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Memphis Grizzlies Land Taurean Prince in Hypothetical 2016 NBA Re-Draft
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- Memphis Grizzlies Land Taurean Prince in Hypothetical 2016 NBA Re-Draft
(Benny Sieu-Imagn Images)
The Memphis Grizzlies didn't land in the lottery in the 2016 NBA Draft, but they weren't too far off, as they ended up with the No. 17 overall pick.
They used that selection to draft Vanderbilt product Wade Baldwin IV, a guard who had an impressive career in college.
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But in a hypothetical 2016 re-draft, Bleacher Report has NBA journeyman Taurean Prince landing with the Grizzlies.
The Baldwin pick didn't pan out for Memphis, as he stuck around with the Grizzlies for just one season before being waived.
In his lone season with the team, he appeared in 33 games, several of which featured just a few minutes of playing time. Overall, he averaged 3.2 points, 1.4 rebounds and 1.8 assists in 12.3 minutes per game. He knocked down just 31.3 percent of his shots from the field. He spent part of the season in the G League.
After his Grizzlies tenure, he spent a couple seasons with the Portland Trail Blazers , but he never carved out a consistent role in the NBA. He was then traded multiple times but never made another NBA appearance after his Blazers tenure.
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Baldwin was very good in college, earning All-Freshman honors in his debut season at Vanderbilt before securing All-SEC honors as a sophomore. He now plays overseas.
Prince, meanwhile, has stuck around in the NBA after being drafted in 2016. But one interesting note is that Bleacher Report has him going later in its re-draft than he actually did in 2016. He was originally the No. 12 overall pick, and Bleacher Report has him at No. 17 in this hypothetical scenario.
That's not to say his career has missed the mark, however. Prince has established himself as a solid piece at multiple stops during his NBA tenure. Early on in his career, he had three seasons in which he averaged 12+ points per game, and his 3-point shot has become a real weapon for him in the NBA.
That's been true since his second season, but it's really helped his cause in recent years, as he has knocked down 42.0 percent of his triples in his last three seasons.
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Now 32, he remains in the league and was moved to the Detroit Pistons earlier this offseason in a six-team trade. He would have been an intriguing addition for the Grizzlies in the 2016 draft, and one can only wonder what his career would've looked like if he had indeed landed with Memphis.
