He eventually settled into a sixth-man role, but it was clear that was an admission that he never was going to be a huge part of the Grizzlies future. His development stagnated early on, and once the Grizzlies signed Tony Allen, Mayo's spot in the rotation was up for grabs. Mayo never really worked out as the Grizzlies anticipated when they traded for him at the 2008 NBA Draft. Why not go for it one more year and hope the team avoids major injuries like Gay's in 2011 and Randolph's last year? There will always be offers for Gay, so there's no need to rush.
They're a very good team already, and they can always trade Gay in a salary dump next summer if this season doesn't go to plan. Was it the right call? It's hard to answer this question accurately without knowing what offers were actually presented to the Grizzlies, but in theory, I think they made the right decision. There were talks about a high draft pick with teams like the Raptors, Cavaliers and others, but nothing materialized. The Grizzlies had a chance to get ahead of the process this year, but elected to keep their band together another season and kick the can down the road. Either Gay goes, or the Grizzlies suck it up and pay a hefty luxury-tax bill. And when you look at the Grizzlies' future salary commitments - Gay, Marc Gasol, Zach Randolph and Mike Conley are slated to make $58.8 million all by themselves next year, which is roughly the value of the salary cap - you realize that something has to give. That's why we will always see his name in trade rumors, much like we did this summer. But he's not quite worth his contract, and so he's cast in the difficult position of being too good to lose, but not good enough to live up to his price. Ever since signing a five-year, $82 million contract in 2010, Gay has been the closest thing to a franchise player on this roster. The difference? The Thunder must decide whether it's worth keeping a group of young potential superstars together, whereas the Grizzlies have already decided to keep a group of very good, but not super-elite players together. Like the Thunder, they have a lot of money tied up into their stars. Like the Thunder, they are a successful small-market team. DID NOT TRADE RUDY GAYįor all the talk about the Oklahoma City Thunder's future payroll issues, the Memphis Grizzlies are in an even tougher spot. Eventually, though, they will face a crossroads where they must decide between paying a premium to stay relevant or blowing it up for yet another long rebuilding project. The Memphis Grizzlies had a pretty quiet summer, electing to keep their nucleus together for one more run at the top of the Western Conference.