Zach Kleiman Media Availability following NBA Draft Round 1

Zach Kleiman Media Availability following NBA Draft Round 1

uh we’ll we’ll dive in on questions in just a second uh wanted to kick things off by by saying a thank you to Desmond Bane uh Dez on and off the court was a outstanding member uh of this team represented this team this city uh in a way that ma made all of us incredibly proud excited for him i think he’s in a great situation in Orlando going forward but um yeah had a a very close rapport with Dez that was a I’m sure there’ll be questions you know about the trade itself but I yeah before hitting on anything else very appreciative for Dez and his contributions to this team in this city open it up from there michael um I guess we can start uh with with that uh with Desmond Bane um kind of what led to you getting to the point of trading Dez and just uh the conversations you went through in order for that to happen yeah not not a decision that we came to lightly you know we we really wanted to take a step back not overreact to the end of the season and digest where are we you know the the goal is the goal which is to win a championship here in Memphis and we reached the point where we felt like you know you don’t just go out and make that trade but if if there were opportunities you know to build around John Jiren you know with a with a different type of type of build you know that that was something that we decided that uh if there was something compelling enough uh with where we’re trying to get to from a play style standpoint um how we’re trying to build you know the roster from here Jaylen’s emergence I think is a a significant you know part of it that gave us some confidence uh as we’re building out our wings going forward and we’ll we’ll of course talk more about that with our our our pick tonight but uh it was it was a I I I really I think it’s a great trade for Orlando you know I I I I hope it’ll be a win-win you know overtime i think Dez is going to be I think Dez is a terrific fit you know there with uh France Paulo Suggs you know I think it they they’ve got a great opportunity you know in what could be an open east next year so um uh difficult decision but when when we’re there’s different ways you could build teams you know right and at the end of the day it’s it’s easy to of course it’s easy to sit up and sit up here and say the goal is to win a championship but that that’s the goal and there’s not there’s no shortcuts you know to that sometimes you need to take a step back be as honest as you can be about where the team is at and be willing to take different avenues to to work towards it and that’s what we did yeah you used um to tie the the two things transactions together you used two of the four first round picks from the Bane trade tonight to acquire Cedric Coward couple of related questions about that um one do you think Coward can be an impact player for the team on the John Marant Jiren Jackson Jr timeline and then second how much consideration was given to reducing the assets the team had left to acquire veteran talent just one um this this doesn’t necessarily hit on those questions were I believe given that the we have a pending trade with the league so I’m I’m able to talk about Cedric the player um and that there’s a pending trade I’m not allowed to talk about the assets that are tied up in the trade um to answer your your question though c can you do you mind repeating it Chris well the first part was do you think could be an impact player y for the team on the jar timeline y and then the second part to the degree you can answer is in doing the trade tonight how much consideration was given to reducing the abil the ability let’s say to acquire better talent in the future yeah I mean John Jiren are not old you know I I guess I would start there i think there’s there’s different ways that you can build towards where you’re you’re ultimately trying to get to and I think one of the things that we acknowledged you know coming out of this is that you you can push in in different ways you know we we insert in closely looking at you know all of the avenues that we could pursue i think we specifically identified Cedric you know in this draft as a as a player that um has more upside you know at least than a lot of the you know names that get thrown around who which are not necessarily available most they’re it’s easy to throw out names you know right felt like it it’s uh we see you know and and we have real belief you know in Cedric and and we’ll get you know kind of more into him but I think part of the rationale you know for making this type of a move is the pursuit of a potential higherend outcome you know we could I intimated this maybe you know at the end of the season but we do feel like we’re we’re not just like one guy away from are we are we one guy away from maybe getting a little bit further sure but we we for being honest with ourselves we don’t feel like we’re one guy away from winning the championship next season so with that in mind when you’re looking at the options of making this kind of a of a of a swing pushing in these kind of an assets coming out of the Dez trade uh like we we would rather aim what we hope will be higher you know we we see you know higherend outcomes of what this could be nothing it’s it’s the draft there there’s no there’s no certainties you know in any of it but um if you know the the goal is the goal which is to do something you know legitimately high-end you know when as soon as we’re able to you know and and hopefully he I I’m not going to come too too early for me to say oh is he what’s he going to do this season what’s his you know he’s he’s gonna come in you know LA last season Jaylen we thought was going to be in the G- League and he came in and earned the starting spot and ran with it so I’m nothing will be handed to Cedric but he’ll have every opportunity will go by merit and you know whatever he he deserves he’ll he’ll you know is an opportunity that he’ll get to specifically answer your question yes I I I do think uh Cedric you know from an age standpoint absolutely uh could could line up with with John Jiren i don’t see why that would be problematic if he you know is able to emerge as a differencemaking you know player in the coming years cedric had a little bit of a unique path to get here um what did you identify as I guess the traits that you need on the team that he can bring and what was the process like in scouting him yeah he’s he’s a unique prospect a unique evaluation obviously given that he uh did not play that many games uh this season but when you really just certainly when you get to know the kid and see him up close and personal and and get a sense of what he’s made of which everyone you know we’ll we’ll get to in person soon you know but there’s he’s we we see a player that um is able to there there’s nothing he he couldn’t theoretically be able to contribute to in the NBA in a you know in a real role while taking nothing off the table you know we we don’t see some area that you know would be a glaring weakness that couldn’t be improved i think there’s a foundation of what could be a you know ve very interesting versatile uh multi-positional defender who could could end up playing different types of roles offensively i think wings have different developmental pathways and can surprise you and I I I’m not going to sit here and make bold proclamations about exactly what he’s going to be over time but I’m not I I wouldn’t put a limit you know on on what Cedric Howard is you know capable of as he as he develops over time hey Zach I know it don’t get a lot of clicks so it’s not fun but I know this team has dealt uh with offense over the last few years but what are you going to do to make this team better defensively as a whole core uh sorry do you mind defensively make this team better defensively uh I think you know that this is I think we over time we project Cedric to be a a high you know an impact defender at the NBA level and I we certainly uh I I think to some extent recognize that after trading Marcus um you know we there’s there already had been a focus on on kind of building out the defensive infrastructure and seeing seeing how the teams that you know this year made you know deep runs like I think you can just um the versatility the physicality um defense is a significant you know like a critical part of of where I think uh the league is going and having guys that can defend multiple positions we think Cedric could be a a significant um yeah significant part of that i know it was a while ago but uh the decision to make Tomas the the full-time head coach did you consider or interview other candidates and then just what went into that decision ultimately yeah we we we did not interview other candidates uh we of course you know we as we worked through that process and Tomas was serving uh for that period as the the interim head coach uh we we evaluated you know closely you know what how he was approaching um the rest of the season with the group obviously you know in games behind the scenes in practice um we were incredibly impressed by by his approach uh his directness his honesty his understanding you know of of the game and and his vision you know for where it could go and and where we could go so um coming out of the season we digested but h had a lot of confidence and and um conviction that you know going forward was the right thing for this team you’ve dealt with injuries over the past few years and obviously you got to deal with Zack being out was there any concern as far as drafting Cedric given the shoulder situation and what is the status of it at that point at this point yeah no we we there’s a a thorough medical evaluation you know as there was for every draft prospect that we had access to and and um those that we didn’t you know through the NBA um he’s long-term prognosis you know very good um he his recovery has gone smoothly you know to date in the pre-draft process he participated only in one workouts so he has not yet progressed to contact so that will be the next step in his return to play progression that makes things TBD for summer league we we haven’t we just you know we just drafted him tonight in a pending trade uh so we’ll we have to get him in and and get with the doctors fully understand the next steps but um to answer the larger question you know not not a you know his his long-term you know medical like we have uh a lot of confidence that that’s that’s not a long-term concern back in the back here i’ve got two if you don’t mind one on Dez and then one on Cedric there was a report that Dez was blindsided by the trade but then he went on podcast and made it sound like you guys communicated that it was at least a possibility was that something talked about at Exit Interviews with him yeah people say a lot of things on the internet nowadays uh what what I would say is I I I’ll keep specific player conversations private i I believe in operating with with honesty and and not blindsiding guys and I I was honest you know with with Dez of the possibility of something that that might come uh as always made a point of of making sure he heard from me you know as well so yeah I don’t have much to say other than people have a lot of things to say on the internet on Cedric guys played six games this season at relative power conference basketball level interesting path before that the injury and all that given where the team was last season and I guess the need to you know make an impact right away what gives you the confidence to take a relative gamble given his upside and what he could bring in the future yeah I I honestly I would flip it around like after going through the process with with Cedric seeing him up close um watching a ton of him you know on film I I I think it’s a gamble not to to be aggressive and and pursue players that you think can help you achieve a higherend outcome you know over time so that’s what we did here zach um going towards going back towards the trade um what are some things from those pieces that are coming in that veteran leadership that you wanted to make sure that this group got older by bringing in KCP and Cole Anthony yeah I I was born like had a uh outstanding KCP and Cole Anthony both came in kcp is is uh Contavius Caldwell Pope kenny’s someone who I think is going to be a significant part of this group uh really enjoyed you know sitting down and and beginning to get you know get to know both of those guys i think they’re on court you know a great fit with um with how we’re trying to play and and some of the holes you know on this roster so excited to have both Kenny and and Cole join us i I think Kenny has some some locker room offc court qualities that are perfect for Memphis that are perfect for for this group you know right now uh uh yeah we’re we’re encouraged uh I was I was very encouraged after after spending some time with them um but yeah glad that they’re joining us definitely we’ll go Parker Drew Michael um Zack so obviously you can’t necessarily copy teams and make it deep in the playoffs because you got to identify competitive advantages but just from watching the the playoffs wa watching the finals is there anything in particular that stood out that may influence your player evaluation whether it’s bringing in Cedric and and KCP and maybe future targets for the rest of the offseason yeah I mean you you see teams that are disciplined you see teams that are together you see teams that are versatile and athletic and and rangy you know defensively and I I I think in in any way that we could you know kind of build out in furtherance of of things that I think we we tend to prioritize you know generally I I think Cedric’s an ideal fit as you look forward to the rest of the offseason here and free agency I guess what is important um what work is there to be done and uh how do you view this team from a competitive standpoint and how far can you take them uh with you know additions that you might be able to make yeah I I think as we we look ahead obviously there’s some you know significant items to work through jiren of course you know a significant priority for the team um Santi you know Santi as well um and and we’re going to continue to operate through the same lens that we that we have you know for for this move and and otherwise and continue to build this team Yeah through it through the lens of putting them in a position to have the best chance to to compete at the highest level we didn’t get to ask you about uh Santi when we talked to you last um what’s the I guess situation there would you consider him you know a priority this offseason and restricted free agency yeah I I I we think very highly of Santi i think he’s taken significant steps forward i can’t go too far into you know impending free agency but we we’d certainly like to bring Santi back you touched on this a little bit in the answer to Drew’s question but my initial question presupposed a John Mar Sharon Jackson Jr timeline there was some speculation after the Bane trade that that was the beginning of a rebuild for the team just to get you on the record is it still the franchise’s intent to build the team around John Morant and Jiren Jackson Jr and is that contingent or how much is that contingent on contract discussions this summer um yes and you know in terms of contract discussions with Jiren you know it’s it’s certainly a a high priority you know I I would say to come up with something that I I don’t think we’re I’m allowed to go into detail at this point of of um you know things that we we couldn’t engage in you know this salary cap year but uh Jiren um his his growth every year uh would not put a ceiling on him continuing to take leaps that that uh that no one seems to expect you know at times along the way so it it’s a it’s a high priority you know I would say to a uh to come up with something with Jiren and But yeah yes to answer your your first question thanks everyone

Hear from Zach Kleiman as he meets with the media following the first round of the NBA Draft to discuss trading up and drafting Cedric Coward from Washington State.

—–
▶️ Subscribe to Memphis Grizzlies on YouTube!: http://bit.ly/subscribe2memgrizz
📲 Get the Memphis Grizzlies mobile app: https://bit.ly/MemGrizzApp
🎟 Get single-game tickets now!: http://bit.ly/2R1msbz
🎟️ Explore season ticket options, benefits: https://on.nba.com/3a3l95l
🏀 Discover breaking news and latest team updates at: http://grizzlies.com/news

~Connect with Us~
𝐈𝐍𝐒𝐓𝐀𝐆𝐑𝐀𝐌: http://bit.ly/GrizzInsta
𝐓𝐖𝐈𝐓𝐓𝐄𝐑: http://bit.ly/GrizzTweets
𝐅𝐀𝐂𝐄𝐁𝐎𝐎𝐊: http://bit.ly/GrizzFB
𝐑𝐄𝐃𝐃𝐈𝐓: https://bit.ly/3Cdpf9g

Official YouTube channel of the NBA Memphis Grizzlies. For more content and video features, visit Grizzlies.com.

For more Memphis Grizzlies analysis plus mid-south sports and community news, follow Grind City Media on YouTube at: http://bit.ly/subscribe2gcm