Grizzlies Swingman Marcus Smartthe 2022 Defensive Player of the Year, is a big fan of what he sees from Memphis' first-round draft pick this year, as he said during an interview with Sportskeeda's Grant Afseth.

Overwhelmed by injuries to starter Smart, Yes Morant, Jaren Jackson Jr., Desmond BaneAnd Steven Adams (before Adams was sent to Houston midway through the season), Memphis entered the lottery last year with a 27-55 record.

The upside of this relegation is the addition of a permanent Adams replacement at No. 9 overall Zach Edeya supersized All-American center from Purdue.

“He’s going to be huge for us.” Smart said about Edey. “It allows us to do a lot of different things defensively. He really makes me and Jaren give it everything we have. As a former Defensive Player of the Year, it's great to have that rim protection behind us. And being 7’4″ definitely helps. He moves very well, his IQ is very high and he is getting better all the time.”

The conversation is worth reading in full, but here are some highlights:

• When asked about the effectiveness of the pick-and-roll actions between Morant and Edey, Smart responded effusively. “Oh, it’s getting deadly, man.” Smart said. “It will open things up for us even more, especially for Ja. We all know what Ja can do with a little space. So imagine what he can do with that much space created by a big like Zach.”
• On paper, the Grizzlies field one of the best defenses in the league. Finally, Jackson was named Defensive Player of the Year in 2023, a season after Smart won the award. Edey's arrival is expected to strengthen Memphis' internal defenses. ““We have a high ceiling,” Morant said. “If we stick with it and figure it out early, we can be really good, especially on defense. We have the talent, the guys can do it and the definition of what it takes.”
• Last year, Jackson wanted to score more goals as Morant missed all but nine games. He also failed in the end, but Smart believes that experience ultimately had a positive impact on the big man's long-term offensive versatility. “We asked Jaren to be more offensive and it takes a toll on his body.” Smart noted. “He was able to learn more about himself, more about the team and what he can do to help us. This is what we need.”