Shams: Grizzlies trade Desmond Bane to Magic for KCP, Cole Anthony, 4 1sts, 1 Pick Swap...

[Dacost]

Usually I don't like the picks because they end up in the 20s.

However memphis has shown that they get great value late in the draft.

Clarke
Bane
Aldama
Wells
Gg jackson
Jake lavaria
Xavier Tillman
Santi Aldama

All of this guys are still in the league and were all 20 overall or above.

[Himothy Duncan]

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[Kent]

Usually I don't like the picks because they end up in the 20s.

However memphis has shown that they get great value late in the draft.

Clarke
Bane
Aldama
Wells
Gg jackson
Jake lavaria
Xavier Tillman
Santi Aldama

All of this guys are still in the league and were all 20 overall or above.

As an Orlando fan, I'd much rather have Bane than those picks in the 20s.

So I agree. If you can draft like Memphis, you have a different outlook.

Which is why this can absolutely be a situation where both teams "win" a trade, which is why teams execute trades to begin with.

[zaymon]

I have it as a win-win in favor of Magic slightly based on math.
Best asset is phx frp and it will propably be 10+ based on swaps and Durant trade.
Magic unprotected picks are just when Orlando enters their true championship window based on age and then we will have our picks reloaded for next big move. We can also pivot trading any of the 4 at any time. This was the best time to do this kind of trade. Waiting would be very costly for our team chemistry and ability to sign free agents.

I also like it for the Grizzlies. They upgrade their defense next to Ja, while downgrading on offense which they chose to use less. They make their salary situation better. They made more space for Wells. Picks will propably be not that great and they know it thats why they asked for so many of them and Magic agreed. There is also a chance magic will be bad but thats unlikely.

ps. I am sure Mike Miller who is the agent of both Morant and Banchero wanted to help both of his clients and he did. Banchero has better team and Morant position on the team is not threatened.

[RookieStar]

Just gonna say this.

Win-win trade.

My team is finally going all-in and they showed to us fans what they are willing to do. Also, this "regime" showed that unless they are picking top-10, they can't evaluate worth ish if its in the 20s and beyond.

Totally opposite of MEM where their lower end picks actually blossomed in the league. ( look no further than Bane )

Also.. a lot of us magic relagm posters will finally rest from researching and debating top draft picks every after offseason. lol

[MagicForLife]

Would u guys still see this trade as a massive overpay if it turned out Memphis did not want to take on KCP and Cole's salary so it was a 3 team trade where KCP and Cole along w/ the 16th pick and 2029 swap went to Washington, the other 3 first went to Memphis, and Bane to Orlando?

[JujitsuFlip]

Would u guys still see this trade as a massive overpay if it turned out Memphis did not want to take on KCP and Cole's salary so it was a 3 team trade where KCP and Cole along w/ the 16th pick and 2029 swap went to Washington, the other 3 first went to Memphis, and Bane to Orlando?

It's still the same amount of draft capital outgoing.

I think the biggest issue is he's not a PG/facilitator/playmaker.

So the Magic just handcuffed themselves from an asset perspective, without filling their biggest need.

Now Bane does fill the shooting need, if Mosley knows how to use him. BUT shooting doesn't cost that much draft capital.

In another thread where these 2 teams are being compared, the Pistons signed Beasley for $6 million, they did have to give up Grimes but received 3 seconds with THJ, and not that he's known as a shooter but stepped up in the playoffs Schröder, all they gave up was KJ Martin who may be out of the league soon.

5 first rounders to address shooting is overkill. It's like using a jack hammer to hammer in a nail. 1 guy is not going to fix their spacing issues by himself.

[Bergmaniac]

Bane is not just a shooter, he has become a solid playmaker too, he had plenty of games with 7+ assists last season and was often the main ballhandler when Ja was out. We needed 3 things the most - shooting, playmaking and ability to create shots and Bane is very good to elite in all 3 categories.

[zaymon]

Would u guys still see this trade as a massive overpay if it turned out Memphis did not want to take on KCP and Cole's salary so it was a 3 team trade where KCP and Cole along w/ the 16th pick and 2029 swap went to Washington, the other 3 first went to Memphis, and Bane to Orlando?

It's still the same amount of draft capital outgoing.

I think the biggest issue is he's not a PG/facilitator/playmaker.

So the Magic just handcuffed themselves from an asset perspective, without filling their biggest need.

Now Bane does fill the shooting need, if Mosley knows how to use him. BUT shooting doesn't cost that much draft capital.

In another thread where these 2 teams are being compared, the Pistons signed Beasley for $6 million, they did have to give up Grimes but received 3 seconds with THJ, and not that he's known as a shooter but stepped up in the playoffs Schröder, all they gave up was KJ Martin who may be out of the league soon.

5 first rounders to address shooting is overkill. It's like using a jack hammer to hammer in a nail. 1 guy is not going to fix their spacing issues by himself.

If we only needed shooting Gary Harris would be enough and KCP wouldnt be such a disaster.
Magic needed someone to shoot, but also create for himself, perform pick and roll with Franz or Paolo, drive to the rim at higher volume.
Most shooters doesnt provide that and thats why we paid premium.
We also didnt downgrade much on defense which is huge.
On top of that we can easly pivot in 2-3 years being such a young team.
ps. i personally hope one of the picks will be good becouse we fleeced Chicago enough.

[Wolveswin]

I think this trade is very similar to Gobert trade for Wolves.

Immediate reaction - justifiable - overpay knee jerk reactions. After all, it is 4x 1sts and a swap to fill need(s) for Magic - but not #1 need (of PG).

But like Gobert trade, if Magic make deep playoff runs over next few seasons and those traded picks to Grizzlies become meh picks in 20s - the trade scale starts to tip in favor of Magic.

Wolves trade for Gobert isn’t complete either, the scale is still tipping. Final evaluation for Magic and Grizzlies is many years away.

[BAMAFREAK]

Usually I don't like the picks because they end up in the 20s.

However memphis has shown that they get great value late in the draft.

Clarke
Bane
Aldama
Wells
Gg jackson
Jake lavaria
Xavier Tillman
Santi Aldama

All of this guys are still in the league and were all 20 overall or above.

As an Orlando fan, I'd much rather have Bane than those picks in the 20s.

So I agree. If you can draft like Memphis, you have a different outlook.

Which is why this can absolutely be a situation where both teams "win" a trade, which is why teams execute trades to begin with.

I understand it’s a different situation in Orlando right now, but a few things here regarding “picks in the 20s”
You have already given the 16th pick.
The Suns/Wizards will almost certainly be top 15
And then to the Magics picks, you guys haven’t picked as late as the 20s since 2017. A lot of those picks being very very high. Now, the roster and outlook is very strong right now but who knows, it’s definitely not a given none of those picks turn out juicy.

[JujitsuFlip]

Would u guys still see this trade as a massive overpay if it turned out Memphis did not want to take on KCP and Cole's salary so it was a 3 team trade where KCP and Cole along w/ the 16th pick and 2029 swap went to Washington, the other 3 first went to Memphis, and Bane to Orlando?

It's still the same amount of draft capital outgoing.

I think the biggest issue is he's not a PG/facilitator/playmaker.

So the Magic just handcuffed themselves from an asset perspective, without filling their biggest need.

Now Bane does fill the shooting need, if Mosley knows how to use him. BUT shooting doesn't cost that much draft capital.

In another thread where these 2 teams are being compared, the Pistons signed Beasley for $6 million, they did have to give up Grimes but received 3 seconds with THJ, and not that he's known as a shooter but stepped up in the playoffs Schröder, all they gave up was KJ Martin who may be out of the league soon.

5 first rounders to address shooting is overkill. It's like using a jack hammer to hammer in a nail. 1 guy is not going to fix their spacing issues by himself.

If we only needed shooting Gary Harris would be enough and KCP wouldnt be such a disaster.
Magic needed someone to shoot, but also create for himself, perform pick and roll with Franz or Paolo, drive to the rim at higher volume.
Most shooters doesnt provide that and thats why we paid premium.
We also didnt downgrade much on defense which is huge.
On top of that we can easly pivot in 2-3 years being such a young team.
ps. i personally hope one of the picks will be good becouse we fleeced Chicago enough.

But to me, that's on Mosley. If every shooter who walks through the door 'magically' forgets how to shoot, pun intended... Then it just might be schematic. The team may need to play with more pace and more space.

They traded KCP in this trade and waived Gary Harris to facilitate this trade. Let's see if those 2 guys rediscover their 3 ball once not under Mosley. Assuming Gary Harris lands on a new team.

Sidebar Gary Harris actually shot better with the Magic than with the Nuggets. But his playoff shooting was better with the Nuggets, so we'll wait and see.

[Bornstellar]

Interestingly, I just talked to a client at my job who happens to work for the Memphis Grizzlies and I brought this trade up. Not going to get into the specifics of the convo but it was interesting to talk to someone that actually works for a team about a trade. Sounded like Grizz were sad to make the deal but they couldn't pass up the offer. Seems like they're aware that they cannot stand pat. He did mention looking at how teams like Boston and OKC have built their rosters and Memphis wanting to emulate that. Just thought that was neat and wanted to share

[djsunyc]

the picks are theoretical. i think you need to see what grizz do with them before having a complete evaluation of the deal for them.

the concrete is bane for kcp + cole + cap relief in 2026 - orlando got better and memphis got worse on the actualized parts of the deal.

[JujitsuFlip]

the picks are theoretical. i think you need to see what grizz do with them before having a complete evaluation of the deal for them.

the concrete is bane for kcp + cole + cap relief in 2026 - orlando got better and memphis got worse on the actualized parts of the deal.

Picks are not theoretical lol they're an actual asset.

They may be uncertain but they're not theoretical.

[zaymon]

Interestingly, I just talked to a client at my job who happens to work for the Memphis Grizzlies and I brought this trade up. Not going to get into the specifics of the convo but it was interesting to talk to someone that actually works for a team about a trade. Sounded like Grizz were sad to make the deal but they couldn't pass up the offer. Seems like they're aware that they cannot stand pat. He did mention looking at how teams like Boston and OKC have built their rosters and Memphis wanting to emulate that. Just thought that was neat and wanted to share

Well if they really wanted to emulate OKC and Boston they would keep Bane and trade Ja...... but they cant becouse of his injuries and behaviour.
For me its not suprising he was sad becouse it was not a fleece for Memphis at all. I hope they get some really good pick out of it or it will end up Magic winning the trade like they did against Bulls.

[wco81]

I can't recall, did the Magic only lose to the Celtics in the first round because they lacked shooting?

It was a 4-1 series but were the games competitive or did the Magic defend the Celtics well but just couldn't make enough shots?

Presumably that's what the Magic front office was thinking?

[JujitsuFlip]

I can't recall, did the Magic only lose to the Celtics in the first round because they lacked shooting?

It was a 4-1 series but were the games competitive or did the Magic defend the Celtics well but just couldn't make enough shots?

Presumably that's what the Magic front office was thinking?

Magic were a bottom 3 team in offensive rating in the 2025 playoffs. Also had a bottom 4 offensive rating in the 2024 playoffs.

Magic had the dead last pace in the 2025 playoffs.

Magic had the dead last 3pt% in the 2025 playoffs vs the 2nd fewest 3pt attempts. Similarly, bottom 3 in 3pt% in the 2024 playoffs vs top 5 in attempts.

When i take all of this into consideration, sounds more like a scheme and philosophy issue than a personnel issue.

[Dacost]

As a Grizzlies fan I love Bane he is tough strong and a excellent scorer in all 3 levels not just from 3.

He does have 2 major issues which I think Orlando will cover perfectly.

1.T Rex on defense his wing span has and will always be an issue againts any lengthy player.The main issues here is that he can't play the SF position(to short arms) or PG ( slow foot speed) on defense which makes him a SG only player.

Luckily Orlando has plenty of defensive to help him.

2.Ball handling. Dude is a turnover machine the less dribles the better.

Orlando has quite a few players who can bring the ball up.

With memphis I'm excited to see Ja surrounded by defensive players. KCP was bad on offense but I think he still brings alot to the table on defense.

Something Ja desperately needs.

[Kent]

Usually I don't like the picks because they end up in the 20s.

However memphis has shown that they get great value late in the draft.

Clarke
Bane
Aldama
Wells
Gg jackson
Jake lavaria
Xavier Tillman
Santi Aldama

All of this guys are still in the league and were all 20 overall or above.

As an Orlando fan, I'd much rather have Bane than those picks in the 20s.

So I agree. If you can draft like Memphis, you have a different outlook.

Which is why this can absolutely be a situation where both teams "win" a trade, which is why teams execute trades to begin with.

I understand it’s a different situation in Orlando right now, but a few things here regarding “picks in the 20s”
You have already given the 16th pick.
The Suns/Wizards will almost certainly be top 15
And then to the Magics picks, you guys haven’t picked as late as the 20s since 2017. A lot of those picks being very very high. Now, the roster and outlook is very strong right now but who knows, it’s definitely not a given none of those picks turn out juicy.

No question.

But any move made by a FO is based on "would you rather?"

And I'd rather have Bane.