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If the Memphis Grizzlies trade point guard Mike Conley at the trade deadline, the veteran floor general reportedly doesn't want to be traded to the Utah Jazz or any Western Conference team, according to Marc Stein of The New York Times and Brian Windhorst of ESPN:
Per @WindhorstESPN on The Jump, Mike Conley's agent has made it known he does not want to play with Utah #Jazz. If he's going to be traded, he would prefer to go to the Eastern Conference.
— Tomer Azarly (@TomerAzarly) February 6, 2019
Have heard the same as Windy: There is reluctance on Conley's part to go to Utah. That said … this is not the first time that the Jazz have heard that. Conley is owed $66 million over the next two seasons. If Utah and Memphis came to terms, Conley would have to go … https://t.co/g4OVNcRkQ1
— Marc Stein (@TheSteinLine) February 6, 2019
Mike Conley reportedly prefers to play for the Toronto Raptors, where he would replace Kyle Lowry as the starting point guard.
In 53 games this season for the Grizzlies, Conley is averaging 20.4 points, 3.4 rebounds and 6.4 assists per contest. The 31-year-old is shooting 43.3 percent from the field, 36.5 percent from beyond the arc and 84.6 percent from the free-throw line.
Why would Mike Conley not want to play in the West? That's hard to answer. Maybe he wants to play in the East because it would be easier to make a playoff run and the All-Star Game in the future. There's also the fact that Conley doesn't want to face the Grizzlies again, particularly in Memphis, as a visitor.
This is all speculation at this point, though. But Conley doesn't have a no-trade clause, so he can't block the Grizzlies from sending him anywhere. The NBA trade deadline is on Thursday. Memphis defeated the Minnesota Timberwolves on Tuesday at home in what might have been Conley's last game as a member of the Grizzlies.
