Where do the Memphis Grizzlies land after LeBron James went to the Philadelphia 76ers?
NBA legend LeBron James signed a two-year, $8 million deal with the Philadelphia 76ers.
The Sixers now have a lethal core of LeBron, Joel Embiid, Tyrese Maxey, Jaylen Brown and VJ Edgecombe.
NBA analyst Andy Bailey of Bleacher Report ranked every team in the league after James joined the 76ers, and he has the Memphis Grizzlies at 26.
"The Grizzlies will lose a lot of games based on little more than the experience gap, but they're talented, competitive and will be a tougher out than opponents realize," Bailey wrote.
The Grizzlies are in rebuild mode after trading Jaren Jackson Jr. to the Utah Jazz last season and Ja Morant to the Portland Trail Blazers this offseason. In the post-Morant era, the Grizzlies will be led by Cameron Boozer, Zach Edey, Cedric Coward, GG Jackson and Karim López.
It will be a while before the Grizzlies make the playoffs again. However, at least they have a young building block in Boozer, who won the Player of the Year Award last season. The Duke forward averaged 22.5 points, 10.2 rebounds and 4.1 assists per game while shooting 55.6% from the field, 39.1% from beyond the arc and 78.9% from the free-throw line.
In Summer League, Boozer played well, averaging 18.5 points, 8.0 rebounds, 3.7 assists and 1.8 steals per game while shooting 45.2% from the field, 33.3% from beyond the arc and 77.3% from the free-throw line. The youngster made the Summer League First Team and led Memphis to the championship game, a contest the Golden State Warriors won.
Selected third overall in the 2026 draft behind AJ Dybantsa and Darryn Peterson, Boozer is expected to be a day-one starter for the Grizzlies alongside Cedric Coward, last season's All-Rookie First Team selection. Boozer's combination of playmaking, physicality and positional flexibility as a 6-foot-10 forward has drawn comparisons to the multi-skilled roster construction that defined the New York Knicks' championship approach, per Tony Jones of The Athletic.
“Versatility is the name of the game. That’s what teams are looking for,” Boozer told The Athletic. “Teams want five guys who can make plays. Look at the Knicks this year. Everyone on that team was capable of doing more than one thing. Everyone was capable of playing on or off the basketball. That’s what I feel like I can do best. I can screen. I can handle it. You can put me in a lot of different scenarios.”
