Rudy Gay trade starting to make sense

I admit, when New York Nick (from the Fantasy TakeOver Show) sent me a text that read..."They did it...Gay is gone"...I was livid. Memphis was rolling, and their all time leading scorer Rudy Gay was playing arguably the best ball of his seven year career. The Grizzlies made a trade the previous week to ensure they were under the new luxury tax threshold, and had until the summer to address Gay's lofty salary for next season. At minimum, Memphis could keep their core in tact to see if they could make one more run at post season success. That obviously didn't happen, and I thought for sure that Memphis was done. Now that the dust has settled and games have resumed, maybe new Grizzlies owner Robert Pera knew what he was doing after all.

Rudy Gay was traded to Toronto in a three team, six player deal. In return, Memphis acquired forward Ed Davis from Toronto. (who?) Memphis also acquired Austin Daye and Tayshaun Prince from Detroit. (who?...and who cares?) After initially struggling out of the gate, the new look Grizzlies are currently riding a six game winning streak. Memphis is scoring more points, and they're nipping at the Clippers' heels for the number 3 seed in the Western Conference. Granted, the Grizzlies have beaten up on some pretty wounded animals lately. But ask any team sitting 9-12 and they'll tell you that a win is a win.

Owner Robert Pera addressed the media shortly after the Gay trade, and stated the move was not just about money. He actually stated the move was to improve the roster. Ha!...I thought at first, but he may actually be right. Key word being....roster. At the time of the trade, Memphis was second to last in the league in bench scoring. Bench scoring was the Achilles heel in their first round loss to the Clippers last year. Los Angeles kept throwing fresh bodies at Memphis, and the Grizz simply ran out of gas in game 7. Some dude name CP3 had a little to do with it too...but I digress.

Austin Day and Ed Davis are getting quality minutes off the bench, and Tayshaun Prince has been a reliable starter in Gay's place. The ball is also going through Zach Randolph again. Z-Bo, a 2012 All Star, leads the league in double doubles (10+ points and 10+ rebounds) and put up a combined 33 points and 32 rebounds his last two games. Feeding the big men of Randolph and center Marc Gasol was the recipe for success in the Grizzlies surprising 2010 playoff run. Rudy Gay did not play due to injury.

Rudy Gay is no worse for wear, he is lighting it up in Toronto and the Raptors are starting to roll. Just like he did in Memphis. As for the Grizzlies, the value of Gay's departure won't truly be measured until May. As for today, so far so good.   follow @plcolter