Virtually, the stage was set
When the Coronavirus ended the college basketball season early just before conference championships, no one knew if the NBA would have been able to finish their season. Much less when they were going to hold their 2020 NBA Draft. A bubble later, it finally happened this past Wednesday, November 18, and, for the Memphis Grizzlies, it did not disappoint. Once again, Zach Kleiman and his assembled front office played chess instead of checkers making subtle moves that not only boosted the overall talent, but acted as security deposits, filled in team needs, and further defined an established culture.
Going into the draft, the Grizzlies had only the 40th overall pick after ~finally~ conveying their first rounder to the Boston Celtics, a pick that had been owed to Boston since the Grizzlies brought Jeff Green to Memphis. In this draft, Memphis could’ve done nothing but pick the best available at #40, and they would have been perfectly fine. But when there hasn’t been college basketball for nearly nine months, each team’s big board is going to look more different than usual. This means that there’s always more of a chance that the front office’s guy(s) will slide.
The Grizzlies are familiar with this as we saw it last year with Brandon Clarke: when a coveted talent slides it isn’t too hard to comfortably move up. So this year, the Grizzlies traded two future second round picks to the Celtics for their 30th overall pick which turned into TCU sharpshooter Desmond Bane and then made another trade. This time with the Sacramento Kings for the 35th slot in the draft and took Xavier Tillman, Michigan State’s junior starting big man. First confirmed by Daily Memphian’s Chris Herrington, it cost the Grizzlies their own #40 from this year’s draft, which became Robert Woodard II of Mississippi State, and a 2022 second rounder. There are more details still in the works regarding the Bane trade since it is still not official, but it looks as though Bane and Tillman are here to stay. According to Kleiman, "We’re very pleased with the individuals we’re going to be adding tonight."
So who exactly are these guys?
Desmond Bane’s primary attributes as a prospect were shooting and basketball I.Q., but that’s not to say that more often than not, it is usually one or the other. Meaning, the best shooters are not always the best decision-makers when it comes to choosing high percentage shots or playmaking. Bane, 6’6" shooting guard, has been a starter for TCU for 114 of his 141 games with the team. In those starts, he has averaged 14.1 points on 49% overall shooting while staying on the floor with an average of 33.2 minutes per game. He shot 43.9% on 529 attempts behind the arc. He grabbed 4 boards and notched 2.7 assists causing 1.7 turnovers in those starts, as well.
Xavier Tillman was even more of a surprise pick for the Grizzlies because the details of how Memphis gained his draft rights were so unknown for so long. While the fans may not have known how he was acquired at first, many quickly realized he was a perfect pick. Tillman was considered one of the best post defenders in the draft and a solid rebounder on the floor. At 6’8", Tillman has drawn Montrezl Harrell and PJ Tucker comparisons early with averages of 13.7 points, 10.3 rebounds, 2.1 blocks, and a steal in 32 minutes per game during his last season with the Spartans.
How do they relate to the trajectory of the Grizzlies?
If you have been a fan of the Grizzlies during both the Grit-N-Grind era and the current Grizz-Next-Gen era, then you know that there are two decently notorious problems: off-ball shooting and crashing the glass. Those problems were swiftly addressed on Wednesday evening.
In Bane, you have a potential starter at shooting guard who wants to "model his game in the NBA after Eric Gordon and Joe Harris," according to The Commercial Appeal's Mark Giannotto. It doesn’t happen right away with Dillon Brooks still on the roster, but maybe down the line. Coming off the bench, he gives Taylor Jenkins a lot of different lineup possibilities. His profile would play well off the ball with Ja Morant handling and Justise Winslow slashing. Likewise, with Tyus Jones playing the point and De’Anthony Melton, should he return, slashing, he’s not going to be hard to plug into whatever situation is at play.
With Tillman, he will be a fourth option for the post behind Jaren, Jonas Valinciunas, and Brandon Clarke, but that doesn’t mean he isn’t going to get some run time. Jaren is not a strong rebounder (4.6 per game last season) and is often into early foul trouble (4.1 fouls per game last season). This set up Clarke for his rookie season with a lot of run time right out of Gonzaga to run the post and even stretch the floor as a four, but was still not an otherworldly rebounder (5.9 boards per game). Jonas did most of the work on the glass with 11.3 per game last season. When he was off the floor, it truly was a team effort to get what they could which worked well enough for the team to tie at fifth overall in the league with New Orleans at 46.5 rebounds per game. Tillman will make things much more comfortable as a bouncy defensive shot blocker who can claw out more of those boards. Tillman will be reuniting with his former Michigan State teammate Jaren Jackson, Jr. where they were freshmen together and will get to play with two more talented ball handlers in Ja Morant and Tyus Jones after playing with Cassius Winston who was also drafted on Wednesday at 53rd overall.
All together, these two give the Grizzlies much more second unit strength on offense and the defensive end that Jenkins is sure to appreciate as he tries to give his first team some rest.
Where do we go from here when determining the rest of the roster as the offseason continues?
The Grizzlies currently owe Gorgui Dieng $17 mil on a contract that expires at the end of the season, Marko Guduric an expiring $3 mil, and had a $1.5 mil team option on Jontay Porter before declining it and extending a qualifying offer.. That makes Porter, De’Anthony Melton, and John Konchar Restricted Free Agents (meaning the Grizzlies can match any offer they receive to retain them). Josh Jackson, Anthony Tolliver, and Yuta Watanabe become unrestricted free agents.
Both Bane and Tillman could very well have some early run time as Justise and Jaren return from their injuries. In his post-draft media availability, Zachary Kleiman said that neither will be ready to start the season, but hopes Justise will be back soon after the opener while Jaren may take "a minute." With such a short offseason after the bubble, this does not and should not raise any alarms as Kleiman was adamant that the Grizzlies are in no rush.
The biggest takeaway should be that the Grizzlies know what "their guy" looks like and, going into the second season with this front office, they have been able to find him time and time again: "tough, physical,… really unselfish." They continued to follow this trend as the team moved into the undrafted market quickly signing Killian Tillie and Sean McDermott to the team’s 2WAY contract slots and Jahlil Tripp to an Exhibit 10.
Killian Tillie is a France native and was a former teammate of Brandon Clarke’s at Gonzaga. As a senior, the 6’10" big man averaged 13.6 points per game with 5 boards and 40% on threes. He has a long list of random injuries to his knee, a torn plantar fascia, a stress fracture in an ankle, a broken finger, and a hip injury. But being nearly a 7 footer who can shoot, it makes sense to see what Memphis can get from him on a low risk 2WAY contract. The other 2WAY, McDermott, is a 6’6" forward who shot 39% from three on 5.2 attempts on his way to averaging 9.5 points his senior year.
This season, two-way restrictions are expected to be lessened to practically stretch the depth of a team from 15 to 17 due to the ongoing pandemic. As excited as I’m sure Jason March will be to see these guys on the floor with the Hustle, I think it’d be reasonable to say that they will be spending quite a bit of time with the Grizzlies. Kleiman and company also signed Jahlil Tripp to an Exhibit 10 contract, which is similar to a training camp deal, but allows a team to compensate a more valued talent better while retaining the player’s rights. It effectively will send the former WCC Defensive Player of the Year, and former player for Damon Stoudamire out of Pacific, to the Memphis Hustle.
I do not expect the Grizzlies to be finished with the offseason. Kleiman has proven to media and fans alike that it is hard to gauge what he and his front office will do next, which has done nothing but make it all the more exciting. Who knows? Maybe the Grizzlies decide to toss out the subtlety and become more aggressive on the trade front. They have a variety of trade friendly contracts that will continue to allow many to use their imaginations on the possibilities. Maybe they give Dieng the Chandler Parsons treatment and try to split his $17 mil between two expiring deals. Maybe they go after a high quality wing with Dillon Brooks, Kyle Anderson, etc. If the Grizzlies want to make a move, they would have the pieces to make whatever deal seems fit to them.
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