According to recent reports by Shams Charania of The Athletic, the Memphis Grizzlies are actively shopping their third-year wing Ziaire Williams on the trade market.
Since being selected 10 overall in the 2021 NBA Draft, the former Stanford standout has struggled to establish himself as a key player within Taylor Jenkins’ title-hungry core and, now with the ascension of guys who play a similar position like GG Jackson and Vince Williams Jr., it seems as if his standing within the club’s hierarchy is gradually sinking lower and lower.
With this, it should come as no surprise that the Grizzlies are now interested in exchanging him for a more ideal asset for their current needs, and, considering he’s still only 22 years old, attached to a rookie-scale contract, and is only four years removed from being a top-10 selection, it’s easy to believe that his services could be heavily sought after on the trade market.
However, banking on his recent lottery selection status as being a major draw for prospective buyers might be a shortsighted agenda for the front office, as Locked on Grizzlies host and analyst Joe Mullinax believes it might take adding draft capital to move on from Williams.
Grizzlies may have to add draft picks in trade to move Ziaire Williams
“Ziaire Williams, at this stage in the game, is probably going to require Memphis giving up some draft capital if they truly want to move on from him, and here’s why. If Ziaire can’t find time within this rotation — one that includes multiple second-round picks like a GG Jackson, like a Vince Williams Jr., a Santi Aldama –, if a lottery player, talent-wise, cannot get on the court in those situation, the Detroit Pistons, the Charlotte Hornets, a Washington Wizards, a team that isn’t aspiring to compete too much this season might want to take a stab [but] they are not going to give up the draft capital to acquire a player who can’t play in Memphis.
They are not going to give up, potentially, the roster spot, depending on how those rebuilding franchises are planning to go about that process, and they are most certainly not as interested in trying to re-sign this person who’s heading into the final year of his deal, they are not interested in doing that ahead of the game and you might be wasting a roster spot on someone and not be taking advantage of another situation down the road around the trade deadline or something like that to get an asset to take on salary to send out someone else. It limits your flexibility, and these rebuilding teams are not necessarily interested in that. “– Joe Mullinax
Of course, on top of the risks that come with an opposing team taking on Williams in a trade, Mullinax also discussed how “overpaying for a roster spot” by offloading the youngster along with capital could prove to be undesirable for them at this point, as he noted: “You have Scotty Pippen Jr. on a two-way deal that allows for him to play up to… 50 games of the 82. You don’t have to rush to get him on a full-contract deal. Derrick Rose’s contract will expire and hopefully, Scotty Pippen Jr. slides into that role no fuss, no muss.”
Now, despite Mullinax’s cautious take on a possible Ziaire Williams trade scenario, there are a few hypothetical deals that could prove to be beneficial for both the Grizzlies and their potential trade partners, including one specific idea that would see the forward and a future second-round pick head out to the Brooklyn Nets.
However, considering just how inconsistent (7.5 points, 2.6 rebounds, and 1.2 assists on 42.6 percent shooting from his career) and injury-prone he’s proven to be throughout his tenure in Memphis, there’s a strong chance that, should they wish to part ways with his services, future-oriented assets would have to be included in a package to sweeten the proverbial pot.
With how things currently stand, it’s justifiable for Mullinax to question whether such an idea would even be worth it for the franchise.
