New Blockbuster Three-Team Trade Idea Sends Domantas Sabonis to Grizzlies, Hawks Add Young Power Forward

While the NBA offseason usually begins in earnest during or after the NBA Draft, a blockbuster trade got done early when Memphis Grizzlies guard Desmond Bane was sent to the Orlando Magic for a massive haul. According to ESPN's Shams Charania, the Grizzlies sent Bane to the Magic for Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Cole Anthony, four unprotected first round picks, and one pick swap.

This is of course a major move for the Orlando Magic and while Bane being the target is a surprise, it has not been a secret that Orlando was ready to make moves to try and move up the Eastern Conference chain. However, it also has major implications for the Grizzlies' future. They now have cleared a big contract off their books in the future and could be considering a teardown. It may be possible to acquire Ja Morant and Jaren Jackson Jr for the right price.

While it has been reported in recent days that the Grizzlies are going to hold onto both Morant and Jackson, it wouldn't be surprising to see them part ways with Ja if the price was right. He's declined in recent seasons and hasn't been the same since making the All-NBA second team in the 2021-22 season. However, if the young point guard is able to recapture his form, he could be one of the best players in the NBA.

Coincidentally, the Sacramento Kings are in need of a point guard this offseason. After failing to build around Tyrese Haliburton and then De'Aaron Fox, they are still no closer towards being a contending force in the Western Conference. If the price on Ja is cheap and they recognize the ceiling of their current trio of Domantas Sabonis, Zach LaVine and DeMar DeRozan, it wouldn't be entirely surprising to see Sacramento take a swing on adding Morant.

Given that the Grizzlies would want a boatload of assets and the Kings are $21.2 million below the luxury tax line and only have 10 rostered players at the moment, adding a third team into the deal might make sense. The Hawks could be that third team. Atlanta has a ton of financial flexibility this summer, which they can use to address their needs at interior defense, front court depth, shooting, and maybe a backup lead guard/ball handler. NBA insider Marc Stein has already reported that Atlanta could also look to be facilitators this summer in the trade market due to their financial flexibility, depending on if the team brings back any of Caris LeVert, Clint Capela, or Larry Nance.

Given the needs of all three teams, what would a trade between them look like? Here is one possible framework for a deal.

It should be noted that this is just a speculative and fun exercise to see what kind of moves can be made, not what I think the Hawks or any other teams should do or will do. That is all.

Atlanta Hawks Receive: GG Jackson

Memphis Grizzlies Receive: Domantas Sabonis, Kobe Bufkin, Vit Krejci, 2025 1st round pick (via LAL, from ATL, #22), 2027 1st round pick (via SAS, from SAC, unprotected), 2029 1st round pick (top-8 protected)

Sacramento Kings Receive: Ja Morant, Jay Huff, John Konchar

Why the Hawks would do this deal: Still only 20 years old, Jackson would be an excellent fit alongside the core of young wings the Hawks have been developing over the past two seasons. During the Grizzlies' horrific season in 2023-24, he averaged 14.6 points and 4.1 rebounds on 42.8/35.7/75.2 shooting splits. Those numbers fell back down to earth in his second season - he only played in 29 games and averaged only 7.2 points on a ghastly 48.2 TS%. However, Jackson is still the youngest player to ever score 40 points and grab 10 rebounds in a game. He's an excellent off-ball player who shot 50% on long midrange attempts, good for 80th percentile among all wings and he drew a foul on 11.4% of his shot attempts as a rookie, finishing in the 70th percentile as a rookie. There are some indications that Jackson can eventually become a very effective 3&D wing, but if the Grizzlies were to trade for Sabonis, he would have very few options to develop in their crowded frontcourt. Sending over a late first-rounder in a draft with few quality options from the 20th pick onwards is a worthy gamble by the Hawks.

Why the Hawks would not do this deal: The drastic difference between his first and second-year production is a little bit alarming, even when accounting for a reduced role and injuries. However, he's not a great finisher at the rim, only hitting 50% of his shots at the rim. For some reference, that was in the 3rd percentile across all forwards last season. His youth and athleticism are very intriguing, but there's still a lot of refinement to be done before he's someone who can take on a rotation role for a good team.

Why the Grizzlies would do this deal: The Grizzlies could run some very interesting lineups with Sabonis and JJJ together. Sabonis' biggest weakness is his defense while JJJ struggles to come up with rebounds. However, JJJ is one of the best defenders in the NBA and Sabonis led the league in TREB% at 22.4%. It isn't a guarantee that they would be able to solve each other's problems, but having a frontcourt with that much size and skill presents a wrinkle that not many teams in the West are capable of solving. Both players are somewhat competent shooters and Sabonis' blend of passing and size allows them to replace Morant from a facilitation standpoint. They are also getting assets for moving off the Morant deal and remain relatively neutral from a salary cap standpoint. If they do want to develop a Ja replacement, Bufkin is an interesting candidate. He's a 6'4 point guard who's shown defensive flashes in the games he's played, but he's struggled to stay healthy throughout his career. If Memphis can get a healthier version of Bufkin, he can split point guard reps with Scottie Pippen Jr, who had great moments as the Grizzlies' backup PG last season. Krejci isn't a household name, but he shot over 40% from three for the second straight season, going for a career-high 43.7% this season on an average of 3.6 attempts per game. In fact, Krejci ranked in the 92nd percentile in three-point accuracy per Cleaning the Glass. He was a deadly accurate shooter and that was how he was most effective for the Hawks.

Why the Grizzlies would not do this deal: Sabonis is a flawed player to build around because of his defense and it's fair to wonder what he would be able to do on a team that already has JJJ, Santi Aldama (upon re-signing), Brandon Clarke and Zach Edey. His contract also extends for another three seasons and the Grizzlies are already gearing up to pay JJJ a big deal. Replacing Morant's money with a more expensive contract in Sabonis doesn't really preserve future cap space for Memphis so that they can make more moves.

Why the Kings would do this deal: They're only giving up one of their own first-round picks (and a protected pick at that) for one of the NBA's most exciting guards to watch when healthy. Last season, Morant averaged 23.2 points, 7.3 assists and 4.1 rebounds on 45.4/30.9/82.4% shooting splits. He's one of the best guards in the NBA when it comes to drawing fouls, eliciting a foul on 15.6% of his attempts last season. That finished in the 94th percentile last season among all guards. His AST% of 35.5% was also in the 88th percentile last season, showing that he can still be the main facilitator for a team. A backcourt of Morant and Devin Carter would be very interesting considering the defensive chops that Carter showed in his first season, who might be able to cover for some of Morant's lapses on that end. Ja would easily be capable of getting LaVine and DeRozan involved as a facilitator and he already has chemistry with Jonas Valanciunas from their time in Memphis together. The Kings are also getting an interesting player in Jay Huff. Huff didn't play much for the Grizzlies due to his defensive mistakes, but there's a chance he can be a viable stretch five after a season where he shot 40% from three-point range on 3.1 attempts per game after a hot start to the season. He's already 26 years old, but it'd be interesting to see if he can be a more complete player in Sacramento. Konchar is a veteran who can play either SG or SF and he's a great defender. The Kings could have a very good perimeter defense by using a lineup of Carter, Konchar, Keon Ellis and Keegan Murray.

Why the Kings would not do this deal: Morant is a difficult player to build around because he isn't a floor spacer (career-best 34.4% shooter from deep), he's struggled to stay on the court and they already have a candidate to take over the point guard spot in Carter. The spacing of him and DeRozan together would be a difficult match on offense and Morant is very targetable on defense. They are also giving up first-round picks for a player who may be on the decline.

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