Last season, the Memphis Grizzlies made huge strides overall as a team. They won two consecutive play-in games to make the post-season as the eighth seed.
Unfortunately for them, they were taken care of by the Utah Jazz in the first round in five games. Regardless, the Grizzlies had a very successful season last year, as it featured young players like Ja Morant and Dillon Brooks taking significant leaps.
Memphis Grizzlies 2021-22 Season Preview
Offseason Changes
Throughout the offseason, the Grizzlies were one of the more active teams. One of the biggest moves they made was shipping Jonas Valanciunas and the 17th and 51st pick in this year’s draft for Steven Adams, Eric Bledsoe, the 10th and 40th pick along with a 2022 first-round pick.
The Grizzlies weren’t done there. They later shipped Eric Bledsoe to the Los Angeles Clippers for Rajon Rondo, Patrick Beverley, and Daniel Oturu. After completing the trade, Rondo was eventually bought and Beverley was traded to Minnesota in exchange for Juancho Hernangomez and Jarrett Culver.
They weren’t finished after that. After trading with Minnesota, Hernangomez was traded to Boston in exchange for Carsen Edwards and a draft consideration.
In the NBA Draft, Memphis used both of their first-round picks on solid players like Ziaire Williams and Santi Aldama. Overall, their roster is a bit different but the main core of players still remains.
Memphis Grizzlies – Expectations For This Season
After making huge strides last season by making the playoffs for the first time in four years, the Grizzlies are once again expected to compete for a spot in the post-season. With the trade they made during the off-season, it may appear that they downgraded their roster.
That being said, they’re preparing for the future. They have an extremely young team and I expect Morant to have a breakout season. Morant is going to have an all-star-like season and that alone will put Memphis in playoff contention.
The Grizzlies surpassed many people’s expectations last season and since they have the same core for the most part, nobody is expecting them to be an elite team whatsoever. This team is young but I fully expect players like Morant and Brooks to take huge strides entering next season. Along with quality rookies like Williams and Aldama, this young nucleus will shine at some point.
A realistic expectation for the Memphis Grizzlies would be them ranging around the seventh to tenth seed in the conference.
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