Memphis Grizzlies: Chris Wallace isn't good at drafting
Jan 3, 2017; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Memphis Grizzlies guard Mike Conley (11) reacts during the second half of a NBA game against the Los Angeles Lakers at the Staples Center. Mandatory credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports
Despite how well the Memphis Grizzlies have done in recent years, Chris Wallace has drafted poorly. How good could the Grizz be if he was an elite drafter?
Chris Wallace wasn’t labeled as a great drafter before he came to the Grizzlies.
He drafted Kedrick Brown, Joseph Forte and Joe Johnson, who he traded immediately. Who went after those guys? Zach Randolph, Tony Parker, Gerald Wallace or Gilbert Arenas. Take your pick.
Wallace has been in charge of the Grizzlies draft decisions since 2007. In total, he has made 17 draft picks which included some being traded later in that draft night. His first pick, Mike Conley, came with criticism but ended up good in the long run and gave hope for the future.
It went down hill fast from there as the only All-Star Wallace drafted ended up doing it for a different team.
Here’s how he’s drafted during his tenure.
| 2007 | 1 | 4 | Mike Conley |
| 2008 | 1 | 5 | Kevin Love |
| 2008 | 1 | 28 | Donte Greene |
| 2009 | 1 | 2 | Hasheem Thabeet |
| 2009 | 1 | 27 | DeMarre Carroll |
| 2009 | 2 | 36 | Sam Young |
| 2010 | 1 | 12 | Xavier Henry |
| 2010 | 1 | 25 | Dominique Jones |
| 2010 | 1 | 28 | Greivis Vasquez |
| 2011 | 2 | 49 | Josh Selby |
| 2012 | 1 | 25 | Tony Wroten |
| 2013 | 2 | 41 | Jamaal Franklin |
| 2013 | 2 | 60 | Janis Timma |
| 2014 | 1 | 22 | Jordan Adams |
| 2015 | 1 | 25 | Jarell Martin |
| 2016 | 1 | 17 | Wade Baldwin |
| 2016 | 2 | 57 | Wang Zhelin |
Draft breakdown
A quick look at the list, and you see two great players at the top in Mike Conley and Kevin Love. If you continue looking at the list, you will quickly realize that the Grizzlies didn’t become a playoff team from drafting.
The list goes on and on with players who barely played multiple seasons in the NBA and contributed little. The few that did, never did with the Grizzlies.
The Grizzlies traded Kevin Love on draft night. DeMarre Carroll didn’t take off until a few years after he was out of Memphis. Greivis Vazquez started getting starting minutes right after the Grizzlies traded him.
Did the Grizzlies just draft bad based upon position or lack of talent at spot?
Well, when Chris Wallace is in charge, who knows?
Jan 8, 2017; Memphis, TN, USA; Memphis Grizzlies guard Mike Conley (11) handles the ball against Utah Jazz guard George Hill (3) during the first half at FedExForum. Mandatory Credit: Justin Ford-USA TODAY Sports
2007
Wallace’s first three years of drafting for the Grizzlies may have been his best, talent wise.
Most of the players didn’t end up playing well until they were on another team. However, Wallace’s first selection is one of the better picks a general manager can make.
By picking Mike Conley in the 2007 draft, Wallace found his future point guard and a leader of the team for every season he has managed the Grizzlies.
Conley started slow on the Grizzlies, but he has been one of the best point guards in the league for the past few years.
Conley was a great pick at that point in the draft, given that the only player drafted after him that’s been better is teammate Marc Gasol
Dec 13, 2016; Cleveland, OH, USA; Cleveland Cavaliers forward Kevin Love (0) shoots in the first quarter against the Memphis Grizzlies at Quicken Loans Arena. Mandatory Credit: David Richard-USA TODAY Sports
2008
The 2008 draft is where it started to go, somewhat, downhill.
The Grizzlies selected Kevin Love and immediately traded him for guard O.J. Mayo out of Southern California.
Just sit back and imagine what the team would look like with Kevin Love currently on these Grizzlies. Gasol and Love popping threes as the two tallest players on the court. Sounds fun to me.
That same draft, the Grizzlies took Donte Greene with the 28th pick. Greene only made it four years in the NBA. Within the next ten picks after Greene, Mario Chalmers, Niko Pekovic, DeAndre Jordan, Mario Chalmers and Luc Mbah a Moute were selected. Each of those players have carved out a successful role in the NBA and contributed exponentially more than Greene.
Wallace could’ve had a really good draft. To be fair, the 2007 Grizzlies roster lacked guard depth, but sometimes drafting for talent is better than drafting for need.
Dec 23, 2016; Memphis, TN, USA; Houston Rockets guard James Harden (13) drives while Memphis Grizzlies guard Tony Allen (9) attempts a steal as forward Montreal Harrell (5) looks on at FedExForum. Memphis defeated Houston 115-109. Mandatory Credit: Nelson Chenault-USA TODAY Sports
2009
Having the second pick in one of the better drafts in recent NBA history should be easy, right?
Wallace can prove you wrong there.
By taking Hasheem Thabeet from Connecticut, he picked one of the two players in the top ten who were bust and didn’t last in the league for more than five years.
Here’s a list of the players selected after Thabeet: James Harden, Tyreke Evans, Ricky Rubio, Johnny Flynn, Stephen Curry, Jordan Hill, Demar Derozan and Brandon Jennings.
Imagine any of those players currently on the Grizzlies. Curry and Gasol? Harden, Conley, and Gasol? Derozan’s mid-range game with Gasol’s endless range? I wouldn’t mind seeing any of those players with this Grizzlies team.
Wallace, somewhat, nailed his next pick. DeMarre Carroll turned into the player Wallace had envisioned when he drafted him, although it took longer than expected. Carroll never made it with the Grizzlies, but he’s by far the best player at his position in that part of the draft.
Wallace had one pick in the second round and took forward Sam Young with it. Young wasn’t a terrible pick for the second round. A few of the notable names that were drafted or undrafted after him are guards like Patty Mills, Wesley Matthews or Patrick Beverley.
Young averaged over seven points in two of his three seasons with the team. That may not seem like a lot, but he brought a lot to the team compared to most second rounders in that draft. I’ll give Wallace a pass on that pick for the fact that Young did produce in Memphis.
Wallace could have nailed this draft if he had just taken a different player with the second pick.
Mar 9, 2016; Boston, MA, USA; Boston Celtics guard Avery Bradley (0) and guard Isaiah Thomas (4) on the court against the Memphis Grizzlies in the second half at TD Garden. The Celtics defeated Memphis 116-96. Mandatory Credit: David Butler II-USA TODAY Sports
2010
The 2010 draft may be the story of Wallace’s drafting career. He whiffed on his top pick and had a solid pick later that could’ve been better.
With the 12th pick in the draft, Wallace took Xavier Henry out of Kansas. Henry only spent a year in Memphis before the Grizzlies shipped him for Marreese Speights.
Wallace could’ve taken reliable bigs like Ed Davis or Patrick Patterson, a potential-filled Larry Sanders or dynamic guards Avery Bradley or Eric Bledsoe. All these players were picked within ten spots of Henry.
Henry, like most of the previous players listed, had a lot of potential and possibly could’ve paned out given time.
With Wallace’s late first round pick, he took guard Greivis Vazquez. Only Hassan Whiteside was better than anyone drafted after Vazquez.
Like Henry, Vazquez only played one season before another Wallace trade.
Dec 20, 2016; Memphis, TN, USA; Boston Celtics guard Isaiah Thomas (4) shoots a three point shot as Memphis Grizzlies guard Troy Daniels (3) looks on at FedExForum. Boston defeated Memphis in overtime 112-109. Mandatory Credit: Nelson Chenault-USA TODAY Sports
2011-2012
Wallace can get a pass for the 2011 NBA draft. He had only the 49th pick. With that pick, he took Josh Selby.
Selby showed promise after winning Summer League MVP in his second season, but it amounted to nothing and he only played a total of 38 games for the Grizzlies. Only eleven picks later in the draft, Isaiah Thomas was taken although.
In the 2012 draft, Chris Wallace was again limited to one pick which ended up being pick 25 in the first round. With this pick he took guard Tony Wroten out of Washington.
Ironically, out of those picks from 2010 to 2012, Josh Selby was the only one to play more than one season. Wroten was added to the list of players who only played one season in Memphis.
Draymond Green and Jae Crowder were the only good players selected within ten picks of Wroten at picks 34 and 35 respectively. Also, Khris Middleton, Will Barton, and Kent Bazemore went in the second round or undrafted.
Dec 3, 2016; Memphis, TN, USA; Memphis Grizzlies head coach David Fizdale talks with Memphis Grizzlies guard Wade Baldwin IV (4) during the first half against the Los Angeles Lakers at FedExForum. Mandatory Credit: Justin Ford-USA TODAY Sports
2013-Present
Since these players haven’t finished their rookie contracts yet, I won’t fully discuss these years. Although, it doesn’t look good.
The picks include Jamaal Franklin, Janis Timmas, Jordan Adams, Jarell Martin, Andrew Harrison, Wade Baldwin IV, Deyonta Davis, Wang Zhelin and Rade Zagorac. The jury is still out on some of them, but it doesn’t look good.
Wallace may be solid at finding talent through trades and free agency, but his drafting isn’t great. On the bright side, the players he drafts become good when he trades them. That’s a good thing, right?
Overview
If Wallace would’ve drafted well, he could’ve had a super-team:
PG: Mike Conley, Isaiah Thomas, Patty Mills
SG: James Harden, Avery Bradley, Tony Allen
SF: DeMarre Carroll
PF: Kevin Love, Draymond Green, Zach Randolph
C: Marc Gasol, DeAndre Jordan, Hassan Whiteside
Obviously this is nowhere near realistic, but imagine if Wallace nailed one or two of these players. This is my personal favorite lineup, which realistically could’ve happened:
PG: Mike Conley
SG: James Harden
SF: DeMarre Carroll
PF: Kevin Love
C: Marc Gasol
Again, odds are most general managers would have whiffed on these players, as well. Although, given his experience, Wallace needs to be a much better drafter.
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