MEMPHIS — The Grizzlies’ strategy for their starting five before Zach Edey’s ankle surgery shouldn’t change much.
However, it does give their low-post priorities more weight. Among the Grizzlies’ players, none made more of an impact than 7-foot-4 center Edey, whose breakout performance cemented his place on the NBA’s All-Rookie First Team.
The attention has shifted to Edey’s recuperation following Tuesday’s operation to correct reoccurring concerns with his left ankle, so unfortunately, that ascent won’t continue in summer league action.
Everyone thinks Edey will be fine after rehab, but he might not be ready for the 2025–26 season opener.
On Tuesday, the Grizzlies revealed that Edey will be reevaluated in four months. This evaluation window is longer than the anticipated timeframe of October, when training camp and preseason are expected to begin.
With Edey’s future still up in the air, the Grizzlies’ power forward and center positions are much more precarious than they were before the summer.
Despite Edey’s unanticipated injury during a recent summer practice, the team was prepared to handle the other issues affecting the starting lineup.
The primary focus has not changed. As the summer approaches, Grizzlies GM and PBO Zach Kleiman is keeping his fingers crossed that he and two-time NBA All-Star power forward Jaren Jackson Jr. can renegotiate and extend their contracts.
Even though Jackson has stated his want to continue playing with the Grizzlies, he is entering the final year of his contract and has pledged his allegiance to Memphis. The new fiscal year of the NBA begins in July with the launch of league-wide free agency, so the parties have a few weeks to come to an agreement.
Whatever happens this summer—a agreement between the parties or Jackson playing out his contract and testing the waters of 2026 summer free agency—the Grizzlies will be in the best position to offer him the most years and money of any team in the league.
Basically, the Grizzlies’ dealings with Jackson are unrelated to Edey’s injuries or how long it will take him to recover. While Edey is out with an injury, Memphis will need to consider how to strengthen its frontcourt depth, and Jackson’s choice will affect that.
The Grizzlies’ salary-cap flexibility and the money they may spend through free-agency exceptions to chase assistance up front will be affected by a new agreement with Jackson this summer.
Additionally, regarding free agency, the Grizzlies must make a decision regarding Santi Aldama, a fourth-year forward, who is expected to become a restricted free agent at the month’s end.
After Aldama had his best season as the Grizzlies’ starting sixth man, Memphis would have the option to match any offer the versatile 7-footer receives from other teams if he obtains a qualifying offer.
After Aldama had his best season as the Grizzlies’ starting sixth man, Memphis would have the option to match any offer the versatile 7-footer receives from other teams if he obtains a qualifying offer.
Brandon Clarke, the Grizzlies’ lone veteran big man, missed the last three months of the season due to a knee injury. Following surgery on her Achilles tendon, Clarke sat out the most of the prior season.
Physical fitness is the issue with Edey and Clarke. It comes down to financial freedom for Jackson and Aldama.
Brandon Clarke, the Grizzlies’ lone veteran big man, missed the last three months of the season due to a knee injury.
Following surgery on her Achilles tendon, Clarke sat out the most of the prior season. Physical fitness is the issue with Edey and Clarke. It comes down to financial freedom for Jackson and Aldama.
Whatever the case may be, the Grizzlies still have a lot of room for maneuver in their offseason frontcourt consolidation efforts. Edey has a track record of reliability, which is a plus.
He was named the NCAA National Player of the Year twice during his four years as a Purdue Boilermaker.
He was a virtual game-day warrior. In July of last year, Edey initially hurt his ankle while making the move to the NBA. As a precaution, he was forced to miss a couple games of summer league.
The left ankle sprain he sustained in November and December caused him to sit out 12 games. Edey became the only rookie since Shaquille O’Neal to collect at least 40 rebounds across two games by season’s end.
He had already played in the NBA’s Rising Stars game at All-Star Weekend in February, established the team record for most rebounds in a single game in April with 21, and participated in the NBA’s Rising Stars game in February.
Edey admitted that his ankle injury in the middle of the season affected him at first, but that he got back on track and felt more confident as the season went on. During his season-ending exit interviews, Edey described it as a “up-and-down” season, although he did say that there were many positive things he could take away from it.
The most important thing, in my opinion, was connecting games. The ankle roll was no longer an issue as I settled into the rhythm and flow.
I felt like I really took off at that point. “That’s definitely something I’ll keep in mind.” The expectation is that Edey will make a triumphant return, enhancing his already promising rookie campaign.
The Grizzlies had dealt with a big guy previously who was trying to get back on his feet after having foot surgery early in his career or in the middle of his career.
He was terrific and needed time to heal. In 2016, Marc Gasol had foot surgery, which ended his season.
He recovered by having one of his best offensive seasons with the Memphis Express, and then he won a championship with the Toronto Raptors.
Edey will also have the benefit of reaching out to his frontcourt teammate for guidance and reassurance. Jackson recovered from his own foot surgery in the summer of 2022 and bounced back the following season to win NBA Defensive Player of the Year in 2023.
Edey should be back on his own feet in the coming months and charting his own productive path forward sometime after October training camp opens.
In the meantime, there’s more of a premium placed on every offseason step the Grizzlies take from here to shore up the power rotation.
