Grizzlies Waive Walter Clayton Jr., Micah Peavy to Set Opening-Night Roster

Walter Clayton Jr. and Micah Peavy are being waived by the Memphis Grizzlies, sources told ESPN's Shams Charania. The NBA's deadline to set regular-season rosters was 4 p.m.

Seventeen Grizzlies held standard contracts when Monday began, and three more were on two-way deals. Cutting Clayton and Peavy leaves Memphis at 15 standard contracts, the league maximum.

Clayton had been on the trade market Monday morning. Marc Stein posted that the Grizzlies were "actively trying to find a new home via trade" for the second-year guard, citing league sources who spoke to him and Jake Fischer of The Stein Line, and that the Sacramento Kings had emerged as a possible destination.

Sacramento was looking for guard help a day after Ben Simmons went down in practice. Charania reported Sunday that Simmons is believed to have torn his right Achilles tendon. Fischer reported Monday that the Kings had also called the Milwaukee Bucks about Kevin Porter Jr..

Stein wrote in his Sunday notebook that Peavy was the Grizzlies player regarded as most likely to be released barring a trade.

On Oct. 15, Fischer reported that Peavy was a strong candidate to be waived and that Clayton and GG Jackson II had come up in trade talks. Damichael Cole of The Commercial Appeal reported that night that Memphis was not in trade discussions involving Jackson.

Memphis got Clayton from the Utah Jazz on Feb. 3 in the eight-player trade that sent Jaren Jackson Jr., John Konchar, Jock Landale, and Vince Williams Jr. to Utah.

Clayton came over with Kyle Anderson, Taylor Hendricks, Georges Niang, and three future first-round picks.

Three days after the deal, Grizzlies general manager Zach Kleiman told reporters Memphis was turning the page and building around Zach Edey, Cedric Coward, Jaylen Wells, and Cam Spencer, Cole reported.

"He fits the characteristics we are looking for," Kleiman said of Clayton. "Physically tough, tough-minded, smart, [and a] winner."

Clayton was the 18th pick in the 2025 draft, a few months after he led Florida to the national championship. Utah traded up to get him.

Through 45 games with the Jazz, he averaged 6.8 points, 2.0 rebounds, and 3.2 assists in 18.0 minutes.

Six of his 24 games in Memphis were starts. He played 25.0 minutes a night there and averaged 9.7 points, 2.1 rebounds, and 5.7 assists, making 36.6% of his shots and 31-of-101 from 3-point range.

Clayton missed Summer League with a sprained right knee, and on Sept. 10, with Memphis still carrying 19 standard contracts, Fischer reported that he was expected to survive the cuts.

Clayton's last game for Memphis was Friday's 117-98 preseason win over the Charlotte Hornets. He had 4 assists in the fourth quarter. Three came during a 12-1 Grizzlies run.

Clayton is due $4,190,520 this season. Utah signed him to the four-year, $19,324,472 rookie-scale contract, and 2026-27 is its second guaranteed year.

Peavy never played a regular-season game for Memphis.

The Grizzlies acquired him from the New Orleans Pelicans on Sept. 8, along with Jordan Hawkins, for AJ Johnson and Taj Gibson.

Kleiman said at media day on Sept. 28 that Peavy had turned his ankle and that it would be a little while before the team could get a look at him.

Peavy is owed $2.2 million this season, fully guaranteed. His $2.5 million salary for 2027-28 was set to become guaranteed if he was still on the roster for the first regular-season game.

New Orleans signed Peavy to a four-year, $8.7 million contract in July 2025, a few weeks after he went 40th overall.

Last season he played 61 games for the Pelicans and started 4. He averaged 4.3 points, 1.9 rebounds, and 1.0 assists in 15.0 minutes.

In the April 12 season finale at Minnesota, Peavy scored a career-high 21 points on 6-of-12 shooting before fouling out of a 132-126 loss.

If no team puts in a claim, Clayton and Peavy clear waivers Wednesday.

Utah visits FedExForum for the season opener that night at 7 p.m. CT.

Memphis plays its next four on the road, all in a seven-day span. The trip starts Oct. 23 against the Golden State Warriors, with Sacramento, Utah, and Portland after that.