The discourse around the Memphis Grizzlies trading Desmond Bane immediately turned to questions about the team considering a rebuild, instead of belief in building around their All-Star duo of Ja Morant and Jaren Jackson Jr. "All-Star" is the key word, as Desmond Bane was integral to the Grizzlies' success the last couple of seasons, but he never reached All-Star status.
Roster construction and coaching turmoil within the front office contributed to the Grizzlies' fate of ending last season as they fell from a top-three seed at the All-Star break to eighth in the playoffs. Despite their 12-16 finish to the regular season, the Grizzlies fell just short of avoiding the play-in tournament and even securing home-court advantage in the first round of the playoffs with only two games separating them and the three-seeded Los Angeles Lakers.