Memphis, March 15, 2012 – The Memphis Grizzlies acquired the draft rights to forward Ricky Sanchez from the Philadelphia 76ers in exchange for guard/forward Sam Young, Grizzlies General Manager and Vice President of Basketball Operations Chris Wallace announced today.
Sanchez (6-11, 220) currently plays in Argentina for Wuber Estudiantes de Bahia Blanca, where the 24-year-old has averaged 13.0 points and 5.1 rebounds in 42 games this season.
Originally selected by the Portland Trail Blazers in the second round (35th overall) of the 2005 NBA Draft, the Guayama, Puerto Rico native also has played professionally in Puerto Rico (2001-04, 2007-11), the Continental Basketball Association (2005-06), the NBA Development League (2006-08), Venezuela (2009), Mexico (2009-11) and Spain (2011-12).
Young (6-6, 220) averaged 3.5 points and 2.0 rebounds on .386 shooting in 11.4 minutes in 21 appearances (two starts) this season, his third in Memphis. The 26-year-old holds career averages of 6.9 points and 2.4 rebounds on .455 shooting in 17.5 minutes in 179 career games (49 starts), all with the Grizzlies.
Selected by Memphis in the second round (36th overall) of the 2009 NBA Draft, the University of Pittsburgh product posted 7.5 points and 2.3 rebounds in 19.7 minutes in 13 playoff games last season during the Grizzlies’ run to the Western Conference Semifinals.