NBA Trade Rumors 2014: Zach Randolph Shrugs Off Trade Talks, Wants To Stay With Memphis Grizzlies & Marc Gasol

The NBA title window for the Memphis Grizzlies is slowly closing based on their performance in the first half of the season, creating speculations that the Western Conference team will make a roster shakeup soon.

The Grizzlies recently acquired Courtney Lee from the Boston Celtics for Jerryd Bayless, but they could enter into bigger trades soon, probably before the annual NBA trade deadline on February 20.

Previous rumors suggested that the Grizzlies, who were swept by the San Antonio Spurs in the Western Conference Finals last season, will consider trading Zach Randolph before the trade deadline.

When asked to comment about the latest trade rumors surrounding him, Randolph played down the rumored transfer, expressing his strong desire to stay with the Grizzlies and continue playing alongside Marc Gasol.

he Randolph-Gasol frontline combination turned the Grizzlies into serious contenders in the past three seasons, which started when they scored a huge upset against top-seeded Spurs in the first round of the 2011 NBA Playoffs, before falling to Kevin Durant and the Oklahoma City Thunder in a seven-game showdown in the second round.

"We want to keep this going and we want to stay together, Me and Marc, we complement each other so well. It's hard to play against us, especially when we're both going on both ends and we're both down there," Randolph told RealGM.

Sources said that the Grizzlies could send the All-Star power forward to the Brooklyn Nets for veteran forward Paul Pierce in a move that would give them financial flexibility next summer.

Pierce is playing in the final year of his contract that pays him more than $15.3 million this season. Trading for Pierce and his expiring contract will give the Grizzlies an opportunity to sign key players next summer, which could put them back into title contention next season.

Randolph knows that the trade rumors will soon cool off if they can turn their season around and prove their doubters wrong. And withGasol back after missing 23 games due to a knee injury, Randolph is confident that good things are bound to happen in the second half of the season.