Anybody who is fan of the Grizzlies know our history has been sad, from the disappointing career of Big Country, to the Steve Francis debacle, to the infamous Otis Thorpe trade that gave away our chance at taking Carmelo Anthony, (though knowing are luck we would have probably have taken Darko). Which brings me to my point, the Ronnie Brewer trade, for a conditional 1st round pick? I mean I have never remarked "you what we need a back-up SG who can't shoot, has low basketball IQ but is really athletic." Nor have I ever thought "You Ronnie Brewer is definitely worth a 1st round pick" In what imaginary world is Ronnie Brewer the solution to our problems, or what league is he worth a 1st round pick, this is Otis Thorpe trade all over again. I seriously wonder what the Grizzlies front office is thinking sometimes, just when they make some good moves picking up Randolph, they destroy all my faith in them with bizarre trades like this. Does anybody feel my pain?

I think the front office was feeling that the team needed someone who could play defense on the perimeter when they acquired Ronnie.

Who gives up a 1st round pick for a 6th man defender? I mean he is no Ron Artest or Bruce Bowen, and i wouldn't even give up a 1st round pick for Bowen. I would have been much happier with Kirk Hinrich, who although is much smaller is an equally aggressive defender, Alvin Gentry called him the best on ball defender in the league, while that might be an exaggeration, what is not is the fact he is known for pestering Dwayne Wade whenever Chicago plays them, not to mention we need guard help and Kirk Hinrich would push Conley much harder than Tinsley or Marcus is going to. I think Conley has become complacent, or maybe the ceiling for his potential is just not that high.

Well the 1st round pick i s conditional. With all of the players coming out this year and a possible lock out next summer the 2011 draft likely will be pretty weak as well. Finally I would gladly trade a non-lottery pick for a 6th man who fills a big need on the team.

I agree that Ronnie Brewer doesn't appear to be a value move at this point, especially if the team fails to keep him this summer, but I understand their decision in February of this year. I didn't agree with it at the time and nothing has changed that opinion for me but I do understand it.

I think you have to look at that trade with a little more context -

A. The Grizz were on the fringe of making the playoffs at that point, and likely playing either LA or Denver - so it was necessary to add a solid, defensive minded, playoff experienced guy who could pressure Kobe or Mello in some situations.

B. The Grizz obviously expected him to be playing - not injured, and although I don't think Brewer is an elite guard, he is an improvement from anyone on our bench and would have given the Grizz a good boost in later season games.

C. Obviously the Grizz still have the issue of the possibly (likely) disappearing Rudy Gay. We do have a "replacement" in Brewer - at least to the point where if we draft a SF replacement they could share time; or if we sign and trade and get a consolation player. I am converting to the Rudy-bandwagon after reading some things on him recently (CA piece) but am still highly skeptical of his return. Especially with the new CBA looking him in the face, if he doesn't get a big money contract now, he probably will never be a big $$ player in the future with new salary limits.

So in this case, I support the Grizz front office for trying to add depth in a potential playoff year, give up a pick you don't expect to be great, and build experience and defensive prowess.

I understand all of your rationalizations but my main point is this pick Utah can cash in when it suits them, like Detroit did with our #2 pick i don't want that to happen again. I would rather them trade this years pick than gamble on the future.