Memphis Grizzlies

What Memphis Grizzlies does

The Memphis Grizzlies are a privately held NBA professional basketball franchise based in Memphis, Tennessee, founded in 1995 as the Vancouver Grizzlies and relocated to Memphis in 2001. The franchise is owned by Robert J. Pera through Memphis Basketball, LLC and operates the FedExForum arena as its home venue. The organization employs 101-250 staff and supports a G-League developmental affiliate, the Memphis Hustle. Core operations center on fielding a competitive NBA roster, generating revenue through ticket sales (single-game, season, and group), merchandise, corporate sponsorships, arena revenues, and the league's national and local media-rights distributions.

The franchise is currently executing a comprehensive rebuild. Management under General Manager Zach Kleiman has traded franchise cornerstones Ja Morant (to Portland, June 2026), Jaren Jackson Jr. (to Utah, July 2025), and Desmond Bane (to Orlando, June 2025), accumulating multiple first-round and second-round draft picks in return. The new core is being built around the No. 3 overall pick in the 2026 NBA Draft, Cameron Boozer, alongside Cedric Coward, Zach Edey, and Jaylen Wells. Additional moves in July 2026 included a six-team trade that brought in D'Angelo Russell, Isaiah Stewart, and AJ Johnson while sending out Santi Aldama and Marcus Sasser.

Commercially, the Grizzlies serve two primary customer segments: NBA basketball fans in the Memphis region who attend games and purchase merchandise, and corporate sponsors seeking marketing exposure through the team and FedExForum. The team's 25-57 record in the prior season and a projected 27.5 wins for 2026-27 reflect the on-court cost of the rebuild, though co-favorite status (+800 odds) in the 2026 Las Vegas Summer League and viral social media traction around Boozer signal early brand momentum during the transition.

Name

Memphis Grizzlies

Legal name

Memphis Grizzlies

Website

https://grizzlies.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2001

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

The Memphis Grizzlies are a privately held NBA professional basketball franchise in Memphis, Tennessee, owned by Robert J. Pera. The team plays home games at FedExForum, generating revenue from tickets, merchandise, sponsorships, arena operations, and league media rights while currently executing a roster rebuild around young draft talent.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Memphis

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure, Others

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels2 records

Core offering

The Memphis Grizzlies are a professional NBA basketball franchise that competes in the NBA and sells NBA basketball tickets, season tickets, group tickets, and team-branded merchandise. The team plays home games at FedExForum in Memphis, Tennessee, and operates the Memphis Hustle G League developmental affiliate.

Product overview

The Memphis Grizzlies is an NBA professional basketball franchise. The organization does not offer technology products or services in the traditional sense covered by this schema.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• NBA Basketball Single-Game Tickets

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• FedExForumcoreOthers · 17 July 2026FedExForum is the Memphis Grizzlies' home arena. The team created a locker room memorial at FedExForum to honor late forward Brandon Clarke.
• Washington WizardsminorOthers · 8 July 2026Washington Wizards sent D'Angelo Russell and future second-round picks to Memphis as part of a complex six-team trade involving Khris Middleton sign-and-trade.
• Detroit PistonsminorOthers · 8 July 2026Detroit Pistons traded Isaiah Stewart to Memphis Grizzlies in exchange for three second-round picks, part of the larger six-team trade framework.
• Dallas MavericksminorOthers · 7 July 2026Memphis traded Santi Aldama and Marcus Sasser to Dallas as part of a six-team trade. The Mavericks acquired forward Santi Aldama and guard Marcus Sasser from Memphis in exchange for draft picks and AJ Johnson.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights3 records

Direct peers

• Brooklyn Nets: Brooklyn is a peer NBA franchise currently navigating its own roster teardown and asset accumulation phase, sharing operational parallels with Memphis's current strategic posture.
• Orlando Magic: Orlando acquired Desmond Bane from Memphis in June 2025 and is the direct trade partner for that transaction. Both franchises are mid-tier NBA teams competing in similar media market tiers with overlapping fan demographics.
• Detroit Pistons: Detroit was a participant in the July 2026 six-team trade, exchanging Isaiah Stewart for second-round picks. The Pistons are similarly rebuilding around young talent and operate in a comparable mid-market setting.
• Cleveland Cavaliers: Cleveland is a mid-market team that recently completed a comparable young-core rebuild, providing a recent benchmark for how Memphis's asset-driven rebuild could translate into on-court and commercial outcomes.
• Sacramento Kings: Sacramento is a comparable small-to-mid NBA market franchise with similar revenue dynamics, recent roster turnover, and reliance on ticket and sponsorship revenue streams typical of non-AAU markets.
• Utah Jazz: The Utah Jazz are also in a full organizational rebuild, having acquired Jaren Jackson Jr. from Memphis in exchange for first-round picks. Both teams are co-favorites in the 2026 Summer League and share small-medium market dynamics, making the Jazz the most directly comparable peer.
• Portland Trail Blazers: The Trail Blazers acquired franchise star Ja Morant from Memphis in 2026, taking on a high-salary veteran while continuing their own rebuild. They share a comparable small-market footprint and are direct trade partners in the referenced transactions.
• New Orleans Pelicans: New Orleans is a small-market NBA team with comparable fan-base size, regional TV economics, and reliance on marquee individual players to drive ticket and merchandise sales.
• Charlotte Hornets: Charlotte is a small-market NBA franchise with a similar structural profile to Memphis: limited star-power concentration, ticket-led revenue model, and dependency on regional sponsorships at FedExForum-equivalent venues.
• Minnesota Timberwolves: Minnesota is a comparable mid-market NBA franchise with similar tier of payroll, single-arena dependency, and reliance on league-wide media rights distribution to supplement local revenue.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses3 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/memgrizz
• Facebookfacebook.com/memphisgrizzlies
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/memphis-grizzlies

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Memphis Grizzlies