MikeCheck: Edey’s recovery timeline places greater focus on Grizzlies’ offseason power rotation priorities
Michael WallaceMEMPHIS – Zach Edey’s recovery from ankle surgery shouldn’t drastically alter the approach the Grizzlies were taking this offseason with their power rotation.
But it does place a higher premium on their low-post priorities.
No player on the Grizzlies’ roster improved more from the beginning of the season to the end than Edey, the 7-foot-4 center whose emergence solidified his spot on the NBA’s All-Rookie First Team.
Unfortunately, that ascension won’t continue in summer league play as the focus now shifts to Edey’s recovery from Tuesday’s surgery to repair recurring issues with his left ankle. By all accounts, Edey is expected to make a full recovery after rehab but could miss the start of the 2025-26 season.
The Grizzlies announced Tuesday that Edey will be reevaluated in four months, a timeframe that extends beyond the projected October opening of training camp and start to the preseason.
Edey’s status adds to the uncertainty the Grizzlies were already dealing with entering the summer at the power forward and center positions. While Edey’s ordeal was unexpected and stemmed from an injury he sustained during a recent offseason workout, the other matters impacting the power rotation are ones the franchise was already prepared to address.
The top priority remains the same.
Zach Kleiman, the Grizzlies’ general manager and president of basketball operations, remains hopeful of securing a contract renegotiation and extension with two-time NBA All-Star power forward Jaren Jackson Jr. this summer.
While Jackson reaffirmed his commitment to Memphis and his desire to push ahead with the Grizzlies, the longest-tenured member of the roster is approaching the final year of his contract. The sides can agree to a new deal within the coming weeks, with the NBA’s new fiscal year starting in July with the opening of league-wide free agency.
Regardless of whether the sides reach a deal this summer or Jackson plays out the final season of his contract and tests 2026 summer free agency, the Grizzlies are positioned to offer him more years and money than any team in the league.
In essence, Edey’s injury or recovery timetable has no bearing on the Grizzlies’ business with Jackson. On the other hand, Jackson’s decision does impact the potential options Memphis could have in the route it takes towards bolstering frontcourt depth while Edey is sidelined.
A new deal with Jackson this summer will impact the Grizzlies’ salary-cap flexibility and the money they could potentially spend through free-agency exceptions to target help up front. And speaking of free agency, the Grizzlies also face a decision on fourth-year forward Santi Aldama, who will likely become a restricted free agent at the end of this month.
Should the Grizzlies extend Aldama a qualifying offer coming off the most productive season of his career as the team’s top sixth man, Memphis will have the right to match any offer the versatile 7-footer receives from other suitors.
The only other experienced big man the Grizzlies have on the roster is veteran Brandon Clarke, who was sidelined the final months of the season with a knee injury. Clarke had missed most of the previous season to recover from Achilles’ surgery.
With Edey and Clarke, it’s a case of physical fitness.
With Jackson and Aldama, it’s a case of financial flexibility.
In any case for the Grizzlies, solidifying the frontcourt this offseason remains a fluid situation.
The upside with Edey is that he has a history of durability. He barely missed a game over his four college seasons at Purdue, where he was a two-time NCAA National Player of the Year.
During his transition to the NBA, Edey was shut down in summer league after a couple of games as a precaution when he first tweaked the ankle last July. He then missed 12 games in November and December with a left ankle sprain.
By season’s end, Edey had participated in the NBA’s Rising Stars game at All-Star Weekend in February, set the franchise’s single-game rookie record with 21 rebounds in April and then became the first rookie since Shaquille O’Neal to grab at least 40 rebounds over two games.
Edey acknowledged that the midseason ankle issue took a toll initially, but that he established a rhythm and more confidence as the season progressed.
“It was an up-and-down season for me . . . a lot of things I can take out of it,” Edey said during season-ending exit interviews. “For me, stringing games together was the big thing. Once I kind of got into that rhythm and that flow, I didn’t have to worry about the ankle roll holding me back. That’s kind of when I started taking off. That’s one thing I’ll really remember.”
The hope is Edey returns stronger and better than ever to build on an encouraging rookie campaign. The Grizzlies have been here before with a talented big man seeking to reestablish a solid foundation after enduring an early or mid-career foot surgery.
Marc Gasol’s season was shut down after he underwent foot surgery in 2016. He bounced back with some of the most prolific offensive seasons of his career in Memphis before ultimately winning a title with Toronto.
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.
Published on Jun 11, 2025
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