MEMPHIS, TENNESSEE – FEBRUARY 25: Desmond Bane #22 of the Memphis Grizzlies reacts after a three point basket against the Phoenix Suns during the second half at FedExForum on February 25, 2025 in Memphis, Tennessee. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Wes Hale/Getty Images)
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On the surface, the Memphis Grizzlies’ trading Desmond Bane to the Orlando Magic may seem like a cost-cutting move from a team that doesn’t see a future with their current core.
And while that very well may have been the Grizzlies’ intention when they executed the deal, trading Bane may have actually made them a more balanced, more competitive team in 2025-26.
The Grizzlies Addressed A Major Weakness By Trading Bane
Ever since this era of Grizzlies basketball kicked off, they have been missing a marquee three-and-D wing player to flank their star-studded trio. At first, Dillon Brooks tried to don this mantle, but his questionable jumper and curious shot selection forced his team to outgrow him. After letting him walk in free agency, they brought in Marcus Smart, but injuries plagued him through the entirety of his season-and-a-half long stint with the team.
In 2024, Memphis used the 39th overall pick to select Jaylen Wells. Wells surpassed any reasonable expectation that was set for him in Year One, but even he is still more of a rising stud than a proven ace.
Enter, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope. Any salary cap expert will tell you that his sole purpose in this transaction was to make the salaries work. That’s probably true, but he is also one of the best three-and-D wings of his generation, as evidenced by his contributions to the 2019-20 Los Angeles Lakers and 2022-23 Denver Nuggets.
Caldwell-Pope is coming off an underwhelming season with the Orlando Magic. His overall numbers as a 43.9% shooter from the floor and a 34.2% 3-point shooter are both significant decreases from his totals in the previous season (46% and 40.6%, respectively).
But if you look more carefully at his monthly splits. You see that his seemingly diminished performance was more a byproduct of a slow start to the season. Before January 1, Caldwell-Pope was shooting just 40.7% from the field and 30.3% from beyond the arc. However, after the New Year, those numbers ballooned up to 47.8% and 39.2%, respectively.
On top of that, his defense was as steady as ever – placing in the 83rd percentile in Defensive Estimated Plus-Minus and the 81st percentile in steal rate (per Dunks & Threes).
Caldwell-Pope will be 33 by the time the 2025 Playoffs rolls around. It is unrealistic to think he can be the same player he was in the early 2020s, but he is closer to that version than most people think. Plus, he won’t be the only one counted on to shoulder this burden.
Along with Wells, GG Jackson and Vince Williams Jr. are still on the roster. They struggled last year, but they have had an offseason to recover from the injuries that plagued them in 2024-25, and with Caldwell-Pope now there to support them, their pressure to succeed decreases a great deal.
With the 11th overall pick, the Grizzlies also selected Cedric Coward out of Washington State University. He’s young and still has a lot to learn (he just turned 22), but draft folks love his defensive tools and offensive punch, even comparing him to guys like Moses Moody and Bilal Coulibaly. Maybe he could provide an unexpected boost off the bench in this category.
Keep in mind, Memphis still has its trio of rim-protecting bigs (Jaren Jackson Jr., Zach Edey, and Santi Aldama) to help these wings on the backside.*
(*Note: Jackson and Edey are going to miss the start of the 2025-26 NBA Season.)
The Grizzlies May Not Miss Bane As Much As We Think
To get Caldwell-Pope (and a myriad of picks), the Grizzlies had to say goodbye to their third-best player. For those who aren’t intimately familiar with his game, Bane is one of the best on-ball/off-ball hybrids in the NBA (meaning he can play both on and off the ball). However, Bane and Ja Morant have never been a perfect fit because neither one of them is an elite perimeter defender.
We see this from looking at patterns in their on/off numbers. Since 2021-22, when Morant, Bane, and Jackson shared the floor (2,067 minutes), Memphis had a +7.5 net rating and a defensive rating of 111.1 (Per PBP Stats). Those are very good marks, but a step below what we see when it is just Morant and Jackson out there (+13.1 net rating and 106.7 Defensive Rating).
With Bane gone, that gives them another spot in the starting lineup to insert a rangy wing/forward that can make up for Morant’s pitfalls on that end of the floor.
Now, what Bane would do that you won’t get from your run-of-the-mill three-and-D player is anchor their offense when Morant was injured or on the bench.
Fortunately, the Grizzlies anticipated this void needing to be filled and added Ty Jerome in free agency (on one of the best bang-for-your-buck contracts of this offseason).
Last season, Jerome’s blend of pull-up shooting and playmaking was deadly enough to place him in the 95th percentile in OFF EPM and third place in Sixth Man of the Year Voting. The playoffs weren’t too kind to him – and his fit alongside Morant is even clunkier than Bane’s – but Jerome is still one of the best bench guards in the association, especially at the price point Memphis got him at.
It’s easy to look at a team that traded away one of its top three players and project them to be a weaker team. But sometimes you need to look at the picture a little longer. Sometimes, you become more well-rounded by trading one of your stars.
Next season very well could be a lost one for the Grizzlies. They could be saddled with injuries again or trade another key player. But if they keep this cast intact and stay relatively healthy, this may be the most balanced and versatile version of this team that we’ve seen.