Although the initial wave of headlining NBA offseason transactions is over, teams are still working the phones as they try to upgrade in any way they can ahead of the preseason. The Brooklyn Nets and Memphis Grizzlies agreed to a trade on Friday that will impact both teams' benches.
The deal is headlined by forward Ziaire Williams, via ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski.
“The Memphis Grizzlies are trading forward Ziaire Williams and a 2030 second-round pick via Dallas to the Brooklyn Nets for Mamadi Diakite, sources tell ESPN,” Wojnarowski tweeted. “Williams was the 10th pick in the 2021 draft. The Nets will also send the Grizzlies the draft rights to Nemanja Dangubic, the 54th pick in the 2014 NBA Draft, sources said.”
Williams is coming off a career year, as he averaged 8.2 points per game on 39.7% shooting with 3.5 rebounds and 1.5 assists across 51 contests. The 22-year-old's campaign got cut short due to lower back and hip injuries.
Diakite, on the other hand, has played in just 55 games since his rookie year in 2020-21. The Virginia alum has averaged 3.1 points per game on 48.3% shooting across 9.6 minutes.
Dangubic, meanwhile, has yet to make his NBA debut. However, the 31-year-old is a four-time Serbian league champion and 2019 German league champion.
Who got the better end of the deal?
Ziaire Williams will compete for bench minutes on the Nets
On the surface, the deal doesn't make much sense for Memphis. However, dumping Williams' salary will give it cap room, via Wojnarowski.
“The deal moves out the $6.1 million guaranteed on Williams' contract for 2024-25 and creates some more salary cap flexibility as the Grizzlies work toward re-signing guard Luke Kennard,” Wojnarowski said.
While the Grizzlies are in a money-saving mindset as they try to get back into contention with Ja Morant healthy, Brooklyn is a rebuilding squad that can afford to spend a few extra million on promising rotational pieces.
Williams will have plenty of chances to stand out on a Nets squad sans Mikal Bridges. As of now, the second unit features mid-level players such as Bojan Bogdanovich, Dorian Finney-Smith, and Noah Clowney.
Williams, who's averaged 19.6 minutes per game across three NBA seasons, has yet to live up to his draft status. However, this move could be a blessing in disguise for both parties. as the Stanford alum will most likely get more chances than ever to show how much he's developed. Efficiency will be a central factor to focus on, as he's just a 30.1% career shooter from long range.
Follow Us
Subscribe
