3 Players Grizzlies must target in a Ziaire Williams trade

Earlier this week, The Athletic's Shams Charania dropped a report noting that the Memphis Grizzlies are actively "discussing deals" in an attempt to move on from their soon-to-be fourth-year wing, Ziaire Williams.

A shock this news is not, at least not to the Grind City faithful as his on-court inconsistencies and injury woes have severely limited him when it comes to seeing in-game action for this win-now club, as he's averaged sub-20 minutes for his career since being drafted 10 overall in the 2021 NBA Draft.

Still, despite his struggles to this point, hope may not be lost for the tweener forward, as he's only 22 years old, has the allure of a recent lottery-selected talent attached to his resume, and, with his lengthy build and innate athleticism, boasts the potential of becoming a solid 3-and-D player in the league should he improve upon his jumper and, frankly, land with a more development-driven club.

Players Grizzlies should pursue in a potential Ziarie Williams trade

Strewn across the league are a bevy of teams who could be willing to take on the challenge of tapping into Williams' upside, and, within these prospective buyers' arsenal are a few players in particular who the Grizzlies must strongly consider inquiring about in any potential trade negotiations.

Chris Boucher

The Toronto Raptors are truly one of the more interesting teams out in the Eastern Conference.

Despite having several sound building blocks already in place in Scottie Barnes, RJ Barrett, Immanuel Quickley, and Gradey Dick, they are still a team that's coming off a putrid 25-57 campaign and appear to be prioritizing more of a youth movement than anything else.

Because of this, even if they have aspirations of the Play-In Tournament or, even more daring, a postseason run in 2024-25, they still appear to be in a prime position to take a shot on yet another high-upside youngster like Ziaire Williams, especially if it means parting ways with an elder statesman in the process.

The 31-year-old Chris Boucher could be a fine target for the Grizzlies to pursue in a hypothetical exchange with Toronto, as he's a seasoned veteran who can play both the power forward and center position and who has proven capable of making an impact on both ends of the floor throughout his seven-year career.

For his career, Boucher boasts solid per-game averages of 8.7 points, 5.2 rebounds, and 1.0 blocks on 48.8 percent shooting from the floor and 33.3 percent shooting from deep.

Measuring in at 6-foot-9 with an insane 7-foot-4 wingspan, the veteran would be a player who could come into Memphis with the kind of rotational switchability skills coach Taylor Jenkins covets while his two NBA Championships (2018 with Warriors, 2019 with Raptors) would provide this hungry Grizzlies squad with the experience they severely lack as they enter into a redemption season in 2024-25.