In 1995, the NBA added two new expansion teams to the league in the Toronto Raptors and the Vancouver Grizzlies. Both teams really struggled in their first few seasons in the league, but the Raptors were finding a little more success with the players they had and the support of their fanbase.
Vancouver really did not offer a great outlook and a promising future, which is why in 2001, the team relocated to Memphis to become what we know as the Memphis Grizzlies. Since moving to Memphis, the Grizzlies have made the playoffs in 11 out of 20 seasons, but they have only advanced past the first-round three different times, including a trip to the Western Conference Finals in 2013.
This franchise has had some promising-looking teams through the years, but they have never really been major playoff threats in the Western Conference. This narrative is starting to change, as the Grizzlies are currently 21-14 this season and have the fourth-best record in the West.
Potential All-Star point guard Ja Morant missed a handful of games early on in the season with a left knee sprain and others have been in any out of the lineup at times, but the Grizzlies have still found ways to win games.
LATEST NBA NEWS & TRADE RUMORS: Are Memphis Grizzlies Title Contenders In Western Conference?
Memphis is the second-youngest team in the league on paper, but when you actually watch this group play, they all look like multi-year veterans that have played with one another their entire careers.
Ja Morant, Jaren Jackson Jr., Dillon Brooks, Desmond Bane, and De’Anthony Melton make up an extremely talented young core that could wind up surprising many come the end of the year.
The Grizzlies made the playoffs last season for the first time since 2017 and while they lost in the first round to the 1-seeded Utah Jazz, they did manage to pull off a Game 1 upset in Salt Lake City, something many teams have been unable to do over the years.
Not only have they been red-hot during the first half of this season, but the Grizzlies are the only team in the NBA to have beaten both the Golden State Warriors and Phoenix Suns, the two best teams in the league. To make things even better, the Grizzlies have beaten both the Warriors and Suns on their own home courts, per Grizzlies PR.
LATEST NBA NEWS & TRADE RUMORS: Are Memphis Grizzlies Title Contenders In Western Conference?
This young team has a lot of fight in them and being an extremely balanced team on both ends of the floor, the sky’s the limit for what they can achieve. Maybe they are not quite championship contenders yet, but they really could be just one move away from being one of the final teams standing in the Western Conference playoff picture.
Let’s take a look at three players the Grizzlies could pursue ahead of this season’s trade deadline to try and go “all-in” on making a deep playoff run.
