Though the Washington Wizards have rebounded some from an awful start, they are still just 14-21. Bradley Beal may be committed to staying, but that won’t stop the trade rumors around him over the next couple weeks.
With a win over the Wizards on Wednesday night, the Memphis Grizzlies moved over .500 for the season (17-16). More precisely, they are just a game back of the final playoff spot in the West. The next 7-10 days will have a lot to say about whether they’re a buyer or a seller as the Mar. 25 trade deadline approaches.
The Grizzlies are a bottom-tier 3-point shooting team in both attempts (27th) and percentage (21st). So someone like Buddy Hield makes a lot of sense as a trade target, under the idea they are a buyer with an eye on a playoff spot. But that would also be the equivalent of dipping your toes, when a bigger move might be out there.
Zach Buckley of Bleacher Report has a new list of landing spots for some top available trade targets. He matched Bradley Beal with the Grizzlies.
Can you imagine Beal and Ja Morant in the same backcourt? The former is a premier point-producer who can also function as a primary playmaker. The latter is a top-shelf table setter who’s also comfortable handling No. 1 scoring duties. Just stack their raw production on top of each other, and Memphis would have 52.7 points and 12.4 assists per game coming from its starting guard spots.
The Grizzlies have a large salary (Gorgui Dieng-$17.3 million expiring deal this year) to help match Beal’s. They also have draft picks (all their own first-rounders, plus picks from Utah and Golden State). They also have young players (Xavier Tillman, Brandon Clarke, Desmond Bane, De’Anthony Melton, Justise Winslow) to get Washington’s attention in a trade offer.
ESPN’s Trade Machine offers multiple possibilities for the Grizzlies to swing a deal for Beal. Including Dieng is not necessarily a requirement. It would make it that multiple young players don’t have to be included though. The inclusion of a draft pick or two is assumed.
The odds Beal is traded before the deadline seem low. And if he is dealt, the odds the Grizzlies get him are even lower than that. But there is a chance they can get it done. The idea of pairing Beal with Ja Morant should be pursued to the end. If Beal and the Wizards hold their no-trade stance now, the Grizzlies should have an offseason pursuit on their radar.
