Grizzlies' Yuri Collins Move Shows Memphis Knows What It Needs

The Memphis Grizzlies need to find their long-term point guard. It's not likely to be recent signing Yuri Collins, but the team's decision to acquire him proves that the front office has the right mindset.

Perhaps that's unfair to Collins. He'll have opportunities, but it's fair to recognize that Memphis is still over the roster limit. At just 6 feet, he's likely to struggle at the NBA level. This feels like a decision that was made with the Memphis Hustle in mind, but it will give him a chance to spend time with the team in camp.

There must be a reason for that.

To make room for Collins, the Grizzlies waived guard Brendan Hausen.

A comparison between these two guards is revealing. Hausen is a potent 3-point shooter. At 6-foot-4, he has better positional size. The issue is that he averaged just 0.6 assists per game during his four seasons in the NCAA.

Collins?

He led all of NCAA Division I in total assists — twice. Collins averaged 7.9 assists per game for Saint Louis in 2021-22 and an astonishing 10.3 the next season.

That's the point here. These are comparable prospects, and the Grizzlies chose the playmaker at the expense of size and shooting.

It's a choice they may need to make again in the future.

Consider this a companion piece.

I recently wrote that Memphis needed to find its point guard of the future. The Grizzlies have a likely franchise player in place in Cameron Boozer, an impressive depth of young talent, and intriguing options at the five in Zach Edey if healthy and Isaiah Stewart if not.

As far as point guards go, there are 29-year-old Ty Jerome and 25-year-old Scotty Pippen Jr.. The former is too old for a rebuilding club. The latter should get opportunities, but it would be premature to earmark him as the team's point guard of the future.

The same could be said for Collins. There's no proof of concept to suggest he's even an NBA player. At 25, his NBA outlook is unclear.

It could be that Memphis' long-term starting point guard is in the 2027 NBA Draft. He could also already be in the NBA, circled as a trade target in Memphis' ledger.

It's the fact that the Grizzlies want to get Collins reps with the main roster that should be encouraging here. The front office knows what it needs, and it's pursuing it:

Whether it's Collins or someone else.