There were a number of teams reportedly interested in Phoenix Suns star Kevin Durant ahead of Thursday’s trade deadline, but it wasn’t known until very late in the game that the Memphis Grizzlies were apparently one of them at a certain point in time.
Shortly before the deadline passed, former Warriors general manager Bob Myers appeared to leak some info on ESPN about how the Grizzlies “tried on Kevin Durant.” He added that Durant wasn’t for the idea.
ESPN’s Brian Windhorst even quipped that what Myers said about the Grizzlies and Durant was “news.”
With just minutes until the NBA Trade Deadline – Kendrick Perkins say the Grizzlies are 1 wing away from contention.
Bob Myers says the Grizz tried to get Kevin Durant and Durant said no. pic.twitter.com/jFz9d1AVL5
— Avery Braxton (@Brax_Avery) February 6, 2025
It’s interesting that Myers was the one to leak the Grizzlies’ apparent trade interest in Durant, as Durant played for the Warriors when Myers was still with the team.
Instead of trading for a player of Durant’s caliber to pair with the likes of Ja Morant and Jaren Jackson Jr., Memphis went in another direction on deadline day. The Grizzlies traded defensive ace Marcus Smart, third-year forward Jake LaRavia and a first-round pick, getting back big man Marvin Bagley III, guard Johnny Davis and two future second-rounders.
For as monumental as it would have been for the Grizzlies’ title chances if they had acquired Durant before the deadline, Memphis seemingly already has a talented young player capable of playing at forward in Jaylen Wells.
Wells this season is averaging 11.3 points, 3.2 rebounds and 1.7 assists per game while shooting 44.4 percent from the field and 37.7 percent form deep. He has played multiple positions.
Perhaps now that the Grizzlies missed out on landing an elite forward via trade, the team’s plan B should be give Wells lots of opportunities at the forward spots and see how the youngster fares. After all, he is seemingly among the real contenders to win the Rookie of the Year award and has an incredibly bright future ahead of him in the NBA.
