The Memphis Grizzlies problem that no one seems to be talking about

At an average age of 26, the Memphis Grizzlies sport one of the younger rosters in the entire league and, simultaneously, with guys like Jaren Jackson Jr., Ja Morant, and Desmond Bane all healthy and leading the charge, one of the more talented.

This enviable status has been achieved through savvy draft-day decision-making, as each of these aforementioned studs was selected consecutively from 2018 through 2020, respectively.

However, since Bane was snatched with the 30 pick four years ago, the Grizzlies have fallen into a rather serious rut as far as drafting is concerned, particularly during the festivities' first round.

Grizzlies have faired poorly with NBA Draft decisions over past few years

Over the past several years, Zach Kleiman and company have found themselves missing the mark on quite a number of draft prospects.

In particular, during both the 2021 and 2022 NBA Drafts, the Grizzlies reached significantly on the likes of Ziaire Williams and Jake LaRavia, respectively, as they were players who, though possessed promise and overall intrigue, were raw talents projected to be late first to early second-round picks that, in the end, were snatched up at 10 (Williams) and 19 (LaRavia) overall.

Of course, the draft day issues don't just involve the players that they wound up selecting but, also, the talents they opted to pass on and, in some instances, even select and then trade away mere moments later, for many of them, if held on to, could have proven to be great contributors for this Grizzlies team.

One of the most noteworthy players the Grizzlies drafted and then traded away is the 22 pick from the 2022 class, Walker Kessler, who currently finds himself maturing into a rising star center with the Utah Jazz and is coming off a solid sophomore campaign where he posted impressive per-game averages of 8.1 points, 7.5 rebounds, and 2.4 blocks while shooting 65.4 percent from deep.

Considering Memphis is in desperate need of a center what with the mid-season departures of both Steven Adams and Xavier Tillman this past campaign, it goes without saying that the 22-year-old would prove to be a highly valuable asset if held onto.

Along with Walker are several other gut-punch misses, which, arguably, is a list headlined by the draft-day trade that sent the rights to Trey Murphy III over to the New Orleans Pelicans back in 2021.

Since this decision was made, Murphy has become an up-and-coming 3-and-D wing for NOLA and is coming off a tremendous season where he posted averages of 14.8 points, 4.9 rebounds, and 2.2 assists while shooting 38.0 percent from deep on a whopping 7.8 attempts per game.

Williams, meanwhile, is coming off yet another injury-riddled season that, even when found on the hardwood, saw him put up incredibly inconsistent production (8.2 points and 3.5 rebounds on 39.7 percent shooting from the floor). Now, he's considered a player that the franchise must look to offload this summer.

Of course, we would be remiss if we didn't mention that there have been some impressive selections made by this front office throughout this stretch from 2020 through the present, as Kleiman and co. managed to snatch up steal of talents in the second round with Vince Williams Jr. and GG Jackson in back-to-back drafts.

That said, the rate at which they've been missing on their first-round selections is rather concerning.

Now, heading into the 2024 NBA Draft, the Grizzlies hold the rights to the ninth overall selection after enduring one of their worst seasons in recent memory by wrapping with an unsavory record of 27-55.

With this pick, the hope among the franchise's faithful followers is that the front office will be able to land a complimentary talent to plug into coach Jenkins' rotations next season and, in turn, address some of the team's glaring issues that were painfully present throughout this past year.

Of course, based on their recent track record, fans deserve to be a bit weary about this team's ability to make the most of their high-end draft rights.

Here's to hoping 2024 brings better fortunes than years passed!