Memphis Grizzlies: The time to hit the reset button is now

After years of refusing to plan for the future, the time has come for the Memphis Grizzlies to hit the reset button on their aging core.

As the saying goes, all good things must come to an end. That seems to be the unfortunate case down in Tennessee, with ESPN‘s Adrian Wojnarowski reporting that the Memphis Grizzlies will begin listening to trade offers for their two best players, Mike Conley and Marc Gasol, for the very first time.

Similar to the game of life, each NBA team has a different barometer for what it means to be successful, and it tends to be the philosophy that steers the organization in one direction or another.

For those historic greats like the Los Angeles Lakers and Boston Celtics, anything short of a championship is a failure no matter the circumstances. When it comes to a team like the Grizzlies, where even the playoffs aren’t a foregone conclusion, it’s important to milk any kind of success for as long as possible.

It’s for this reason the Grizzlies were so hesitant to trade the duo of Mike Conley and Marc Gasol for so long. Did they think those two could lead the team to the NBA Finals? Probably not, especially as the core of the Grit-N-Grind era slowly separated. But as an expansion team barely two decades old, who knows when a run of seven consecutive playoff berths will come again?

As tough of a pill as this is to swallow for those faithful to Memphis basketball, this is the right path for the future of the organization. After a fast start, the Grizzlies sit at just 19-28, 14th-best in the Western Conference. The league has passed their physical brand of basketball by, and it’s time for them to regroup while they still can.

Gasol can opt out of his contract this summer that will pay him north of $25 million next season, while Conley is still signed for two more years at over $30 million per. While both continue to put up numbers, neither is getting any younger at 33 and 31 respectively, making it more difficult to get maximum value with each passing day.

Meanwhile, their newest teammate, Jaren Jackson Jr., is having a terrific rookie season with averages of 13.5 points and 1.5 blocks, shooting 51.6 percent from the field in just 25.7 minutes per game.

The most recent No. 4 overall pick, Jackson is a legitimate building block for the future in Memphis, but it won’t matter much if the Grizzlies continue to sink deeper into mediocrity instead of surrounding him with a core of youngsters to grow alongside him.

Given how much they did for the city of Memphis off the court as much as on it, Gasol and Conley will likely have their jerseys retired by the Grizzlies at one point or another, but there comes a time when one must realize the end has arrived.

It’ll be weird seeing those two in different uniforms, but in order to better the future of the Grizzlies organization, they’ll have to be sacrificed what is hopefully a year too early instead of a year too late.