Larry Kuzniewski
Will Jeff Green look comfortable in the starting unit tonight?
The Grizzlies’ 2015-16 regular season starts tonight, and it starts at home against last year’s NBA finalists from the Eastern Conference, the Cleveland Cavaliers, who lost to the Bulls in Chicago last night in front of the President and the rest of the nation when Pau Gasol blocked LeBron James’ potential game-tying layup in a decisive manner:
One assumes LeBron won’t be happy about the way that one ended, but Cleveland rolls into town as a team that has certainly not reached their ultimate form yet: first off, Kyrie Irving won’t be back for months; Kevin Love is still playing his way into form after the shoulder injury that knocked him out of last year’s playoffs; Tristan Thompson wasn’t even back on the team until last week. They’re not where they will be, but that doesn’t mean they’re not good.
Things I’ll be paying attention to tonight:
- Safe to assume Jeff Green will be the starting small forward. He probably won’t be able to guard LeBron—not even Tony “Give Kevin Durant Nightmares” Allen can do that consistently—but it’s more important that he look good tonight than that he drop 35 points or hold LeBron to 10. If Green looks consistent in the flow of the offense, and looks like he’s developing chemistry with the starting unit, I’ll probably be satisfied with his performance.
- Zach Randolph used to demolish Kevin Love every chance he got, but the past two or three seasons those tables have turned and Love is a very difficult matchup for him. Who’s going to guard Love tonight? Will it work?
- What will the Cavs do for rest, since they played last night? A road SEGABABA against a Western Conference team in November is probably one of the least important games on the Cavs schedule, so… who will play?
- Bench rotations. The Grizzlies still have a lot to figure out here, even given the shortened rotation of the last two preseason games. I think what we see tonight will be more of a first draft than perhaps even the coach thinks it is.
- Does Vince Carter look alive?
The season is here! The season is finally here!
