Grizzlies 2024 Draft Class Introductory Press Conference

Grizzlies 2024 Draft Class Introductory Press Conference

no you cannot sit here can’t take off C s hey [Music] all right good afternoon everyone welcome to the Don poer Media Center inside FedEx forum as the Memphis Grizzlies introduced three players selected in this week’s 2024 NBA draft we welcome the media assembled here as well as our guests and Grizzlies fans watching on grizzlies.com the grizzly YouTube channel and the Memphis Grizzlies app so join joining us on stage Grizzlies president and general manager of basketball operations Zach kimman Grizzly’s head coach Taylor Jenkins and besides Zach we have the ninth overall pick in the 2024 NBA Draft Zack Edy and then we have Jaylen Wells and we have Cam Spencer as well so with that we will open up for questions Zach Ed I should say this way to conf you um you said at the combine that Memphis liked you and that you liked Memphis so when they come up at number nine and you’re sitting there waiting to hear your name called what was it that went through your mind did you feel good about Memphis taking you and then what was the immediate feeling afterwards um man they I mean they played their cars well I didn’t even I had no idea that they were interested but I mean they’ve been on me since like I was a sophomore they were always a team that was really interested in and had a lot of belief in me like they were really the only team that believed in me and would have given me a deal my sophomore years that’s always kind of resonated with me that’s always stuck with me um I was I was actually disappointed this year I never heard from them and then the draft comes up and all a sudden I’m getting picked so I caught me off guard but I mean it’s couldn’t be happier uh Taylor starting starting with you just when you look at the the draft class that you know climbing in everyone assembled here um what do you make of this and then specifically starting with with Zach you know you you talked about needing that physical presence that big man how do you think he’ll reflect uh what you were telling us a couple months ago from that regard yeah well first thing is when you look at all three of these men winners um that’s the thing that we’ve constantly tried to prioritize the makeup of not just the player but the person have we got as we’ve gotten to know all three of these guys um Z jayen and cam through various you know uh interactions it’s it came across that these are three individuals we have to add to our group um as I always say I’ve got the utmost faith in Zach in our front office you know throughout the scouting process Intel Gathering evaluation so to go through the process with them every year um to be able to have these three guys join our group it’s so exciting um they’re all going to bring so many different things you know to what we need as a team um versatility toughness physicality shooting uh but winners at heart you know willing to do anything possible to go out there and late on the line to make a winning play uh not just for thems but for their teammates um you know and specifically to Zach I mean he has so many traits as a player and as a person that we fell in love with as he said we’ve been watching him for a couple of years and obviously this process is always unique you know the draft process but getting to know him you know everything that he stands for the progress he’s made as a player four years at Purdue uh he’s unlocked so much in his own individual game there’s going to be things that we’re going to lean on that he was so so successful with at the Collegiate level and we’re going to constantly challenge him to continue to adapt to the NBA game uh and he’s wired that way so that’s the stuff that you know the makeup of the individual um that we fell in love with obviously his size his you know in my opinion things that he can do on the defensive side you know we talk about anchoring you know our defense by protecting the paint protecting the rim that’s altering shots blocking shots you know being a quarterback out there the vision the way he can see the floor communicate uh rebounding he’s got all those things already his tool belt and we’re just going to continue to grow you know his defensive versatility even more and then offensively he’s got such a high IQ obviously he’s dominated at the Collegiate level the last you know couple of years especially the last two years in a lot of different Fashions and that’s stuff that we’re going to lean into this you know early in his career but as he continues to grow his offensive game you know the pick and roll game the connectivity with our you know Elite guards that we have already um putting the ball in his hands to be a score and a playmaker for us uh the touch and the shooting that we’re going to continue to challenge him with you know there’s so much in his game that we’re so excited about this is for Edie uh two questions first of all Memphis is known for being the underdog city is well documented how you they you have not been projected well as a pro how can you use that as motivation going forward and second what’s your official nickname I I don’t know if I can choose my own nickname feel like that’s up to y’all um but uh you know just being an underdog like it it provides so much motivation like people keep counting you out people keep telling you this people keep trying to tell you who you are like like like people know me like it just it just has fuel to fire always like I I don’t pay attention to anymore I just I just let it fuel me I let it go and and then you kind of see it come out on the basketball court Zach we heard your Edy we heard your initial reaction after you were drafted but Cam and Jaylen what was y’all’s initial reaction all the hard work paying off and now you’re able to achieve your dream but what was that feeling like when you found out you were going to be a Memphis grizley both of you uh yeah uh it was just a feeling of being blessed um you know I’m not I’m not really a person that shows a lot of emotion um so I I didn’t really show show a lot of emotion when I got drafted but it was just kind of a lot going through my mind um even when the reporter asked me the first question I didn’t even really hear it until like halfway through the question so really um but yeah just excited to be here and blessed yeah like Jaylen said I mean it was a special moment you know for me and my family uh a lot of hard work to to get to this point so uh not too emotional of a guy either but you know I was really special to just kind of look back on all the hard work and you know where it got you to to this point and you know I’m just super thankful for the opportunity that the organization is going to give me uh for Cam and Jaylen first cam we what was it like going up against Zach in that national championship game and and how much have you guys talked about that since you’ve seen each other uh in the aftermath and then you know for you uh Jaylen you talked about your path being non-traditional you know starting off at Sona State D2 um did you ever imagine that you would be sitting right here uh when you started off at D2 and what did it take for you to get to this point first uh yeah I mean it was cool uh Zach and I actually with the same agency so we were out training in Chicago together and uh you know there’s a little Trash Talk there for sure but you know we’re we’re two competitive guys and uh you know I think I have a ton of respect for him and uh you know the career that he had at Purdue we actually had some history you know the year before when I played at Ruckers so uh ton of respect for Zach and um you know it was pretty cool to match up against him in in the national championship game for sure uh yeah honestly if you asked me when I was a freshman at at Sona State I’d be thinking um I’m gearing up for my fourth year at Sonoma State right now um so I me I never that I could be here but um honestly just being in this being in the seat right now is kind of surreal um but I know I put in the hard work and you know I have the confidence to be here so um I’m I’m ready for it um on the long lines of that national title game you guys two played against each other um having played against each other what would your scouting reports be for each other for Cam and Zach don’t let him shoot don’t let him get the ball hey guys um welcome to Memphis this is like a pretty broad question for all three but obviously you’re looking out on to us uh I know you’re it’s been a whirlwind of emotions for you lately the last day two two or three days but um what are you most thankful for just you know about this opportunity and as you have some of your loved ones out here watching you as well I’m just thankful for it makes thankful for so much stuff like the people that believed in you the people that that trusted you the people that worked with you um that’s those the important people in my life those important people that have always supported me like my teammates my coaches my mom my dad my brother um my coaches from high school like like everybody that supported me and believed in me and gave me a chance just makes me thankful for them yeah kind of similar to that just thankful being for for surrounding having people surrounded me that’s around me you know just having being having a positive culture around me um especially my family you know just see see them seeing them in the uh chairs right now with with in the media room it’s kind of just trying to hold my smile back you know um but yeah definitely thankful for my family and the people that surround me same thing uh super thankful for for my family um wouldn’t be here without them you know all the sacrifices that they’ve made for me uh and you know times like this kind of make you reflect a little bit you know on all the years all the coaches that you’ve had all the teammates that you’ve had to help you get to this point so uh just a lot of gratitude to to those people um you know for for helping me get here jonel for Zach um what’s your sort of Outlook your plans for the summer obviously I know you’ve been involved with Team Canada and then summer league do you have a plan yet and has that been determined um I’m going to we’re going to have a dinner night and talk about it so I’m not sure [Music] yet kind of along the L same lines but uh to you uh climbing I guess I got to go by last but um just have you figured out in terms of you know uh especially more with with Cam Jaylen Zack uh who’s going to be you know a two-way standard deal those type of things with the limited roster construction and availability that you have yeah just uh just to kick things off for my end I want to First just uh extend the form of welcome you know obviously I spoke on uh you know on Zach you know the other night but uh but Jaylen and cam uh welcoming you know all three of you guys now officially to the team we couldn’t be more excited about the group you know that that is now um that’s now with us here you know going forward I think Taylor hit it on the head when he led with you know we we brought we brought in three winners you know that’s on the court and off the court you know I think we have three individuals that are very much you know cut from the cloth of of the DNA that we’re about you know that we prioritize going to seek out you know that we think are going to help Elevate the group and and be meaningful part you know meaningful pie pie to to help us you know get to that next level um as we went into uh the draft you know when thinking about the second round our Our Hope and C cam doesn’t know this yet but we were like man if if at that upper end of the second round we could get Jaylen or Cam you know we we’d be absolutely ecstatic uh so to come out of day two of the draft with with both of them you know joining us um that that’s a a an outcome that we thought there was zero chance of you know going into the night so um for to all three of of these individuals you know sitting next to me here um diving in with this group we we’ll sort out uh all the contractual stuff you know in the days to come but um these are three guys that I think are going to be meaningful uh really meaningful parts of our group going forward um for Taylor obviously you’ve had a couple of big physical centers here recently in yis Valen junas and stepen Adams in terms of to play with say John Brant and jiren Jackson in particular in terms of that that relationship what is similar about what you think Zach can bring are there things that he might bring in terms of how you use them that you think will be different from those guys yeah I mean I think I’ll lead off and there’s going to be I think constant comparisons and um Zach’s his own person which is what we’re excited about I think he’s transformed himself since you know the day he set foot you know at Purdue um you know obviously the style of play that we’ve had you know leaning into two bigs both offensively and defensively um is going to give us a lot of options as we’re looking at the depth at our big position I think the chemistry that job was you know building with you know Jonas at first and Stephen you know um you know the previous years uh it’s going to be new you know he’s going to build a new relationship with Zach obviously as he’s building relationships with all the guys on the roster and I think it’s going to be a unique pairing um I think Zach’s got unbelievable abilities as a playmaker screen Setter uh the way that he can command so much attention you know on the inside um obviously with his post presence you know the ability to give him the ball on the Block to be able to go score and create advantage is for us um is going to be something that’s going to be very exciting but also you know the pick and roll ability putting the ball in his hands as a roller you know a lob threat someone he can play in the half roll and play off of you know that’s what J has been talking to us about is having that partner that he can have with um you know jiren’s versatility you know I think has really grown the last couple years since I’ve been here offensively and defensively I think the optionality you know with what Zach’s strengths are on the defense aside it’s going to be so complimentary to what jiren’s strengths are as well um and then jiren’s growth you know playing multiple positions on both sides of the floor I think that’s something that we’re really encouraged by and you know being able to to to have Zach join our group and be able to unlock so many different things for those two guys that you asked about is something that’s been in our conversations you know for years not just since the season ended that Zach and I have been talking about so um you know we’re really excited about what Zach can give us and we know he’s only scratching the surface and if you look at his trajectory over the four years of Purdue what he’s been able to accomplish he’s just highly motivated to even learn more and more and expand his game more and more on both sides and that’s what it’s going to be like day one with him Taylor uh as a master developer what do you see cam cam and jayen coming up in the next year as they develop it with this organization yeah I mean I think uh they they provide so many different traits obviously you know I could probably talk for hours about them as individuals and and people and how they’re going to add to our culture and our organization you know into that locker room I mean that’s the first and foremost thing that we talk about it’s not just what you know we do on the court but these guys all three of them are going to add so much into our locker room uh with the work ethic the care Factor the unselfishness but you know to to Jaylen and cam obviously everyone’s going to point to the shooting right obviously um you know so much growth potential there even you know at this level going from college to the NBA I think that’s something that really stands out to us as we studied a whole lot more but these guys are so much more versatile we we’re trying to play a collected brand of basketball you know interchangeable position L uh guys that can create advantages and maintain advantages for us you’re going to start you know I’m giving you a precursor to when next season rolls around but these guys in particular whatever position everyone’s going to say are they twos are they threes and ones fours you know how are they going to guard you know they got versatility on the defense as side because they compete they love to compete on that side of the floor and then offensively they’re guys that not just can space the floor but they can make quick decisions and they’ve already displayed that and you know how rookies when they come to the league you got to be able to pick up the speed of the game you know I’ve got the utmost faith in what they’ve been able to show at the Collegiate level and the developmental pathway that we’re going to hit them with you know rookie season that they’re going to be able to fit into our style of play uh seamlessly because of that Collective tissue that we talk about these guys epitomized that and displayed that at the collegia level Zach we heard them talk about the pairing with jaw what do you think about that combination what you guys could potentially be together and also I’m just curious if you got the chance to see his post on social media on draft night and if you got a laugh out of that um yeah I saw his post for sure um message him it was it was funny um good movie too um but I mean it’s exciting like being able to play with JW like I think he’s the best guard in the league like being able to to have have that pressure offensively and do the things that he does um which make my life so much easier Caleb Zach uh ESPN uh andscape did a remarkable uh story on your mom and your family and S of your culture and upbringing from that standpoint how much did Growing Up playing hockey and baseball as your favorite Sports sort of help with your hand eyee coordination when it came time to growing as a basketball player and secondly where did where did all the swag come from that we saw on draft night just a black on black fit it wasn’t wasn’t anything crazy um say that first part again just s how other sports hockey baseball sort of help with your hand on coordination basketball it helped a lot um baseball obviously is a super intense hand ey sport um so that helped me like just be coordinated when I was going through my big uh growth grow spurt and then hockey like you you kind of learn to make reads really quickly like the puck moves so fast um I think it also helped me just develop like strong legs like you always see the hockey players they got the big big legs um I think that’s kind of where I got it from Zack you talked about how you’re excited to play with JW but all three of youall when you look at the Grizzlies roster the um opportunity to learn from guys like Bane Triple J and Jah how excited are yall to get that rolling um I mean super excited just the uh to be able to play with those players and and what they bring to the table um like just to get into practice I can’t wait yeah that’s probably one of the things I’m most excited for is just being able to learn from those those veterans uh players have been in the league for a while um so yeah definitely looking forward to that same here super excited to learn from those guys you know I think they’ve grown so quickly in this league you know having four or five years they they’ve really you know established themselves so uh as any rookie should you know I I really want to learn from them and you know see why they’ve had success uh so early on in their careers hey Zach um a few days ago your former coach at Purdue Matt payter said that you’re going to definitely help boost the economy cuz he’s never seen someone eat like you um so I’m curious to know what do you love to you know eat and I I know you’re going to dinner tonight so hopefully you get some good Memphis food yeah I heard the food here is great um like Itali Itali Mexican like I can eat you can’t get big without eating everything so I’m not I’m not too picky how long did it take you to realize that you might be here with Santi Alama former teammate um you know it hit me kind of was one of the first things that I thought about when uh you know I heard my name uh you know I what are the odds that we end up together you know obviously I had a different path uh from l couple more schools but um you know we’ve kept in touch ever since that time and uh you know I’ve been rooting from him for him from afar and uh to be his teammate Now is really special and you know I I can definitely learn from him and and his experience so far uh in this league and uh it’ll be good to you know have somebody here that I that I know coming in as a new guy Taylor is when you look at their skill sets I know we talked a little bit with Zach the other day about how you know he envisions you potentially using Um Zack Ed but how do you envision all three of these guys you know by their skill sets by what you’ve seen fitting into what you guys like to do yeah I think there’s uh a lot of options for all three of these guys and I think all three of these guys know you know they got to put in the work to earn it you know to get the opportunity um but we know they’ve got it in their DNA um you know I said a moment ago you know with Zach’s uh you know potential on our you know with our with our bigs we unlock so much with the guys that he can play alongside um offensively and defensively you know as coaches over the next couple of months we’re going to be talking about how we integrate all three of these guys I I think they got High basketball IQ quick Learners I think our style players I talk about the collective all those guys can fit the style of the play you know the skills is going to be the thing that everyone’s going to talk about you know where can you deploy the the playmaking or the shooting or the defense and how they’re going to fit you know we talked about you know each three of these guys at length about how these guys are going to fit in the system that we’ve already established um playing fast getting out and running the floor I think all three of these guys can do that I think the interchangeability is something that you know we’ve been striving for I think all three of those guys can fit that um the playmaking is huge you know whether they’re you know initial creators are playing on the second side obviously you know with the depth that we have you know at the guard position already and you know obviously you know Zach you know working with JJ I think that’s going to be an unbelievable you know tandem for us on both sides of the floor um but I think these guys you know we say versatility it’s you know very broad strokes but we’ve already seen the playmaking that these guys have and a lot of it especially coming in as a rookie is just making those quick decisions you know as we’re fle free flowing reading react based offense I think all those guys whether it’s the ball in their hands playing with space all these guys have displayed that at the Collegiate level so I’m really excited to untap even more in their game obviously we’ve studied them at the Collegiate level what the skills they have what’s going to be transferable um but we all know that you know the systems that they were playing with in college is going to be a little bit different you know of course you know new terminology new teammates uh new points of emphasis principles of play that we’ve been you know emphasizing over the course of this summer uh but all these guys have the full capability have any other questions when would a summer league roster be released I know it’s coming up soon we’ve got a few more days here now the the summer league uh if you haven’t seen the calendar that doesn’t start until the seventh now so we have we have a little time there we’re in the process of finalizing it obviously um you know just excited to be bringing these guys in in here today doing a proper welcome with them their families uh we’re going to enjoy uh this moment um you know then we’ll quickly turn the page to uh the rest of the beginning of the offseason but I you won’t have to wait too long there last question um for cam Jaylen for you two in particular uh you know Taylor mentioned it you know everybody’s going to talk about what you do the shooting uh how do you feel for each of you that you’re shooting the way you shot the basketball you know at the Collegiate level would translate you know to the NBA level yeah I I think it would definitely translate at least you know for me uh in our Yukon system I feel like you know we had to get our shots a lot of different ways you know off of movement off the dribble um catch and shoot you know so I feel like that’ll translate well to the NBA obviously there’ll be an adjustment as far as learning where the shots will come from within the offense and uh you know the kind of system that will run but you know I think uh you know Yukon prepared me well at least to uh you know be able to adapt pretty quickly to to a new system yeah I think I think it’s pretty important you know just be able to score without having to have the have the ball in your hands uh I feel like I’m I’m pretty good at you know just being to have that off ball movement find open gaps to shoot it um and obviously playing alongside people like Jaw um you know he he creates so much that you need kind of some floor spacers out there to uh just kind of open open the floor for him all right thank you all to take some push your chairs back tell me what’s you want you want three you I than you do

Memphis Grizzlies introduce Purdue’s Zach Edey, Washington State’s Jaylen Wells, and UConn’s Cam Spencer.

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