The Memphis Grizzlies shocked the NBA world on Sunday by trading away star guard Desmond Bane to the Orlando Magic in exchange for Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Cole Anthony, four unprotected first-round picks, and a pick swap.
Of course, many fans were talking about how much the Magic gave up so much for a zero-time All-Star, but many others felt like it was an appropriate move to take the offensive-needy Magic over the hump.
This huge trade to kick off the 2025 offseason sparked many conversations, including a controversial take from ESPN analyst Stephen A. Smith.
“You gonna tell folks why nobody wants to be in Memphis? Or you want me to do it?”
“Cats like Jimmy Butler and others don’t feel like it’s the safest environment. I’m talking to the local authorities in Memphis.” – Stephen A. Smith pic.twitter.com/qD9UjV5ZV4— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) June 17, 2025
“Cats like Jimmy Butler and others don’t feel like it’s the safest environment. I’m talking to the local authorities in Memphis. You gotta clean some of that stuff up because it’s disuasive to NBA players. They have talked about it. I know. They’ve told me,” Smith said.
Smith found the quickest way to make an entire city upset, including Grizzlies star Ja Morant, who quickly fired back at him on social media.
Via Ja Morant: “instead of focusing on the performances we seen from jdub/shai , tj/siakam, how this series is going . we say sumn negative about a city/team on a national level.”
instead of focusing on the performances we seen from jdub/shai , tj/siakam, how this series is going . we say sumn negative about a city/team on a national level.
— Ja Morant (@JaMorant) June 17, 2025
Smith and Morant had a quick back-and-forth, but his recent teammate, Desmond Bane, was one of the many to stick up for the city of Memphis and the Grizzlies franchise.
“I think all that is just false,” Bane said. “Once you get to Memphis and you learn Memphis and you know Memphis, there’s a lot of love in that city. Yeah, it’s got its rough parts, but that’s how every city is… I think Memphis is a beautiful place. They’ve got a great organization. Anybody that goes there will be happy with what they’ve got going on.”
Even after the Grizzlies unexpectedly traded away Bane, he still defends his former team and city in the national spotlight. Of course, the Grizzlies are not exactly a destination for stars around the league, but nearly every star that comes through Memphis shows respect and love.
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