Grizzlies guard Tyreke Evans on potential trades involving him as the February deadline approaches. Ronald Tillery/The Commercial Appeal
Trade Tyreke Evans.
No, not at the trade deadline.
Now.
Trade him to New Orleans for a half dozen beignets if that’s what it takes. Trade him to Toronto for a six-pack of Molson beer.
Just get him out of Memphis. Get him out before he destroys the Grizzlies' lottery pick. Get him out before he ruins everything with another win.
More: Grizzlies’ Tyreke Evans aims for even stronger 2018
And, yes, for those who didn’t realize it, I am absolutely pro Grizzlies tank, as is everyone with a brain.
The Grizzlies will not make the playoffs this season. That much has been determined. So what’s the point of a few more wins?
They could pick No. 8 and draft someone like Kentucky's Kevin Knox. Or they could pick No. 1 and draft someone like Duke's Marvin Bagley. The only thing at stake is the future of the franchise.
Various among you still do not yet accept this reality. Some even offer counter-arguments, all of which are either quaint or misguided.
Counter-argument No. 1: The Grizzlies are lousy at drafting anyway.
This is indisputable, of course. But that doesn’t mean they should stop trying to pick good players. You know what other team used to be lousy at drafting? The Golden State Warriors. They spent lottery picks on Ekpe Udoh, Ike Diogu and Patrick O’Bryant. Then they picked Steph Curry, Klay Thompson and Draymond Green. Beyond that, it’s simply harder to miss with a higher pick. Someone asked me the other day if I trust Chris Wallace to draft an impact player. I trust him a whole lot more at No. 3 than at No. 9.
Counter-argument No. 2: Fans can’t be expected to root against their team.
Well, plenty of Memphis fans are rooting against their team now. Grizzlies fans can certainly root for whatever they like. But I think the phrasing of this is wrong anyway. Those of us who want the Grizzlies to wind up with a high lottery pick aren’t rooting against them; we’re rooting for their success over the long term.
Grizzlies point guard Mike Conley describes his status while rehabbing from a sore Achilles/heel. Ronald Tillery/The Commercial Appeal
Counter-argument No. 3: Losing creates a losing culture.
Pure bunk. The San Antonio Spurs had the third-worst record in the league the year they drafted Tim Duncan and the fourth-worst record in the league the year they drafted David Robinson. I haven’t noticed a losing culture down there. The Grizzlies didn’t set out to be bad this year. They set out to make the playoffs for an eighth straight season. But then Mike Conley got injured and that was pretty much that. You know what creates a losing culture? Bad players. You know what creates a winning culture? Good players. The Grizzlies need more of those.
Counter-argument No. 4: High draft picks are no guarantee.
I’ve been saying this for years. Whenever someone would suggest the Grizzlies should “blow up” the roster because there’s no point in just barely making the playoffs, I dismissed that theory as nuts. Picking in the lottery is no guarantee of instant success. Look at the Magic or the Lakers or the Suns. But now the Grizzlies are destined for the lottery. It’s not a matter of blowing anything up. Given that, there’s no reason not to have a better pick. It certainly isn’t a guarantee of anything, but it’s the best shot a small-market team has to acquire a star.
Counter-argument No. 5: You really want players not to play hard?
Of course not. I want players to do their best. I want coaches to do their best. Indeed, nobody who is in favor of losing in the interest of landing a higher pick wants the players or the coaches to be participants in the enterprise. That’s the job of management. Which brings us back to Evans and the Grizzlies.
The franchise already has shifted its focus to next season. Note that the Grizzlies aren’t rushing Conley or Chandler Parsons back into the lineup, and have already started to give heavier minutes to the kids. There’s nothing left to do but 1) trade Marc Gasol, which the Grizzlies have said isn’t happening, and 2) trade Evans, which can’t happen soon enough.
The Evans signing was an inspired move by the front office. If the Grizzlies were healthy, he might be lifting them into the playoffs. With a one-year contract worth $3.3 million, Evans is one of the best bargains in the NBA. But Evans is an unrestricted free agent at the end of this season. He can go anywhere he likes. And as my colleague Chris Herrington has explained, the Grizzlies don’t have his “Bird Rights,” or the right to go over the salary cap to sign him to a new deal.
That means there is simply no advantage to keeping him. If the Grizzlies want to sign Evans during the offseason, they’ll have no greater ability to do that if he finishes his year in Memphis than if he finishes his year somewhere else.
Given that, it’s time to get Evans off the roster. Yesterday, if possible. It’s true that the Grizzlies' recent win over Philadelphia was sparked by an unlikely performance by Myke Henry, but without Evans’ 18 points and eight assists, the Grizzlies wouldn’t have had a shot. Instead, they rallied to get their fourth win in five games.
It’s splendid to see the former Memphis Tiger star do well, of course. Full credit to Evans for proving the rest of the league wrong. But now that he’s done that, the Grizzlies should set about dealing him to a team with legitimate playoff hopes.
Maybe the Grizzlies can get a late first-round draft pick in exchange. But I wouldn’t be intent on holding out for the best deal. There is nothing the Grizzlies could get for Evans that would be worth having a late lottery pick instead of a pick in the top five. And if the Grizzlies win three additional games because Evans is still on the roster until the trade deadline, that could very well be the cost.
So it’s time to send Evans packing. With best wishes and respect. The guy has played some brilliant basketball for the Grizzlies this season. That has simply got to stop.