Memphis Grizzlies’ rebuild could provide blueprint for the Detroit Pistons

Make savvy trades at the right time

In addition to drafting well, the Grizzlies managed to make trades that not only gained them draft capital, but intriguing young prospects as well.

While they may have waited too long to trade franchise icon Mike Conley, Memphis was still able to get a good haul for the veteran, including a young player in Grayson Allen, two serviceable veterans and a first round pick.

Memphis was then able to fleece Phoenix and flip one of those vets Kyle Korver along with Jevon Carter for an intriguing prospect in Josh Jackson, De’Anthony Melton and two second round picks.

Memphis was able to use Phoenix’s desperation to shed money as a way to pick up two picks and a slow developing project in Jackson.

Memphis turned some heads when they traded for Andre Iguodala, as he doesn’t seem to fit in with their rebuild or timeline, but they were able to pick up a first round pick from Golden State in 2024, adding even more draft capital to their loaded coffers.

Memphis was able to secure draft assets and get some intriguing prospects without taking on any long term money or bad deals.

Detroit has a franchise-leader in Andre Drummond but he is unlikely to garner the type of haul that Memphis got for Conley. It’s been reported that Detroit has not been offered a first round pick for Drummond but that could change over the next few days.

Even if they can’t rebuild on a Drummond trade alone, they could fortify their assets by trading some combination of Drummond, Derrick Rose, Markieff Morris, Tony Snell and Langston Galloway, all of whom might offer some value to a contender.

Detroit is unlikely to get any high picks for these players, but they might find a situation where they can take back multiple second round picks or a slow developing player like Zhaire Smith in exchange for their veterans.

Like Memphis, Detroit needs to identify such situations and pounce when they get the chance. While some fans might not be excited about the prospects of second round picks, keep in mind that they can always be packaged to move up in the draft if the Pistons identify a player they like, as Memphis did with Clarke.

Memphis has shown that making savvy trades at the right time can quickly rebuild the supply of assets while not necessarily harming the present condition of the team.