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The Memphis Grizzlies, after three straight disappointing seasons, decided to pivot, trading away Desmond Bane to the Orlando Magic for a package consisting of four first-round picks, a pick swap, Cole Anthony, and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope. This was a gigantic return for someone who hasn't yet made an All-Star team, and affords the Grizzlies an opportunity to bid for the next star that becomes available in the trade market.
It's definitely a curious move, however, that the Grizzlies decided to move on from someone whom many thought was going to be a part of the team's core for the foreseeable future. This perhaps opens up the possibility that Memphis decides to blow it up and start from scratch, expunging all the bad vibes that seem to have been emanating from the team over the past three seasons.
Nonetheless, rumor has it that the Grizzlies front office isn't exactly looking to rebuild. They instead would like to keep Ja Morant and Jaren Jackson Jr. and build from there, hoping that a full offseason under head coach Tuomas Iisalo would help re-establish them as a force to be reckoned with in the stacked Western Conference.
But with Jackson being in the last year of his deal, the Grizzlies may want to recoup some value for him, lest he walks for nothing in free agency. The 25-year-old former Defensive Player of the Year has been noncommittal about his future, and it's not quite clear how he feels regarding the franchise's direction in the aftermath of the Bane trade.
With that said, this is the trade that the Grizzlies must entertain if push comes to shove on the Jackson front.
Grizzlies to take advantage of 76ers' desperation?
Grizzlies acquire: Kelly Oubre Jr., Andre Drummond, Eric Gordon, 2025 first-round pick (third overall), 2028 first-round pick (from LAC), 2030 first-round pick (from PHI)
76ers acquire: Jaren Jackson Jr.
The 76ers are coming off a nightmare 2024-25 season; they entered the new campaign with high hopes after securing the summer signing of Paul George, but they never got going due to injury woes and proceeded to end the season needing to strategically lose ballgames just so they could keep their first-round pick this year (they owe it to the Oklahoma City Thunder if it fell outside the top-six).
Joel Embiid's injury woes cast such a huge cloud on the 76ers and their contending hopes; it's unclear if Embiid will ever be the same caliber of superstar he was prior to this past season after undergoing yet another surgery on his left knee. The good news for them is that they've been granted a pathway to straddling a two-timeline path, having the requisite talent to compete in the present while opening up the door for them to build a young up-and-coming team should the Embiid-George veteran star duo continue to decline.
Nonetheless, the 76ers, for better or for worse, are going to be stuck with Embiid, and even though he's going to be very limited from this point forward, he remains a dominant force, as long as he's able to move well. So perhaps the 76ers would want to give Embiid the best chance possible to compete for a title for as long as his knees are working.
And with that, the 76ers may not have the patience to wait for the presumptive third overall pick, Ace Bailey, to develop. Bailey has such high potential as an athletically-gifted three-level scorer on the wing, but he's so raw as a playmaker and decision-maker that it will take years for him to blossom into the necessary piece on a championship-level team.
If the 76ers operate with a win-now urgency this offseason, perhaps the Grizzlies can capitalize on such desperation and cash in on a healthy return for Jackson, who is set to be a free agent following the 2025-26 season.
Jackson would give the 76ers the power forward they need to contend, and in the scenario above, the 76ers won't even have to give up Jared McCain. Instead, the Grizzlies will focus on acquiring the best draft capital they could from the 76ers, as trading Jackson away signals that they are ready for a full-scale rebuild.
Acquiring the third overall pick of this year's draft gives the Grizzlies a legitimate building block for the future, regardless of if they use it on Bailey or VJ Edgecombe. They are going to be set for the future with plenty of draft assets, they can get even more by dangling the expiring deals of the three veteran salary fillers they'll be getting in the hypothetical above, and the eventual trade of Ja Morant would restock their asset cupboard even further.
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The Grizzlies may want to target McCain as well, but that price may be far too rich for the 76ers' liking. Perhaps a package headlined by McCain and other draft picks (with the 76ers keeping the third pick for themselves) could work as well, but the third overall pick, as it stands, is Philly's best available trade asset. (Maxey is their best trade asset, but he's not available.)
But if the 76ers are looking to surround their core stars with the young talent who can grow irrespective of whether or not George and Embiid stay productive for the foreseeable future and decide to keep their young talent and draft assets to themselves, the Grizzlies can look elsewhere, perhaps dangling Jackson to the team that ends up missing out on Kevin Durant.
Memphis trades JJJ to the Spurs
Grizzlies acquire: Devin Vassell, Jeremy Sochan, 2025 ATL first-round pick (#14), 2027 ATL first-round pick, 2029 SAS first-round pick, 2031 SAS first-round pick, 2030 first-round pick swap
Spurs acquire: Jaren Jackson Jr., Brandon Clarke
Durant may prefer to land with the San Antonio Spurs, but the decision is not up to him; the Phoenix Suns organization will look to do what's best for them, and if the Spurs continue to hold back in trade talks for the future Hall of Famer, they could end up missing out on his services.
Nonetheless, there are some arguments to be made that the Spurs should not trade for Durant. For starters, Durant is entering his age-37 season and will require San Antonio to go in full win-now mode to maximize their window with the star forward. Young, up-and-coming teams like the Spurs need time to marinate; just look at the Thunder and how they managed to grow their young core, putting them on the cusp of winning the 2025 NBA championship.
Thus, if the Spurs end up missing out on Durant, they could perhaps set their sights on acquiring Jackson from the Grizzlies instead. Unlike Durant, Jackson has his whole prime ahead of him. He's only 25 years of age and took a huge step offensively last season, putting up 22 points per game without suffering a drop-off in efficiency.
It would be close to impossible to score on the Spurs in the paint if they manage to pair Jackson with Wembanyama. And considering how promising the Spurs' trajectory is, they have a huge chance of re-signing him for the long haul.
Meanwhile, the Grizzlies are getting four first-round picks, two promising young players in Devin Vassell and Jeremy Sochan, as well as a pick swap. There's no way Memphis is getting Stephon Castle in any deal, and the Spurs will be hesitant to include the second overall pick, especially for someone who can be a free agent after next season.
This would truly signal that the Grizzlies are going to start from scratch, with Ja Morant being next on the trade block in such a scenario.
