Cleveland Bought Several Assets for One Reserve
Cleveland sent Jon Leuer to Memphis on January 22, 2013 and received Marreese Speights, Wayne Ellington, Josh Selby and a protected future first-round pick. The Cavaliers' own release emphasized both the added frontcourt and backcourt depth and the value of another future first. That made the transaction unusually favorable on asset count before hindsight even entered the picture. Memphis had a different objective: shedding salary responsibility as it worked below the luxury-tax line, so the Grizzlies accepted a lighter basketball return in exchange for financial relief.
Speights and Ellington Gave Cleveland Immediate NBA Minutes
The veteran portion of Cleveland's return was useful right away. Speights appeared in 39 games for the Cavaliers after the trade and averaged 10.2 points and 5.1 rebounds in 18.4 minutes. Ellington also joined the rotation, while Selby was a smaller developmental piece. None became a long-term Cleveland cornerstone, but the deal still produced substantially more near-term playing value than the Cavaliers surrendered. Leuer played only 19 regular-season games for Memphis in 2012-13 before developing into a steadier reserve over the next two seasons.
The Memphis First Became the Most Important Piece
The protected first-round pick extended the value well beyond 2013. Cleveland held the Memphis obligation until January 2015, then packaged it with another first-round pick to acquire Timofey Mozgov and a second-round selection from Denver. Cleveland's own coverage later described the broader sequence as turning Dion Waiters and the Memphis pick into J.R. Smith, Iman Shumpert and Mozgov. The Memphis pick eventually conveyed in 2017 at No. 20, but Cleveland had already converted its rights into a starting-caliber center for a team pursuing the championship.
Memphis Had a Financial Logic, but the Basketball Return Lagged
Memphis did not make this move because Leuer was expected to equal the entire outgoing package. The Grizzlies were managing salary and soon made the larger Rudy Gay transaction as well. Leuer became a useful reserve, appearing in 49 games in 2013-14 and 63 in 2014-15, so Memphis did receive real NBA value. The problem is the opportunity cost. Cleveland received two productive rotation players plus the first-round asset later used in the Mozgov deal. That realized return supports the canonical A- for Cleveland and C+ for Memphis.
Final Verdict
Cavaliers Win — Cleveland A-, Memphis C+. Cleveland exchanged Jon Leuer and salary flexibility for Marreese Speights, Wayne Ellington, Josh Selby and a protected Memphis first-round pick. Speights gave the Cavaliers 39 productive games immediately, Ellington added rotation depth, and the future first later became part of the package that brought Timofey Mozgov to a contender. Memphis did get useful reserve seasons from Leuer and achieved its short-term financial objective, but the Grizzlies surrendered too much playable and transferable value for the completed basketball return to keep pace.