Mike Conley!
The Memphis Grizzlies lucked out Tuesday night during the draft lottery. Memphis was projected to receive the 8th pick in the NBA Draft. And they only had a 6 percent chance to move up in the lottery.
Well whatever luck ritual they performed before the lottery worked. They moved from the 8th spot to the 2nd spot.
They aren’t going to get Zion Williamson. But they sure aren’t complaining about that. They will likely draft Murray State point-guard Ja Morant.
Source: Barring the unexpected, Memphis Grizzlies front office and ownership appear to have locked in on selecting Ja Morant with the No. 2 pick in the 2019 NBA Draft, and are informing parties in Chicago of such. That clears the way for R.J. Barrett to fall to the Knicks at #3.
— Jonathan Givony (@DraftExpress) May 15, 2019
Ja Morant spent two years with Murray State. He solidified himself as a top 3 prospect in this years NBA Draft with averages of 24.5 points per game, 10 assists, and 1.8 steals on 49.9 percent from the field and 36.3 percent from three.
The Grizzlies drafting Ja Morant probably means the end of Mike Conley in a Grizzlies uniform. The Grizzlies tried trading Conley before the deadline to a couple of teams. One of those teams includes the Detroit Pistons.
The Pistons were desperately looking to upgrade at the point guard position. Reggie Jackson had a much improved season. And his contract expires at the end of next season. But Conley is a much better player than Jackson.
But the Grizzlies asking price for Conley was way too high for any team to bite on. Conley would eventually finished off the season with the Grizzlies.
But with Memphis moving up in the draft, the Grizzlies’ asking price will likely lower. Memphis is looking to rebuild and develop their young guys. They traded Marc Gasol so that Jaren Jackson Jr. can have a better opportunity to develop.
The Pistons can offer Reggie Jackson, Jon Leuer, and their 15th overall pick in the draft to Memphis in exchange for Conley.
Conley would be an immediate upgrade at the point-guard position. Conley is more of a consistent player. Conley also had a career high in scoring with 21.1 points per night. He also can get his team more involved in the offense. And most importantly he is much better defensively than Jackson is.