The NBA season made it’s debut yesterday. The Memphis Grizzlies make their debut tonight at 8:00PM EST against the Utah Jazz. Jazz brings 2nd overall pick Darryn Peterson to town who has looked the part in one of the deepest draft classes of all time.
Memphis had some poor injury luck last season and are looking to build on the core of a budding core with another strong draft class. Today, we will project the rookie’s impact on the upcoming season.
Cameron Boozer | 6’8” | 250lbs | Forward | 3rd overall
The Grizzlies had been looking for the perfect compliment to play next to Zach Edey, and they found that person in Cam. The bruising forward out of Duke is following in his father’s (Carlos Boozer) footsteps in the NBA.
In my evaluations I often said, that Boozer may never be an all-NBA player, but he will be a multiple time all-star for years to come. He just might be the best fit for the Grizzlies team.
Cam’s ability to process information almost instantly on the floor allows him to fit with any lineup combination. He doesn’t need the ball and is an outstanding connector or hub for the offense. The ability for him to hit the three ball will make high low actions between him and Zach a major headache for opponents. He averaged 3 assists per game in preseason.
The processing may be his best ability, but it isn’t his only one. He averaged 14 points per game and pulled down 5.5 rebounds in 20.6 minutes of tune up action during the preseason.
His ability to handle basketball has been better than expected. He did it some in college, but he looks more fluid off the bounce than I believed he would at this stage.
He plays a rugged style once he gets into the paint. He isn’t explosive but is very crafty and smart. He gets to the foul line a lot. He averaged 6 free throw attempts per game in limited minutes.
Projection
Boozer is going to be a key piece to Memphis making noise this season. They have a nice core forming with Cedrick Coward, Zach Edey, Jaylen Wells and add Cam to that list. The fact that he can just fit in and not need the ball makes this all work.
He and Edey on the glass is going to be nightmare for teams’ night in and night out. The three-point shooting is going to have to be consistent to keep the offense flowing.
My biggest concern is if Edey gets injured again and you have a pairing of Boozer and Quinten Post. Boozer isn’t giving you much in the post because of his lack of explosiveness and Post is an outside guy.
You would probably see more Cedrick Coward post-ups than Boozer. He is smart, crafty and strong but he doesn’t have many post moves at all.
Karim Lopez | 6’8” | 210lbs | wing | 21st overall
I will be very upfront about Lopez. He is a project. He isn’t expected to make an impact this season, and I would be surprised if he isn’t in the G-league most of the year. He has an intriguing skillset for his size and wingspan, but he needs a lot of work with shooting, ball handling and the NBA game in general.
Richie Saunders | 6’6” | 205lbs | Guard | 32nd overall.
This is one of the more bizarre stories. Richie remains unsigned after being drafted out of BYU due to his ACL injury he suffered in college. The organization wants him on a two-way contract with little guaranteed money because of the injury and he wants assured money, so the two sides are at a stand still until he gets healthy. The team has the year to get a deal in place or Richie could end up re-entering next year’s draft or become a rookie free agent if the team renounces his rights.
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