Grizzlies face hard truths after a year of promise and collapse, but one star shines

Santi Aldama’s 2025 has been far more positive than that of the Grizzlies. The Memphis franchise managed to sneak into the playoffs, only to be swept emphatically by the Thunder (4–0), forcing a rethink of the long-term project. With neither haste nor complacency, one thing is clear: Ja Morant has become an outright toxic asset. The evidence is mounting that his impact is more negative than positive – a lack of progression and failure to address his flaws, combined with extraordinary arrogance and egotism, made all the worse by repeated off-court scandals, have turned him into a leading candidate to move on so the Grizzlies can rebuild. His physical issues and lack of continuity only reinforce that conclusion. Far from it being otherwise.

But amid all that turmoil, Aldama is thriving. Negative team dynamics often allow certain players to emerge and shine, and that is exactly what is happening with the Spaniard. He secured a long-awaited contract extension last summer, cementing his NBA future and doing so with the franchise he has known his entire professional life since arriving in the league in 2021. And it does not stop there: his level has been nothing short of outstanding. Beyond posting the best individual numbers of his career – now above 14 points per game while alternating between starter and bench roles – Santi has hit 37 points twice in the past five outings: in a loss to the Wizards and a win over the Jazz. A career high. Proof that the extension was the right call and that he still has huge things ahead of him in the world’s best league.

The Grizzlies hosted the Sixers in what would be their final game of the year – against a franchise equally defined by light and shade, sharing good and bad news in equal measure. On one hand, Tyrese Maxey is cementing himself as a star, giving continuity to the project and establishing himself among the NBA’s elite, even emerging as one of the key names in an MVP race where Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is increasingly left standing alone thanks to the 65-game rule, which may or may not be revisited. On the other, Joel Embiid continues to battle his chronic physical issues, economically and competitively holding the project hostage in a well-intentioned but ultimately futile effort to play through pain – futile given his poor level and the Sixers’ inability to go deep with him.

At the FedExForum, something unexpected happened: a genuine thriller, settled in overtime – and featuring a Joel Embiid masterclass. Thirty-four points, 10 rebounds, eight assists and two blocks in what was probably his best performance of the season. The center was backed by another 34 from Maxey, who also added four boards and 12 assists. A natural scorer, a heart-stopping finish, and victory for the visitors. Ja Morant tried to make amends with 40 points on 16-of-22 shooting, but to no avail, while Cedric Coward posted 28 points, 16 rebounds and four assists. Aldama, meanwhile, closed out the year with a solid showing: 15 points and six rebounds, shooting 6-of-11 from the field and 3-of-6 from three. And he continues to consolidate his standing amid the chaos that is his team – one that simply cannot stop losing.

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Memphis Grizzlies

Stats

8 Jaren Jackson Jr.
0 Jaylen Wells
35 Christian Koloko
23 Cedric Coward
12 Ja Morant
7 Santi Aldama
45 GG Jackson II
31 Jock Landale
10 Javon Small
24 Cam Spencer

Stats

	Min	Pts	TR	OR	DR	Ast	Los	Rec	Blk	S1	S2	S3	RF	CF	Val
8 Jaren Jackson Jr.	37	15	12	0	12	3	2	0	3	5/6	2/7	2/5	0	3	0
0 Jaylen Wells	32	14	4	0	4	2	2	0	0	0/0	4/7	2/5	0	2	0
35 Christian Koloko	19	0	3	0	3	2	0	0	0	0/0	0/2	0/0	0	5	0
23 Cedric Coward	36	28	16	6	10	4	3	0	0	6/6	8/12	2/4	0	3	0
12 Ja Morant	34	40	2	0	2	3	4	2	0	8/10	16/20	0/2	0	0	0
7 Santi Aldama	36	15	6	0	6	2	4	0	4	0/0	3/5	3/6	0	3	0
45 GG Jackson II	23	6	1	1	0	2	1	0	2	2/2	2/2	0/2	0	0	0
31 Jock Landale	18	6	3	1	2	2	1	0	1	0/0	3/4	0/3	0	2	0
10 Javon Small	8	5	3	1	2	3	1	0	0	0/0	1/2	1/1	0	0	0
24 Cam Spencer	18	7	1	0	1	5	2	0	0	2/2	1/2	1/1	0	0	0

Philadelphia 76ers

Stats

25 Dominick Barlow
8 Paul George
21 Joel Embiid
77 VJ Edgecombe
0 Tyrese Maxey
30 Adem Bona
1 Andre Drummond
11 Justin Edwards
23 Eric Gordon
5 Quentin Grimes
7 Kyle Lowry
20 Jared McCain
33 Jabari Walker

Stats

	Min	Pts	TR	OR	DR	Ast	Los	Rec	Blk	S1	S2	S3	RF	CF	Val
25 Dominick Barlow	24	12	5	3	2	0	0	2	0	0/0	6/10	0/0	0	2	0
8 Paul George	39	17	3	0	3	3	3	0	0	2/2	3/6	3/11	0	5	0
21 Joel Embiid	38	34	10	5	5	8	4	1	2	11/12	10/22	1/6	0	5	0
77 VJ Edgecombe	40	25	6	2	4	4	1	4	1	0/0	5/11	5/10	0	4	0
0 Tyrese Maxey	43	34	4	1	3	12	0	2	0	4/5	9/14	4/7	0	3	0
30 Adem Bona	25	4	6	2	4	2	0	1	2	4/6	0/0	0/0	0	2	0
1 Andre Drummond	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0/0	0/0	0/0	0	0	0
11 Justin Edwards	3	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	0	0/0	0/0	0/1	0	1	0
23 Eric Gordon	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0/0	0/0	0/0	0	0	0
5 Quentin Grimes	37	11	3	0	3	3	0	3	0	1/2	2/3	2/6	0	0	0
7 Kyle Lowry	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0/0	0/0	0/0	0	0	0
20 Jared McCain	12	2	4	1	3	1	0	0	0	0/0	1/3	0/1	0	1	0
33 Jabari Walker	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0/0	0/0	0/0	0	0	0