Larry Kuzniewski
On a night that started out with an offensive explosion, it was the Grizzlies’ defense that just flat-out never showed up on Friday night against the visiting Atlanta Hawks, and as a result, they lost 116-101.
This recap will be brief, because there isn’t really much to say; despite an unbelievably hot shooting start—the Grizzlies had hit 8 three pointers and were shooting 52% at halftime—the defense was never really there, giving the Hawks a lot of open looks that weren’t converting. The Grizzlies were only up 5 at halftime even with the out of character long range barrage, so when the Hawks started hitting the shots in front of them, they had two straight 30-point quarters, and the Grizzlies couldn’t keep up, putting up a more “Grizzlies” stat line of 4 three pointers and 35% shooting after the break.
It was a disappointing end to a game that started with promise, but behind it was a bigger disappointment: the Griz have now played all four teams from last year’s Conference Finals and only beaten the hapless Rockets, and the other games have all been lopsided. A win over OKC without Kevin Durant stands as the Grizzlies’ “quality” win right now, and that’s not saying very much.
Larry Kuzniewski
In the continued absence of Zach Randolph, Dave Joerger went with the Conley/Allen/Barnes/Jeff Green/Gasol starting lineup again, and I continue to like what Barnes brings to the table there—especially nights like last night where he hits 3’s in the flow of the offense. It’s what we thought Barnes could bring to the table in a best-case scenario. Until Randolph returns, I think starting Barnes at the 3 is the way to go, with the two Greens (Jeff and JaMychal) swapping in interchangeably at the power forward spot.
The Grizzlies’ poor defense last night was a bit alarming. Teams have been able to work the ball side to side for open shots all year long, and Atlanta is a team whose entire system is predicated on such shooting, but even so, the slippage in defense has been a theme this year (the Grizzlies are currently 20th in defensive rating, according to Basketball Reference) and is only improving slowly.
Tony Allen also had a pretty poor defensive outing last night. Allen continues to be a net negative in his minutes this year (he’s got a net rating of -8, again according to Basketball Reference) and it’s hard to tell how much of that is situational—that is, dependent on the lineups he shares the floor with—and how much of that represents an actual slippage in his ability. More than his defense, though, I think the real negative here is his offense. Teams are continuing to scheme Allen the way the Warriors did—that is, pretend he’s not on the floor on offense and defend the other four Grizzlies with all five of their players. With that many people in the lane, it also cuts out Allen’s chief offensive skill: cutting to the basket. He’s great at it, but he can’t run through three guys to do it. It’s a conundrum, one that I don’t see getting better as the season wears on. Worth keeping an eye on.
It was a disappointing night, mostly because the Grizzlies still haven’t beaten a “top tier” team. After the first quarter last night it seemed like they might be ready to make a statement like that, but it wasn’t meant to be.
Tweet of the Night
This one, only because I still can’t believe Joerger said JaMychal Green is a small forward:
Noted small forward JaMychal Green playing center right now.
— Kevin Yeung (@KevinHFY) November 28, 2015
Larry Kuzniewski
Up Next
The Philadelphia 76ers come to town on Sunday, and if they lose, it’ll be the worst start to a season in NBA history. Generally, this kind of thing means the Grizzlies are going to lose, but we’ll see. The Sixers are really bad. But they have come pretty close to winning a couple of times recently. What I’m saying is this: the Sixers are going to want to do everything in their power to avoid the worst start in history, and this group of Grizzlies has a long, storied history of playing down to the competition and barely beating terrible teams. It’s a recipe for a disaster with the Grizzlies’ name all over it. “The Team The Sixers Actually Beat” is not a title the Griz want attached to them, not in this season where everyone has already said they’re old and in the way.
