Memphis Grizzlies: 3 trade possibilities for Mike Conley

3. Utah Jazz

This trade gets the Grizzlies all the things they are after: cap relief, young players and a draft pick. If this trade were to happen, the Utah Jazz would probably try to put some kind of pick protection on their first-rounder, probably lottery-protected, but that wouldn’t be a problem since they’ve looked like a playoff team lately.

Moving to Salt Lake City may not be that big an adjustment for Conley. He will be playing on a defensive-oriented team with a European center, Rudy Gobert, anchoring the back line. Utah would also encourage Conley to shoot more 3s, where they are 12th in the league in 3-pointers attempted per game.

Utah would get a point guard that can actually shoot, as Ricky Rubio still hasn’t really figured out that part of the game over his career. This year, Rubio is hovering around 40 percent from the field and is averaging fewer assists and more turnovers than his previous years.

The Grizzlies would also receive two young players, Dante Exum and Grayson Allen. Exum is on a relatively cheap contract that wouldn’t hurt the Grizzlies’ future and Allen is still on his rookie deal. Rubio is in the last year of his deal and would come off the books at the end of the year. This trade would put the Grizzlies about $30 million below the cap for next season, while the Jazz would also retain some flexibility.