The Utah Jazz and Memphis Grizzlies could be on the cusp of striking a deal ahead of the NBA's trade deadline next Thursday.
The New York Times' Marc Stein is reporting that the Jazz and Grizzlies have had entry level talks around the possibility of a trade that would be headlined by Mike Conley and Ricky Rubio.
ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski reported last week that Memphis was beginning to listen to offers around Conley and Marc Gasol with the potential of beginning to reshape their roster around promising rookie Jaren Jackson Jr.
MORE: Trade destinations for Conley
Conley signed a five-year, $153 million dollar deal in July of 2016. He'll be owed roughly $66 million over the next two years, which would be a steep price for the Jazz to take on, Stein notes.
For those talks to progress all the way to a deal, though, would require additional pieces as well as Utah absorbing the two years and $66 million remaining on Conley's contract -- which is obviously steep
— Marc Stein (@TheSteinLine) February 1, 2019
Rubio, who is in his age 28 season, will become a free agent after this year. The Grizzlies are also believed to expect some sort of draft compensation in return for either Conley or Gasol.
Despite the struggles of the Grizzlies this season, Conley is having a near career year averaging 20.2 points, 6.3 assists, 1.4 steals in 33.8 minutes.
His scoring and defence would be a welcomed upgrade over Rubio and would fit perfectly next to rising star Donovan Mitchell.
