This is a brief rundown of the past four Grizzlies games over the span of March 3rd through March 8th.
Let’s get into it.
First up — the Grizzlies get served in Boston on national TV.
Final score: 120-107.
Starting off in Boston, the Grizzlies succumbed to the national broadcast game curse and were dealt a solid thrashing by one of the best teams in the league. Aside from bombing in one of their few nationally televised games, there’s no shame in this defeat. The Celtics are playing phenomenally, and they had their home-court advantage to boot.
Ja Morant led all scorers in Boston with 38 points, 4 rebounds, and 7 assists, and shooting a much improved 8 of 8 from the free-throw line. Jaren Jackson Jr. finished the night with 20 points and 7 rebounds, while Desmond Bane had a respectable 17 points and 7 rebounds and shot 5 of 10 from beyond the three-point line.
Next up — the Grizzlies headed back to Memphis where they secured a dub against the Orlando Magic.
Final score: 124-96.
This was not a surprising outcome for anyone who has watched the Magic this year. I had this game penciled in as a dub and the gang did not let me down. Orlando has a good young talent to build around in Cole Anthony, and perhaps in a couple of years, they will be considered a worthy adversary for this Grizzlies team. But that year is not this year.
Once again, Ja Morant led all scorers with 25 points, 4 rebounds, and 7 assists, followed closely by Desmond Bane’s 24 points, 6 rebounds, and two assists. Morant and Bane each shot 3 of 6 from distance.
And then — there was a trap game in Houston.
Final score: 123-112.
Honestly, this is the most embarrassing one of the bunch — because this was a game that the Grizzlies had no business losing. From start to finish it showed in the lack of urgency and careless ball handling. This year’s Houston Rockets are a decidedly less-than-fantastic team, and a team as good as this Grizzlies squad should be embarrassed at the lack of consistency and effort. It was the second game of a back-to-back set but even that is no excuse for lazy basketball.
Desmond Bane led the Grizzlies in scoring with 28 points, two rebounds, 3 assists, and two steals, while Steven Adams put up a season-high 23 points, 12 rebounds, 5 assists, and 3 blocks. Ja Morant had a quiet scoring night, putting up 22 points, 4 rebounds, and 6 assists. (As an aside, I love how we are so conditioned to Morant being an offensive dynamo that 22 points seems low.)
Finally — the fam headed back to the Grindhouse where they mauled the Pelicans in a much-needed bounce-back victory.
Final score: 132-111.
After an embarrassing loss to the Houston Rockets, the Grizzlies needed to atone for their careless basketball showing. Thankfully they did just that.
The Pelicans have long been a perennial thorn in the side of the Grizzlies, even during the times when New Orleans has been struggling. With no Zion Williams for the foreseeable future, the Pelicans acquisition of notorious Grizz-killer CJ McCollum gave them some much-needed offensive power. Thankfully, no point guard faces were broken.
True to form, McCollum showed that he’s capable of lighting up this team regardless of the jersey he is wearing. But even his 32 points, 6 rebounds, 11 assists, and 5 of 10 3-point shooting weren’t enough to stop the Grizzlies when they play with full effort.
Ja Morant had a team-high 24 points, with 8 rebounds, and 8 assists. Jaren Jackson Jr. finished the night with 22 points, 3 rebounds, and 3 blocks. Desmond Bane also scored 22 points, 5 rebounds, and 6 assists. And the rookie Ziaire Williams showed out with 16 points and 6 rebounds.
Fun fact: Desmond Bane’s 5 of 9 three-point shooting pushed his total career three-pointers made to 300 in 131 career games, making him the eighth fastest (fewest games) player to reach 300 career three-point makes in NBA history.
Who Got Next?
The Grizzlies will host the New York Knicks on Friday, March 11th. Tip-off is at 7 p.m. CST.
