecenie. 

Group B- Defensive Upside/Two-Way Wings Due to Dillon Brooks’ Relocation

So, I originally titled this section just “defensive-upside,” probably because it’s hard to remember Dillon Brooks’ offense fondly after the Lakers series. But it has to be said: for better or for worse, Brooks offered a solid offensive option for the Grizzlies; he was willing to put up shots and create space for Morant and Bane drives, and he worked hard for offensive rebounds and set good screens with his strong frame, so I figured “two-way” would be a bit more apt if the Grizzlies are looking for someone in a similar mold.

My pick here (and probably my favorite option for the Grizzlies) would be a trade-up for Bilal Coulibaly. Now, it might very well be possible that the Coulibaly hype train has reached critical velocity, and he might just get too expensive for the Grizzlies in terms of what pick they’d have to trade up to grab him, but, if he’s still floating out there in that eight-to-twelve range, I think Coulibaly has high enough of a defensive upside to take the bet on him.

Secondarily, the Grizzlies could draft and stash him, allowing him to continue playing in France for a season, which would give Memphis some flexibility on an already near-full roster, and still get him to Memphis by the time he’s 19/20.

On the court, Coulibaly is a lanky wing, a bit awkward, but has long strides, a 6-foot-6-inch height, and a 7-foot-2-inch wingspan. Has decent shooting mechanics but didn’t shoot a lot on Metropolitan 92. Crazy defender: was a “trainwreck” on defense last year according to No Ceilings’ podcast on Coulibaly,  but became a bonafide difference-maker this past year in a league full of grown dudes (at 18 may I remind you). He has a great first step on drives and can absorb contact pretty well with middling finishing stats this past year.

Although he started playing basketball at 10, his defensive awareness and fluidity on defense is extremely impressive and, as stated, has improved by miles. He can guard most backcourt players with his length and speed combination and could very well improve to an All-League Defensive Team level.

Other options I like:

• Rayan Rupert- Intense defender but unfortunately has struggled on offense in his brief time on the New Zealand Breakers. The Australian NBL might very well be a big part of that, with its laundry list of seasoned defenders and great coaches, but Rupert hasn’t been the most willing shooter either, which is a bit of a yellowish-orange flag, red under the right sunlight.
• Jaylen Clark- Could very well turn out to be the best defensive mind in the class. Has fantastic awareness as a team defender, navigates screens beautifully, turns well + quickly, and knows when to help effectively. The offense worries me, similar to Rupert: rough shooting, but has been a more willing shooter and has shot better around the rim than Rupert despite his smaller stature. Would be a great option at 45/56 if the Grizzlies don’t take Bailey.

Group C- Best Upside Picks Due to the Grizzlies’ Recent Draft History

This is a Ziaire Williams-esque pick: NBA-ready, older players with good size and versatile games. It’s what the Grizzlies have loved to draft the last couple of years, of course, according to some (me), the results of drafting this way have been middling at best. I’ll keep this one short: Xavier’s Colby Jones can do a lot of things.

He is a smart and creative passer, solid ball handler, good defender, and good shooter (especially catch-and-shoot). Doesn’t excel at anything specifically, which is a bit of a worry, but if the Grizzlies fall into old habits, this would be the guy I would hope they take.

Other options I like:

• Jalen Slawson- Shouts to @2023nbadraft on TikTok for suggesting Slawson. A five-year player from a really fun Furman team that showed serious flashes of creative playmaking and sturdy/heady team defense. Really nice value swing, and fits into that mold of Grizzlies draft picks: funky, versatile, older players with middling shooting.

Group D- Best Playmaker Picks Due to Grizzlies’ Stagnant Half-Court Offense

Per Cleaning the Glass, the Grizzlies ranked 22nd this most recent season, 22nd in 2022, and 26th in 2021 in half-court points-per-play. They’ve also ranked second, first, and first for percentage of halfcourt plays in those seasons respectively. Memphis has a half-court problem. The offense is a machine that runs on fastbreaks and vibes.

My theory is that a really solid-playmaking prospect that isn’t a defensive sieve who can also create at least a tiny bit of his own offense could ease some of those half-court woes. I’ve got to take one of my favorite players in the draft this year here, another one of Cronin’s cronies, Jaime Jaquez Jr. He’s a fantastic table-setter who has a high motor and a good-enough handle and shot to serve as a contributor right away for Memphis.

Jaquez Jr. has nice fundamentals, a good-to-great handle, and good enough size for some creative usages. He’s a pace-and-table setter, with enough playmaking tools that could push him into the rotation relatively early on. The big discussion around Jaquez Jr. is if his offensive skills will translate to the NBA.

He’s more of a technician than an athlete, with spin moves and great footwork, so detractors might say that the offense just won’t travel to the higher competition and that the defensive headiness could all for naught in a tougher league, but if the Grizzlies can use that 56th or even 45th pick on a flyer for Jaquez Jr., I firmly believe that he’s smart enough and works hard enough to get over some of those athletic questions. Also, to end, just watch this man:

Group E- Long Wingspan/Versatile Forwards for Brandon Clarke Insurance and JJJ at Center Small-Ball Lineups

The Grizzlies have a bit of a crowded bullpen of prospect-forwards, and given the aforementioned issues with LaRavia and Roddy’s futures, plus the unknowable viability of the phenomenon I’m being told is called “Kenneth Lofton Jr.” in real NBA minutes makes me want to take a swing on some of the solid forwards/wings this draft and nab a backup for the smaller lineups.

My pick here, which unfortunately would more-than-likely require a trade-up (I’m kind of low on this category, can you tell?) has to be Keegan Murray’s younger brother Kris Murray, who’s a six-foot-seven wing/forward who defends well, can finish at the rim, and has catch-and-shoot 3 viability.

He’s not quite the shooter Keegan is nor was in NCAA ball, and his mid-range game might very well be a project laced with inevitable failure, but he’s able to defend most players at positions two-through-four and could be a solid table-setter and rebounder as well. Plus, the first half of his season was pretty rough, and he improved mightily in the second half.

Other options I like:

• Kobe Brown- Very nice handle for his size (6-foot-7-inches). Has really nice strength at around 250 lbs. with more-than-functional shot mechanics and can lead fast breaks with impressive outlet passing. His passing in the halfcourt is pretty creative too, and Missouri’s super high-efficiency offense could signify what the Grizzlies are looking to improve on. Could be the lower-cost option since it wouldn’t require a trade-up.

Group F- Offensive Rebounding/Raw Strength Picks for Steven Adams Insurance

It’s tough to see a season rolling only for the good times to be halted by a three-month injury to a role player. A role player who’s massively important to the team and who still stands as one of the more beloved Grizzlies, but still a role player.

This draft is pretty weak at the center position, but Adama Sanogo could be a nice fit within the Grizzlies roster and has great value, projecting to land in the 40s-50s on Thursday. Really nice offensive player and has a lot of tools in his bag, ones he showed on a 2023 NCAA Championship run. Defensively, he’s rough as a rim defender, a middling on-ball defender, but a smart team defender with a strong and balanced base, which would do well in lineups with Jaren Jackson Jr. fending off drives.

Other options I like:

• James Nnaji- Explosive rim-running center who picked basketball late, which attributes to his palpable rawness. Could be a solid prospect for another team with a stronger foundation at Development and Development Services, but Nnaji is more than likely a swing that the Grizzlies won’t be able to afford this draft just in terms of the necessary development tools and time Nnaji might require.