30 Teams In 30 Days: Memphis Grizzlies

2007-2008 In Review

Record: 22-60
Western Conference Seed: 14

Summer Of 2008

Key Additions

O.J. Mayo (via draft), Darrell Arthur (via draft), Marc Gasol (via trade), Marko Jaric (via trade), Antoine Walker (via trade), Greg Buckner (via trade), Quinton Ross (via free agency), Hamed Haddadi (via free agency).

Key Losses

Mike Miller (via trade), Juan Carlos Navarro (via free agency – left for Europe), Kwame Brown (via free agency), Jason Collins (via trade), Casey Jacobsen (via free agency – left for Europe), Brian Cardinal (via trade).

As a long-time Celtics fan, I’ve felt it very difficult to praise the decision making skills of Chris Wallace. Not because I have it in for him, but because he simply makes himself so hard to side with.

However, I’ve got nothing but applause and a pat on the back for the trade he pulled off abruptly following the 2008 NBA Draft: Mike Miller, Jason Collins, Brian Cardinal, and the draft rights to Kevin Love (5th overall) to Minnesota in exchange for Antoine Walker (expiring contract), Marko Jaric, Greg Buckner, and the draft rights to O.J. Mayo (3rd overall).

Now, let me make it clear that I believe in Kevin Love. I think that the old school UCLA product is going to make a terrific pro for a long time, and produce in multiple areas on the court. With that said, I don’t a future star in him.

I do, however, see nothing but stardom in O.J. Mayo’s NBA future. He’s got the athletic ability, the silky jump shot, the defensive intensity, the ball skills of a point guard, a natural scorer’s mentality, the mental toughness, the composure, and most of all, the drive.

No, not his ability to drive to the basket, but the drive to become a great basketball player.

Would Love have filled a bigger hole at the four-spot than Mayo at the two? Sure, but when you’re a rebuilding team like Memphis, you don’t fill holes first and bring in talent later. You build your foundation early on with as much young talent as possible, and then fill your gaps when the team is ready to take it to the next level.

That’s exactly what Chris Wallace is doing, and as awkward as it is for a die-hard Celtics fan to give him credit, I tip my hat to him.

Another positive aspect of Memphis’ offseason was the addition of two promising young big men, Darrell Arthur and Marc Gasol. Arthur, recently touted as a late lottery selection, ended up slipping all the way down to the late first round on account of false (according to Arthur’s camp) health reports regarding his kidneys.

You're currently logged into Facebook

Do you want to share your Bleacher Report activity on Facebook?