The Memphis Grizzlies could waive Walter Clayton Jr., D’Angelo Russell, Jordan Hawkins and Kris Murray as they work toward meeting the NBA’s 15-man regular-season roster limit, according to Jake Fischer on Bleacher Report’s stream Tuesday.
The potential cuts come after Memphis made another roster move Tuesday, trading AJ Johnson and Taj Gibson to the New Orleans Pelicans for Hawkins, Micah Peavy, a future second-round pick and a second-round pick swap. The transaction added another young guard to a roster already carrying several players competing for limited spots.
Russell is the most established name among the group. The 30-year-old point guard averaged 10.2 points, 4.0 assists and 2.3 rebounds in 26 games for the Dallas Mavericks during the 2025-26 season, shooting 40.5% from the field and 29.5% from three-point range.
Russell has previously been a high-level offensive contributor, averaging 21.1 points and 7.0 assists for the Brooklyn Nets in 2018-19 before earning an All-Star selection. He averaged a career-high 23.1 points in 45 games across Golden State and Minnesota in 2019-20.
Hawkins arrived in Memphis from New Orleans after averaging 5.1 points in 51 games last season. The 2023 first-round pick averaged 10.8 points in 56 games during the 2024-25 season but shot 33.1% from three-point range.
Clayton also spent his rookie season moving between teams, averaging 7.8 points, 4.0 assists and 2.0 rebounds in 69 total games. He finished the season with Memphis, averaging 9.7 points and 5.7 assists in 24 games while shooting 36.6% from the field and 30.7% from three.
Murray, acquired from Portland in the June trade that sent Ja Morant to the Trail Blazers, averaged 5.8 points and 3.6 rebounds in 57 games last season. He shot 46.7% from the field but just 27.9% from three-point range.
The roster crunch reflects the scale of Memphis’ ongoing reconstruction. The Grizzlies finished 25-57 last season and missed the playoffs for the second consecutive year after trading Morant, following earlier deals involving Desmond Bane and Jaren Jackson Jr.
Memphis selected Cameron Boozer No. 3 overall in the 2026 NBA Draft and also added Karim Lopez and Richie Saunders. Boozer is expected to headline a young core that includes Zach Edey, Cedric Coward, Jerami Grant and Isaiah Stewart.
The Grizzlies also acquired Russell in July as part of a six-team trade and subsequently moved AJ Johnson and Gibson to New Orleans. With those moves, Memphis must now determine which players fit its long-term plans and which contracts can be removed to reach the regular-season roster limit.
