Grizzlies GM, NBA Executive of the Year 'shocked' Kennedy Chandler fell in NBA Draft

The Grizzlies are no strangers to trading up or into in the NBA Draft under general manager Zach Kleiman. He and the Memphis front office struck again in the 2022 NBA Draft, making three different moves to target players they believed had slipped too low.

Memphis originally held picks 22 and 29 but swapped both of those for the 19th pick to take Wake Forest sharpshooter Jake LaRavia. Then, they traded backup guard De’Anthony Melton for the 23rd to take Barkley-bodied 6-foot-5 forward David Roddy from Colorado State. Lastly, they handed over a future second-rounder and some cash to the Spurs to take Kennedy Chandler out of Tennessee, who was a five-star recruit in the previous high school class.

Kleiman viewed Chandler in particular as a shocking steal for Memphis in the second round. His fall was the reason they jumped back in the draft. Following draft night, Kleiman and the players spoke to the media, and Kleiman revealed their strategy towards taking Chandler. Here was the mindset behind the pick from the man who made it:

Kleiman on Kennedy Chandler

“Kennedy was very high on our board going into the night. Someone we felt very strongly about. Easily could have been a first round pick of ours. So it was Kennedy being there and us aggressively trying to pursue and being able to bring [him] into the organization that caused us to really [go] out and add another person we think is going to be a real contributor and a significant part of this organization going forward.

“You know, we’re always open-minded and try to be nimble. And if there’s an opportunity that we think is worth jumping on, we’re prepared to do that. It’s certainly within the realm of scenarios we talked about before the night. As I said…absolutely shocked that Kennedy was there given how we felt about him. So we were very excited to extend that one beyond the amount of picks we had coming into the night because we felt really strongly about adding Kennedy to this group.”

Clearly, Kleiman and the Grizzlies front office though higher of Chandler than most. Perhaps part of their fascination stems from his high school days, where he spent his first three years going to school just outside the city of Memphis and won two straight Tennessee Mr. Basketball awards before transferring to a school in Kansas for his senior season.

Grizzlies seem to love their guy. A hometown hero who they believe will surprise everyone after falling to the second round.