The NBA is a game within a game. Yes, the literal games are played on the floor. In the boardrooms, general managers play their own games. The goal is to maximize your assets in hopes of building an NBA champion.

There's an entire economy of draft capital. Picks vary in value. That said, the league's recent anti-tanking reform will change that economy. Some picks will appreciate, and others will plummet in value.

It's one thing to change the rules. It's another thing to change them in the middle of the game. Some teams acquired picks under different pretenses:

And nobody's being hit as hard as the Memphis Grizzlies.

The new rules hold that a team's pick cannot land in the top five for three consecutive years.

At face value, that makes sense. If a team lands a top-five pick in two straight drafts, they're incentivized to compete in the following season. What doesn't make sense is that the pick still can't land in the top five if another team is holding it:

And that's where the Grizzlies come in.

Memphis controls the most favorable 2027 first-round pick among the Cleveland Cavaliers, Minnesota Timberwolves, and Utah Jazz. There is virtually no hope that the Cavaliers or Timberwolves will land in the top five. Now, it's impossible for the Jazz's selection to land there either.

Frankly, it feels senseless. The Jazz were not going to tank this year, no matter what. The Grizzlies owned their pick. Why couldn't the league design a provision that a pick owed to another team wouldn't be affected?

If the Grizzlies had known this was coming, would they have even wanted Utah's pick?

To reiterate: The Jazz were not going to tank in 2026-27, no matter what. The entire purpose of acquiring Jaren Jackson Jr. was to field a competitive team next season.

So, the odds of the pick landing in the top five were always slim. This (in this writer's opinion) is egregiously unfair to the Grizzlies on principle. The league is changing the rules in the middle of the game. Still, on a practical level, it doesn't change much for Memphis.

Memphis also got lucky in the last tank-friendly draft. With the third overall pick, they're likely to select Cameron Boozer. In a league that's now going to prohibit teams from drafting blue-chip prospects for seasons on end, landing that young, cost-controlled franchise player is the most important step.

Having three additional future first-rounders to use in building around Boozer is still better than having an expensive veteran like Jackson Jr. The Grizzlies were smart to begin the rebuilding process, and shouldn't regret this trade:

Even with the rule changes, they're playing the game well.

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