Grizzlies Trade Down for López

The Memphis Grizzlies pulled off a masterclass in draft-day chess, trading down twice to land Karim López, a 19-year-old New Zealand forward, at 21st overall — and walked away with five future second-round picks. Starting with the 16th pick, they swapped it for Oklahoma City’s 17th and two picks, then flipped that 17th to Detroit for López and three more picks. GM Zach Kleiman emphasized patience as the rebuild strategy, praising López’s ball-handling and scoring instincts. The 6’8” Aussie standout, who’s already the youngest double-double scorer in the NBL and holds his program’s all-time scoring record for draft-eligible players, fits perfectly into a young, rising Grizzlies roster. With more draft capital in the tank and another early second-round pick still to come, Memphis is clearly building for the future — one smart trade at a time. Support the show:Get a discount at https://solipillow.com/discount/dnn. Advertise on DNN:[email protected] This is an automated, high-level news summary based on public reporting.Report issues to [email protected]. View sources & latest updates:https://sources.thednn.ai/6be1448a3bb76324