The Memphis Grizzlies have sent Santi Aldama to the Dallas Mavericks, moving on from the last remaining piece of their “GrizzNxtGen” core in a deal that also sends draft rights to Tarik Biberovic to Dallas, per ESPN’s Shams Charania.
In return, Memphis gets AJ Johnson, a protected 2030 first-round pick via Golden State, and two second-round picks. The Warriors pick is protected from No. 1 through No. 20 and would become a second-rounder if it doesn’t convey.
Aldama, 25, leaves Memphis after carving out a real role in the frontcourt. The 7-foot Spaniard was the 30th overall pick in the 2021 NBA Draft and just posted a career year in 2025-26, averaging 14 points and 6.7 rebounds while shooting 48/35/67. He has been a key part of the Grizzlies’ rotation since his second season in 2022-23.
His departure also closes the book on a group that once featured the core of the 2021-22 and 2022-23 teams that finished as the No. 2 seed in the Western Conference. Ja Morant, Jaren Jackson Jr., Desmond Bane and Dillon Brooks have all been moved over the past few seasons, and Aldama was the last one still standing from that era.
Memphis had signed Aldama to a three-year, $52 million deal after the 2024-25 season, and he was entering the second year of that contract.
The return package gives the Grizzlies another layer of draft capital, while also helping them preserve the full $29 million trade exception created in the Jaren Jackson Jr. trade with the Utah Jazz in February 2026. That exception would have been reduced by earlier offseason moves if the Aldama trade had not happened.
Johnson, meanwhile, is still trying to find his footing in the league. Drafted 23rd overall by the Milwaukee Bucks in 2023, he was traded to the Washington Wizards in February 2024 and then landed with Dallas in February 2025 as part of the Anthony Davis deal. The 6-5 guard has averaged 4.9 points per game in his career, but at 21, he remains a development bet.
Biberovic was the 56th overall pick by Memphis in the 2023 draft and currently plays for Fenerbahce in the Turkish Basketball Super League.
Memphis still has 19 standard-contract players, four above the league maximum of 15, and more movement appears likely. Kentavious Caldwell-Pope is expected to be traded or bought out soon, Taj Gibson may not be on the roster by training camp, and the Grizzlies may not keep both Johnson and Kris Murray. More deals are expected over the next few weeks.
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Now, with Memphis leaning further into a youth movement, his expiring deal has become part of the equation as the front office looks for ways to reshape the roster. There is also a familiar trade-market wrinkle attached to the situation, since the Lakers are reportedly searching for a wing defender but have very little flexibility to spend, leaving Caldwell-Popes next stop very much in play. [Read more 🡒]