SportsEthos 2026 Fantasy Basketball Draft Guide

Fantasy Basketball Draft Guide 2026: Memphis Grizzlies Team Preview

By Mike Passador Published August 30, 2026 2 min read

How’d We Get Here?

The Grizzlies’ last gasp at competing with their once-promising core went up in smoke. Ja Morant kept his name clean over the summer but was as petulant (and injured) as ever once the season began, openly sniping with the coaching staff and eventually pouting his way to the sidelines with a series of multi-game absences. The Grizzlies found no takers for him all year long but did find one for Jaren Jackson Jr., who was dealt to the Jazz for a haul of futures. Offseason pickup Ty Jerome missed the entire first half of the season with a nasty ankle injury — Scotty Pippen Jr. was sidelined for the same length of time by foot surgery — and Zach Edey was barely present after an offseason foot problem of his own. A full rebuild is in order and the Grizzlies started the ball rolling by trading Morant to the Blazers for Jerami Grant and Kris Murray. It’s an exceedingly light return but just getting Morant out of the building is the franchise’s big win at this point. They added Isaiah Stewart and Quinten Post to bolster the depth behind Edey and were thrilled to select Cam Boozer third overall in the draft. He is expected to be the next face of the franchise and will hopefully give the fanbase something to look forward to after the Morant era flamed out in spectacular fashion. Snagging Karim Lopez, a former top-10 projected pick himself, was tidy business later in the first round as well. The Grizzlies are in for some tough years but have one high-level building block in Boozer and a few guys who look like they can be part of the solution going forward. It’ll just take some time.

For a full recap of last season to set the table, check out our Memphis Grizzlies Season Wrap!

The Memphis Grizzlies Season Wrap

Offseason Moves

Arrivals: Jerami Grant, Isaiah Stewart, Quinten Post, Kris Murray, AJ Johnson, D’Angelo Russell
Rookie Arrivals: Cameron Boozer (No. 3), Karim Lopez (No. 21), Richie Saunders (No. 32), Carson Cooper (UDFA 2W)
Departures: Ja Morant, Santi Aldama, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Brandon Clarke (RIP), Rayan Rupert, Adama Bal, Lucas Williamson, Toby Okani, Dariq Whitehead
Retained: None

Depth Chart and Minutes Per Game

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About the Author

SportsEthos Contributor

Mike Passador

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Mike graduated from Boston University's Dual Degree Program with a BA in Economics and a BS in Business with Concentrations in Marketing and Operations Management. He is a faithful supporter of Toronto sports and the Detroit Lions and is always ready to be let down. Tweet to him @Mike_Pandador, but if you badmouth Jose Calderon you might get blocked.

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