JULY 6: The trade sending Conley to the Jazz is now official, per the NBA’s transactions log. Darius Bazley, who was selected with the No. 23 overall pick last month, will be re-routed from Utah to Oklahoma City in a subsequent deal, while Korver will be sent to Phoenix.
JUNE 19: The Grizzlies and Jazz have reached an agreement on a trade that will send standout point guard Mike Conley to Utah, reports Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link).
According to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (via Twitter), Memphis will receive a package made up of Jae Crowder, Kyle Korver, Grayson Allen, the No. 23 pick in the 2019 draft, and a future first-round pick. Per Wojnarowski (via Twitter), that second first-rounder will be a 2020 pick, which features protections through 2024.
Chris Herrington of The Daily Memphian provides the full details on those protections, tweeting that the Grizzlies will get the pick in 2020 or 2021 if it falls in the 8-14 range. If it doesn’t convey in either of those drafts, it would become top-six protected in 2022, top-three protected in 2023, and top-one protected in 2024.
The deal will be completed once the new league year begins in July for cap reasons, according to Wojnarowski and ESPN’s Bobby Marks (via Twitter). The Jazz will have to absorb Conley using their newly-opened cap room, but won’t necessarily have to waive Derrick Favors‘ non-guaranteed contract to make the deal work, Marks notes (via Twitter).
It’s a huge acquisition for the Jazz, who will be able to pair Conley with Donovan Mitchell in their backcourt, with Favors and Rudy Gobert up front and Joe Ingles providing floor spacing on the wing.
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Conley, 31, is coming off perhaps the best season of his NBA career, having averaged a career-high 21.1 PPG to go along with 6.4 APG, 3.4 RPG, 1.3 SPG, and a .438/.364/.845 shooting line.
Utah reportedly tried to land Conley at the trade deadline, putting an offer on the table that featured expiring contracts and a first-round pick, but that wasn’t enough to get Memphis to accept. The Jazz figured to face competition for the point guard from possible suitors like the Pacers, Heat, Celtics, and Mavericks when they circled back this offseason, but they were able to get a deal done early in the summer.
The Jazz can now focus on filling out their roster with complementary players. With Conley’s lucrative contract set to hit their books, they’ll no longer be a player for major free agents, but will have the room exception available. It’s projected to be worth $4.76MM.
Conley is owed $32.5MM in 2019/20 and $34.5MM in 2020/21 before his contract expires in 2021. His deal aligns him with Utah’s other core pieces — currently, Mitchell and Gobert are both on track to reach free agency in 2021 as well.
As for the Grizzlies, they’re expected to shift into rebuilding mode after trading long-time cornerstones Marc Gasol in February and Conley now. They’re poised to select Ja Morant with the No. 2 overall pick in tomorrow’s draft to supplant Conley as their point guard of the future. He and Jaren Jackson Jr. project to be the franchise’s building blocks going forward.
It’s not clear yet whether the Grizzlies intend to keep all the players and draft picks they’re acquiring in exchange for Conley. Crowder and Korver are on fairly modest expiring contracts (Korver’s salary is only partially guaranteed) and could appeal to contenders. Allen and the picks, on the other hand, represent solid assets for Memphis’ rebuild, though David Aldridge of The Athletic (Twitter link) hears that the club will listen to offers for the No. 23 selection.
The Grizzlies are also in position to create a massive traded player exception in the swap, assuming they remain an over-the-cap team. Cap expert Albert Nahmad estimates the value of that exception to be about $25MM (Twitter link).
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
That’s a good haul. Utah has some work to do to fill out this roster. Crowder, Korver, and Allen are all contributors.
i don’t think that is a good deal for Memphis
and I feel like the Heat and or Knicks could have offered better and would have been a better fit for him.
at the end of the day we are talking about trading a top 5 starting pg for role players who will probably not be on the team in 2021 and a late pick which you could say the same about. so I don’t like it if I am griz fan.
Not top 5 but probably top 10
Crowder and Korver will probably be flipped for more assets. I think Korver has a buyout for next season also if they want to save cash.
I just looked and he was ranked #10
Looked at what?
I like Conley but he’s not a top 5 PG. Curry, Westbrook, Harden/Paul, Lillard, Kyrie, Russell, Kemba, etc. That being said, he’s one of the best on the market. It takes two to tango. Maybe this was the best offer and they might want time to be strategic with what to do with this year’s pick. And Conley is going to a team that’s in win now mode. Can’t say the same about the Knicks or Heat. Also, the Grizzlies may have had to take back contracts they don’t want to from the Heat where as Crowder and Korver each have relatively cheap expiring contracts and skill sets that should allow them to be moved easily for 2nd round picks if they choose to flip them. Korver has the same partially non-guaranteed contract that the Cav’s JR Smith (both signed with the Cavs). His $7.5 mil is only guaranteed for $3.4 mil. They can keep him or trade him to a team with multiple ways to use Korver and his contract.
not to nit pick maybe my top 5 was an exaggeration .. but right now and going forward I would prefer conley to CP3/Kemba and I would say harden and westbrook are SGs and Russell had a great year but I don’t know if he commands the same respect and is as good on D… so I think we can say top 8 PG ?
I’d take Kemba and CP3 over Conley anyday
@acarneglia … I can see your side on Kemba but not so much on CP3 BUT that is just MO.
That 2nd First Round pick they got will probably be a really nice asset.
It probably won’t convey for the next two years while Conley is in Utah, but once he’s gone, Memphis is getting a very lightly protected pick at the same time Utah will probably be in a major rebuild. That pick very easily can be a Top 10.
With Donavon Mitchell and Gobert they were 48-50 win team. I think they’ll be a decent team in 2024
Seems like a decent haul to me…would have had to take back more salary from Miami but would have probably gotten the #13 pick…a trade with the Knicks most likely wouldn’t materialize for a while….Grizz save some $$ with the current deal so I’m sure that factored in
korver and crowder both have one year left on their contracts. Memphis needs shooting and gets it with Allen.
With who ??
They’re not getting Ray Allen. They’re getting Grayson Allen who shot 37% from the field and 32% from 3 last year.
Hey Gary, how ya doin bud!
Everything is fantastic here in Cali. How are you doing?
This basically boils down to Allen and 2 first round picks for Memphis which is a nice deal for both sides but it makes me wonder why the Heat didn’t top this offer… I would’ve offered Dragic, Waiters, Derrick Jones Jr and the 13th pick this year.
Because grizzlies have no need for all those bad contracts? Lmao the higher pick doesnt equal a better deal…..this draft is top heavy and mediocre after the top 3. They got 3 firsts from jazz if you include allen. Your trade works being a heat fan but not as a jazz fan.
A 13th pick in this draft still allows you to find a good player. This draft is deeper than most think but that’s a matter of opinion so I won’t bother to go to into that. At the end, the short length of the contracts coming in were likely more appealing than what the Heat would’ve offered. So I agree with you on that one.
Dragic is on an expiring contract (which is the motive for Korver and Crowder in this deal from Memphis’ side) and would’ve been a nice mentor to Ja Morant for a year. The 13th pick is IN THE LOTTERY in comparison to the pick they landed this year and will more than likely be in the 20s next year we well… DJJ is a a promising young forward with excellent defensive potential (may not be as good as Allen, but Allen hasn’t proved much either) so the only “bad contract” is Waiters… although I will say, at 12 million, and two years left, isn’t what most would consider to be “bad.” So… get your facts straight before opening your mouth bro.
@stretch123 Why so sassy? You can argue the 13th pick is obviously better than the 23rd but you can NOT argue that it makes sense to trade the homegrown franchise leader in points and assists who’s set to earn $25 mil next year should’ve been traded for an older PG earning $19 mil and a shoot first and some times moody Dion Waiters who is owed 2/$25 mil. At the end of the day Conley’s 2020-21 2/$25 is off their books so the 2019 salary swap is $32 (Conley) vs $19 mil and $12 mil in 2019 and an additional $12 mil for 2020-21. What’s the point of that? If they wanted an expensive mentor then they would’ve kept Conley. After all, what better mentor is their than the franchise’s greatest PF still performing at a high level?
Plus they can either use the 3 players or flip Crowder and Korver for some 2nd round picks and save money too.
For the 13th pick which I think some people ate undervaluing the talent in this class… that’s my point… why not add another young talent from this years crop to grow with Ja Morant and Jaren Jackson? What if a guy like Doumboya, Hayes or a guy like Reddish drops to 13th? Instead they’re getting Allen (who in my view does not have as high of an upside as any of the players in this years lottery). And a likely 20-25 pick next year. It’s not like Memphis will be ready to compete this year or in 2020-2021 which is why i suggested the acquisition of Waiters to make the salaries work. I think it’s a better proposal simply because of the talent in this years draft and I’m sticking to that.
As well as DJJ. He’s a solid young Memphis type of player. Good on defense, good rebounder and has shown signs of developing a 3 point shot. Classic 3 and D guy who would be perfect next to Jaren Jackson in small ball lineups. Allen could be a good add, yeah, but there’s such a large supply of shooting in the NBA. It’s harder to find young players with good to great level of defensive ability.
And you’re entitled to have an opinion. Just don’t push it off as logical. A 13th pick on a team with multiple needs that’s not competing vs this year’s #23, an additional 1st rounder in 2020, plus whatever you can get in terms of picks for Korver and Crowder plus cap space has it’s merits. They can acquire a vet PG for a whole lot less than Conley or Dragic’s deal. They might even be able to package Korver and the #23 to move up in this years draft. Maybe they switch pics with a team needing outside shooting for a pick or two..or three? Maybe to the Philles to swap 1st picks in this draft plus a 2nd rnd pick. Plenty of freshman in this class that they can afford to let develop for a year or two. But I don’t think Dragic and Waiters would be easy to move and in the case of Waiters, he may not be a good personality to have around young kids?
I don’t even know that the 13 pick is better than the 23. The cost of the player is almost twice as much and I don’t think you could argue that the prospect you get will be twice the value. The player is arguably better, but the value is arguably worse almost every time.
All i am hearing is excuses the pick next year is unprotected 1-8 and 14-32 and becomes better each year after with less protections. Allen has been in the league one year and didnt mesh with mitchell. Djj isnt that good of a prospect and projects to be gerald green at best, jazz clearly were in the same line of thinking and building around ja and jaren jackson jr.
I’m a fan of Conley, and have been for a long time, but especially in that kind of a deal, I dont see it being enough of an improvement over a healthy Dragic (except defensively), and then that doesnt factor in that it would add another injury guy to our already injury situated roster
Memphis gets essentially 3 1st round picks (Grayson, 2020, and 2021 pick) and salary dumps Conley. Not a bad deal. Grizzlies are pairing it all down now. Looking at 2022 or 2023 for contending.
Grayson, 2019 (23rd) the 2020 pick is protected till 2024
Yes, my apologies. 2019 + 2020 picks is what I meant.
It is only three first round picks if you can go back in time and draft Landry Shamet (or someone you prefer) instead of Allen.
@JBhoops I wouldn’t say Conley is a salary dump yet … CP3 salary dump… whiteside salary dump … conley you are trading a respected and proven player still in his prime if he was a FA this year he would get a max deal from someone.
CP3 is a much more respected & proven player than Conley, actually way better, even now.
It is even disrespectful to even compare them both, I still take CP3 with his contract any day of the week & twice on Sundays before Conley.
BTW NO ONE in the league would give Conley a max deal, as you can see they just got Utah’s dross for him, not even a decent player or pick, says a lot about it, right?
Seems like a fair deal. Helps both teams.
This is good haul. Memphis received draft picks, a young prospect, and expiring contracts. Not bad. I don’t think any other team would have offered this much. Conley’s contract is alot to take on for teams that are planning to be active in free agency this year and/or in 2020.
Conley ended up costing about what I expected, in terms of assets. Not sure I like the fit next to Donovan Mitchell, and they lose an important wing player, as well as the possible cost controlled rotation player they may have drafted at #23. I would assume Royce O’neal’s role increases on the wing, as it should have anyway, and I could see them still looking to add 1 more wing for depth, as well as obviously addressing their biggest need, at the 4.
Meanwhile, I could see Memphis using that 23rd pick on a shooter at the 4/3 positions.
Good haul for Memphis. I am not sure that a 31 year PG that is owed near $65 million for (2) First Round picks is worth it.
However, Conley will likely continue to operate as a Top 10 PG for those two remaining years.
dude is 31 … not 34 … and keeps himself in elite shape not like CP3 chins
this deal is to mainly shed Conley contract so they can do some shopping in next year FA class. and get players that will fit around morant and jackson
Utah just got significantly better. This has the look of a salary dump for Memphis.
The protected pick could be in the lottery. Crowder and Korver can be traded at the deadline for more picks. So more than just a dump.
your not getting squat for crowder … maybe a protected second for korver… so pretty much trash.
Can’t wait for Korver to get bought out and head to the Lakers.
Why would they buy Korver out? “Threezus” shot 40% from 3pt land last year. He’s an asset. His partially non-guaranteed contract is an asset. He will not be bought out or released.
I think korver doesn’t want to waste his last seasons on teams struggling to make the playoffs hence why he pushed the cavs to move him. so yeah I think he gets cut/bought out or moved to LAL for Bonga or sumtin.
Again, Korver shoots right around 40% from the 3 and is on a easy to afford contract. Memphis will have no problem trading him to a contender and have a shot at netting, at minimum, one 2nd round pick (is they’re a such thing as a protracted 2nd rd pick? I don’t think so) or can use him and the #23 to move up in this year’s draft. No sense in cutting him.
yes there are one such instance was a trade involving Eric Bledsoe there are also conditional second round picks… no one is trading anything of actual value for korver as the main pc A contender will either offer a conditional or heavily protected second rounder for him and or he will get released to sign for the MIN somewhere PROBABLY LAL and or close to home like DEN.
You can keep saying it. Doesn’t make it true. Korver is still a good rotational piece AND is on a cheap contract. He will find a hope and I would not be shocked if he was the cost to move up incrementally in the first round or net a 2nd end pick. The idea that the Sixers wouldn’t gladly part with one or two of their 2nd picks for a floor spacing deep threat on a 1 year deal is laughable.
Unless he threatens to retire unless he’s traded.
Memphis gets 1st round pick in this year draft and josh Jackson
Suns get Conley
Definitely a great trade for the Grizzlies. To be able to get a young player with the potential that Grayson Allen (who was underrated this year as a rookie) possesses, two solid role players on team-friendly contracts who have value if they want to flip them, and 2 first round picks for Mike Conley is impressive. It looks even better when you consider that Ja Morant is going to be the PG of the future in Memphis.
That being said I don’t think it’s a terrible trade for the Jazz outside of the fact that they gave up 2 1st round picks and their 1st round pick from last year for a player who is making over $30m a year. But Mike Conley is a great basketball player and I think he fits really well next to Donovan Mitchell, both as premier guards in the league and perfect role models and faces of the franchise for a team like the Jazz who emphasize culture and hard work. Fit wise I love the trade for them.
idk man just to me first round picks that are after pick 16 you can just consider them 2nd round picks … god know if they will even have careers in the NBA.
Please look at past drafts. Plenty of guys taken after the 16th slot have had 12 year careers or even became stars. Off hand, Jokic, Gobert, Butler, IT, Siakam, Ibaka, Capela , etc were all drafted late 1st or into the 2nd round.
I mean we can both agree .. conley is a TOP pg right now and will be for the next 3 years … you can not say the same for pick #23 of this years draft he has a better chance of never amounting to anything then having a 12 year career with 6 or more of those years being in the top percent of the league for his position.
What Conley is matters not. He’s of no use to Memphis now but they have a shot of drafting a good player at that slot. History has shown you can find at minimum a good rotation player in the mid-thigh round. Nothing is guaranteed. And Conley isn’t a lock to be a “top of in 2 years either”. But that’s not a part of the thinning from Memphis.
Correction. I didn’t mean he has no use. Rather, they wanted to move his contract for young assets and salary relief.
Good Trade.
The Jazz are title contenders now.
Jazz did good. No big free agent was going to go to that team so this works for them. The Griz were never going to get much for Conley because of his contract so a couple of 1sts, Allen and two Vets to trade again to contenders for more picks isn’t bad.
I agree the jazz gave essentially traded 75 cents for a crisp one dollar bill.
How Can the trade works? Not enough salary from jazz side
They don’t need to match salaries because they’ll have cap room to take on Conley.
Also without waiving Favors?
Conley 32.5
Gobert 25
Favors 17
Ingles 12
Exum 9.5
Mitchell 3.5
Neto 2
Niang-bradley-oneal 5
So 106/7 is not over the cap?
Or that’s because they’re under without him and so i didn’t understand the rule
Thanks luke
Basically, a team only has to adhere to salary-matching rules if they’re going to be over the cap at the end of the deal.
Because the Jazz have a bunch of contracts coming off their books (Rubio, Sefolosha, Udoh, etc.), they’ll open up some cap room in July and taking back Conley’s big salary shouldn’t push them over that $109MM mark, even with Favors still under contract.
It’ll be close though. Depending on where exactly the cap comes in, the Jazz may have to waive one non-guaranteed player like Neto or Niang to make sure they stay under the cap (they could work out a deal to bring them back on a new contract).
Thanks again.
They’re in the Edge
However, i couldn’t understand grizzlies…
Jazz did not have to give up Derrick Favors or Royce Oneal, good deal for them. Hooray for fresh new capspace to start the fiscal year with! Getting Conley when GSW is depleted and Rockets are unsettled could push Utah into the finals.
Memphis got picks instead of giving them up as some speculated, and after all that’s their main want. Should have traded him in February but that was different management.
One less suitor for DLo
Where are all the haters who said Conley’s contract was terrible?
Conley improves the Jazz’ starting 5, but they gave up rotation players, as well as the draft picks and cap space that could be used to replace them.
Grizz did well. Rebuild is on.
Utah gave up one 1st rder to many I suspect that’s why the pistons backed out plus Crowder was good for them but I like Conley igles backcourt.. I think this don’t move the needle much if any at all
What a waste of money Utah…see you in the lottery.
Why? Conley had a very good player who just happens to be overpaid. Jazz are in win now mode. Good move for them. They likely had no shot at Irving or Russell. Conley is significantly better than Rubio, who I like a lot, and Rozier should he become a restricted FA.
You can really say he is overpaid… waaay overpaid! We shall all agree to that!
Anyone have other better plans for that money? Korver, Crowder, the rookie? I think not.
Not great value but not a great contract.
People are dumb. It’s not between Conley or Kawhi. It’s between true title contender or just okay. Utah is spending the same amount.