1 victory, 9 defeats in the last 10, a terrifying 3-18 stretch and second-to-last in West Conference. Those are the numbers of a team that was supposed to fight to get into the playoffs. This has lead to Memphis allegedly listening to offers
for its two best players: Mike Conley and Marc Gasol.
And while the Grizzlies might “not [be] committed to moving” Conley or Gasol before the February 7 trade deadline, it’s hard not to feel like this is the end, or close to it.
Gasol is turning 34 next week and his play has cratered since a late-November ankle sprain. It looks dubious that he can be back to what he used to be (2012-13 Defensive Player of the Year Award).
Conley, on the other hand, is 31 years old and he seems like a player that can easily fit in a different place. He is playing quite well, but he’s also incredibly expensive. Conley is making $30.5 million this season, in the third year of what was, at the time it was struck, the richest deal in NBA history. He’s owed $32.5 million for next season, and holds a $34.5 million early-termination option for 2020-21, so any team interested in acquiring him—likely one either trying to make the playoffs or load up for a deeper run in them—has to get straight with adding a cool $67 million to its books over the next two seasons while also offering the Grizzlies something of value.
Let's see what happens
1 victory, 9 defeats in the last 10, a terrifying 3-18 stretch and second-to-last in West Conference. Those are the numbers of a team that was supposed to fight to get into the playoffs. This has lead to Memphis allegedly listening to offers
for its two best players: Mike Conley and Marc Gasol.
And while the Grizzlies might “not [be] committed to moving” Conley or Gasol before the February 7 trade deadline, it’s hard not to feel like this is the end, or close to it.
Gasol is turning 34 next week and his play has cratered since a late-November ankle sprain. It looks dubious that he can be back to what he used to be (2012-13 Defensive Player of the Year Award).
Conley, on the other hand, is 31 years old and he seems like a player that can easily fit in a different place. He is playing quite well, but he’s also incredibly expensive. Conley is making $30.5 million this season, in the third year of what was, at the time it was struck, the richest deal in NBA history. He’s owed $32.5 million for next season, and holds a $34.5 million early-termination option for 2020-21, so any team interested in acquiring him—likely one either trying to make the playoffs or load up for a deeper run in them—has to get straight with adding a cool $67 million to its books over the next two seasons while also offering the Grizzlies something of value.
Let's see what happens
