General manager Chris Wallace said he might not necessarily keep the team's two first-round draft picks (Nos. 5 and 28).
"We're open to moving them," he said. "We're open to doing anything. Obviously, some players on our roster have a higher expected return than others. But we have to look at everything. We can't afford not to. You turn down the vast majority of trade deals, but you have to be open, so we'll gauge interest in our roster. "You're constantly talking to other teams about deals that could put you anywhere in the draft. We're going to be prepared for every scenario."
Wallace made it clear that a long-term rebuilding project is not in his plans.
"We'd like to win as soon as we can," Wallace said. "Probably the best and realistic approach is augmenting our really good young players. But all plans in the NBA are open for change.
"When you set out on a course you can't predict what opportunity will arise down the road. You have to be flexible enough to take advantage of these opportunities.
"We're not setting out on a course that we have to move up, but we'll look at every possibility."
SEASON HIGHLIGHT: On Dec. 19 in an 88-85 victory over the Spurs, Rudy Gay announced to the rest of the league that he might be the league's Most Improved Player. After the Grizzlies blew a 23-point lead, Gay hit a game-winning three-pointer over Tim Duncan. The play wasn't even set up for Gay, but first option Mike Miller was guarded. Gay fired from 27 feet. "You've always got questions when you take a shot like that, but it felt good, and that's all you can say," Gay said.
TURNING POINT: When the Grizzlies hit a stretch in December when they lost 12 of 14 games, it didn't seem like that even with a healthy Pau Gasol that nothing was getting done. Gasol was struggling to adapt to the new running offense, he wasn't getting enough touches and it became clear to management that they needed to start fresh. That meant Gasol, as the player with the most trade value, would be dealt.
