How former Memphis Grizzlies are stacking up in the playoffs
By Tony East
Wade Baldwin
Speaking of the Memphis Grizzlies and first round picks, Wade Baldwin played in the playoffs! Sigh. A very long, sad, sigh.
Baldwin was a first round pick by the Grizzlies in the 2016 NBA Draft. Coming out of Vanderbilt, he showed potential as a solid ball-handling guard. Vanderbilt is in Tennessee, so there was also some homegrown appeal to the Baldwin pick.
But after just one season, the Memphis front office waived him. They gave up on their first round pick after just 33 games. He couldn’t hit anything, shooting just 31.3 percent in a Grizzlies uniform, but he was not given enough time to develop.
The Portland Trail Blazers recognized that and scooped up Baldwin this year. He shot 66.7 percent in Rip City. Think the Grizzlies regret that yet?
Baldwin and his Blazers were swept in the first round by the New Orleans Pelicans, but he got some burn in those four games. He played 19 minutes, and he hit his only 3-point attempt. He didn’t do much, but he played more postseason minutes than anyone on the Grizzlies did this season.
Who saw that coming?