The Memphis Grizzlies acquired small forward Darrell Arthur in a trade with the Rockets on draft night. Arthur was a big reason that the Kansas Jayhawks won the National Championship last season and he should help the Grizzlies this year. The only negative about Arthur is that he has a kidney condition that could affect him down the road. Arthur is 6′9″, 225 pounds but he’s basically a small forward. He played in 78 games (36 starts) for Kansas and he averaged 11.3 points, 5.5 rebounds, 0.6 assists and 1.4 blocked shots per game. Arthur also is a very unselfish player who only takes good shots as evidenced by his 54.1% FG percentage at Kansas. Arthur will be a good NBA player as long as his health holds up and he could be a major steal for the Grizzlies.

The Memphis Grizzlies made a big splash after the NBA Draft last night acquiring O.J. Mayo of USC in a 8-player trade. Mayo will likely start from day #1 for the Grizzlies. The 20-year old likes to finish near the basket as he’s 6′5″, 200 pounds but he will need to hit the mid range jumpers to keep the lane open for drives. Mayo played in 33 games (32 starts) for USC and he averaged 20.7 points, 4.5 rebounds, 3.3 assists and 1.5 steals per game. The Grizzlies better hope that Mayo is the real deal.

The Memphis Grizzlies made a huge trade after the NBA Draft last night. The Grizzlies have acquired rookie shooting guard O.J. Mayo, guard Marko Jaric, forward Antoine Walker and G/F Greg Buckner from the Timberwolves for rookie forward Kevin Love, forward/guard Mike Miller, forward Brian Cardinal and center Jason Collins. The key to the deal for the Grizzlies was O.J. Mayo who was the #3 pick in this year’s draft. Mayo will take over as the starting shooting guard from day #1 for the Grizzlies. Marko Jaric is 6′7″, 224 pounds and he can handle either guard slot. Jaric played in 75 games (56 starts) last year for the Timberwolves and he averaged 29.2 minutes, 8.3 points, 3.0 rebounds, 4.1 assists and 1.3 steals per game. He’s a decent player but he’s not a difference maker so expect him to contribute around his career norms. Jaric has now played in 394 games (221 starts) in his NBA career and he has averaged 27.0 minutes, 7.8 points, 2.9 rebounds, 3.9 assists and 1.4 steals per game. 31-year old Antoine Walker appears to be on the downside of his NBA career. He played in 46 games (1 start) for the T-Wolves last season and he averaged 8.0 points, 3.6 rebounds and 1.0 assist per game. It’s doubtful that Walker will find the fountain of youth in Memphis and he is a selfish gunner when he’s on the court so the Grizzlies might limit his playing time. Walker has now played in 893 games (707 starts) in his NBA career and he has averaged 17.5 points, 7.7 rebounds, 3.5 assists and 1.2 steals per game. 31-year old G/F Greg Buckner was the final player the Grizzlies received and he is nothing more than a reserve. Buckner played in 31 games (4 starts) for the Timberwolves last season and he averaged 4.0 points, 2.1 rebounds and 1.3 assists per game. Buckner has now played in 507 games (117 starts) in his NBA career and he has averaged 5.4 points, 2.9 rebounds and 1.3 assists per game. This whole trade hinges on O.J. Mayo’s NBA career as he’s the only player likely to make an impact that the Grizzlies acquired in this trade.

The Memphis Grizzlies were happy to see Mike Conley Jr. available at the #4 spot in the first round. The biggest hole on the Grizzlies roster was at point guard and that has now been solved with the best point guard in the NBA Draft. Conley was outstanding in his freshman season at Ohio State where the 6′1″, 180 pound point guard directing his team to the NCAA Title Game. Conley is a very fast player and that helps him on both offense and defense. He played in 39 games at Ohio State and he averaged 11.3 points, 3.4 rebounds, 6.1 assists and 2.2 steals per game. Conley shot 51.8% from the floor, 30.4% from three point range and 69.4% from the free throw line. He will need to improve his free throw shooting because he will get to the foul line a lot as a rookie. Conley will make all of the players around him better so look for Pau Gasol and Mike Miller to have outstanding seasons.