WALTER Clayton Jr.

Clayton played 69 games for Memphis last season, in 2025-26, and averaged 20.4 minutes. He scored 7.8 points and added 2.0 rebounds and 4.0 assists per game. He also averaged 0.6 steals, 0.3 blocks and 1.7 turnovers. His best shooting mark was at the line, where he hit 90.1 percent. He shot 38.4 percent from the field and 30.7 percent from three. His true shooting percentage was 52.3 and his usage rate was 18.1. The Grizzlies were outscored with him on the floor, and his plus-minus was -4.1. Those are last season's figures, not current ones. They describe a rookie guard who handled the ball and set up teammates, but who was not yet a reliable scorer from the perimeter.

Clayton's October minutes were short. He scored 7 points with 2 assists in 12.5 minutes in a win over Atlanta on Oct. 5. Two days later he had 9 points, 3 rebounds and 3 assists in 12.8 minutes against Orlando, a loss. That night the Grizzlies were +4.0 with him on the floor. On Oct. 9 he played 14.6 minutes against Chicago and scored 2 points with 3 assists in a win, though his plus-minus was -11.0. His latest game came on Oct. 16 against Charlotte, another win. He played only 6.8 minutes and finished with 4 points, 0 rebounds and 4 assists. The workload shrank from the last month of last season, when he regularly played more than 20 minutes. That drop is worth noting alongside the trade and waiver reports.

Clayton closed 2025-26 with real minutes. On March 28 he scored 7 points with 3 rebounds and 6 assists in 29.9 minutes in a win over Chicago. Memphis then lost the next five games he appeared in, and the plus-minus numbers were harsh. He was -22.0 against Phoenix on March 30 and -23.0 against New York on April 1. On April 5 he scored 20 points against Milwaukee in 25.4 minutes, and the Grizzlies still lost, with him at -15.0. Against Cleveland on April 6 he had 10 points and 11 assists in 24.9 minutes, again a loss. His last game of the season was April 8 against Denver. He scored 15 points in 21.9 minutes and finished +14.0, though Memphis lost that one too.

Clayton is not on the injury report now. He was listed day-to-day with a right knee problem on Sept. 6, and the team cleared him on Oct. 1. He then played in October games against Atlanta, Orlando, Chicago and Charlotte. Health is not the reason his name is in the news. The open question is his place on the Grizzlies roster. A trade to a team such as Sacramento would give him a fresh start and likely more playing time. A waiver would end his time in Memphis. Either way, the next official word from the Grizzlies will settle it. Until then he is a 23-year-old guard with one year of experience, a strong free-throw stroke and a role that has shrunk in the last few weeks.