Tag: Jae Crowder

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Beyond the Arc Sports

Grizzlies’ Mid-Season Check-up

CREDIT: Lawrence Kuzniewski

At the beginning of the season, absolutely no one predicted the Memphis Grizzlies would be in playoff consideration. As of today, the Grizzlies are 19–22 on the season and in the 8th spot in the Western Conference. 

Lawrence Kuzniewski

Ja Morant and Taylor Jenkins

The team was an afterthought for most around the league after trading Mike Conley to the Utah Jazz in the off-season. But Memphis is currently on a six-game win streak, a feat the team hasn’t accomplished since 2016. Shocker! 

This is a fun team and they are finding ways to win. Speaking of: “A lot of fun — it’s always fun to win,” rookie Ja Morant said after a huge win over the Houston Rockets on Tuesday night. Morant added, “I’m having a lot of fun, enjoying every bit of it. Thankful and grateful to even be here to play for Memphis in front of this crowd with these guys. It’s a blessing.”

Who would have the audacity to think this young team would be any good and figuring out how to win so soon? Memphis’ last loss was a heartbreaker against the Sacramento Kings on January 2nd. 

Jae Crowder has provided value to the team with his veteran leadership, and he is a big part of the reason why this team is getting it done. After practice on Thursday afternoon, Crowder, the de facto locker room leader, says it’s a sense of urgency for the team in everything they do in practice, and with their attention to detail. Crowder said, “We have guys locked in right now, and it is paying off with wins, but we gotta stay the course and put our best foot forward every game.” One game at a time is his motto, and the elder statesman keeps preaching it to his teammates.

Crowder says it’s being like a proud father — seeing the growth of his teammates from the start of the season through 41 games. The Marquette product believes in accountability for himself, his teammates, and the coaching staff. 

Larry Kuzniewski

Jae Crowder

Crowder is not only a voice in the locker room but also a voice on the court. He says he tries to help the young guys on the floor when they make mistakes, and he says the veterans have look themselves in the mirror first — and walk the walk. 

Head Coach Taylor Jenkins is appreciative of Crowder on and off the court. After a recent game Jenkins said: “With him, the consistent quality is his leadership, and his communication with his teammates on the court and in the timeouts — even what is going on behind the scenes in the locker room — by what he is doing game in and game out getting the team together.”

Jenkins continued: “I lean on him a lot to communicate coverages or communicate to a player about a previous possession. He is just a great voice and another leader out there that can be an extension of me. He does it innately, which is awesome. He has done it at a high level. He knows what winning habits take and what they are. The fact that he is going out there and communicating and trying to showcase them as an example; it has been a great quality.”

NBA.com

Taylor Jenkins

The first-year coach knows he has something to be proud of after 41 games of his rookie season. “We have been competing since Day 1 . We have been playing unselfish, and it was a struggle early, but we have gotten progressively better,” Jenkins said after the big win over the Rockets. 

Jenkins says he didn’t want to put himself or his team in a box, coming into the season. He wanted to focus on just competing, and he wanted his players to play as a team. He knew they team would figure it out eventually. 

The rookie coach added, “These guys come in and they embrace their mentality. It’s been at the forefront, so to be at the midway mark and to be 41 games in, we don’t even look at the records. Can we be that aggressive, disciplined, and unselfish team? We took huge steps, each game, these last couple of weeks, this last month. We are seeing some big-time growth individually, and that just translates into the team’s growth.”

Jenkins believes that the team chemistry is a big part of their success. “I think our chemistry has been there for a majority of the season  —  we just hadn’t necessarily gotten the results. The consistency in our play has been there. We are playing with leads, playing from behind. The process in which we compete defensively and our execution of game plans is getting better. We definitely have our lapses here and there. Offensively, our unselfishness continues to be there, but it is consistent, too. Night in and night out, we are getting consistent production on both ends of the floor. Our bench has been huge for us the past couple of weeks. They are making impact with not only their scoring, but also rebounding and assisting especially. The fact that we are getting consistent play, the chemistry has been there. That has helped us get to this consistent stretch.”

One game at a time is how the Grizzlies are approaching the rest of the season. The players are aware that they have room to grow in the midst of the winning streak and know they can’t take any opponent lightly. Players just want to play basketball, have fun, and continue to win. Grizzlies fans need to continue to believe and enjoy the ride — because the future looks bright for these Memphis Grizzlies. 

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Grizz Bash

I wasn’t giving Ja Morant any basketball tips at the Grizz Bash because I don’t know any.

I noticed Colton Rhoads carrying a basketball covered with autographs at the Grizz Bash. He and his girlfriend, Anna Belle George, were among the guests at the St. Jude Children’s Hospital of Memphis fundraiser, which was held January 11th at FedExForum.

The Grizz Bash, which featured games, eats, and music, replaces the Tip-Off Luncheon, where guests also could meet Memphis Grizzlies players.

Rhoads, 22, was collecting autographs from as many Grizzlies players as he could for the heavily-inscribed basketball.

“We counted last night and there’s 85 now,” Colton told me when I called him the next day. “Last one we got was Tyus Jones. Everybody was pretty easy to get except Ja Morant. I feel everybody was trying to go get him.”

But the intrepid Rhoads got him. “He is real shy. He didn’t speak much.”

Collecting autographs from basketball players began with his dad, Brian Rhoads, Colton says. “It started with him when he was a teenager. He always loved basketball. He started off collecting NCAA basketballs.”

His dad, who now has more than 200.autographed basketballs, used to get autographs on one ball, but then he got one player to one ball. “The ones he does have multiple autographs on are team balls. Or players related in some way. Or the coaches.”

The ball Colton had at the Grizz Bash was one of his dad’s basketballs. “But we both put work on it. I have some. We kind of take turns. If I’ll go to an event, I’ll do it. It’s just whoever happens to be there.”

Colton got his first Grizzlies autograph when he was six years old. “I believe the first autograph I got was Pau Gasol for the Grizzlies, the first year they came to Memphis. I was about six. He was really nice. I was a little nervous because he was my favorite player at the time. That was my first introduction with any NBA player. I was meeting an idol.”’

Colton and his dad used to go to the old Tip-Off Luncheon, but, he says that event “always seemed a lot more hectic and it seemed a little more difficult to get to different players before they headed out. They didn’t stay for the whole luncheon.”

He enjoyed the Grizz Bash, which he described as “more of a close-quartered kind of experience. It was easier to interact with them (the players) and play games with them.”

Colton, who is majoring in communications at the University of Memphis, says their collection includes “a lot of the older players like Michael Jordan, Julius Erving, and people like that.” But they’re really trying to get an autograph from Zion Williamson. “He’s a rookie. Just got drafted. So, we’re trying to get after him whenever he comes to Memphis. That will be our opportunity.”

He sees Williamson becoming as big as LeBron James. “They’re saying he’s going to be a real superstar. And we’re trying to get after him before he gets that big. From our experience, whenever stars get big they get the tendency to not sign as much.”

Asked if any players have ever been rude to him, Colton says, “Not many rude ones. But (for some) you kind of sense them not feeling like signing an autograph.”

And then, he says, “Some blatantly ignore you. You call out to them and they just keep walking.”

The Grizzlies used to host “Grizz Gala,” another St. Jude fundraiser, which was in Tunica. I remember Marc Gasol’s size 17 basketball shoes in the silent auction at a Grizz Gala held in January, 2014 at Gold Strike Casino. The event, where guests could mingle and take photos with Gasol, Zach Randolph, Mike Miller, and the other players, featured music by the Memphis Grizzlies House Band.

MIchael Donahue

Colton Rhoads and Anna Belle George with Jaren Jackson Jr. at the Grizz Bash.

Dillon Brooks with a fan at the Grizz Bash

MIchael Donahue

Jonas Valanciunas at the Grizz Bash.

Michael Donahue

Brandon Clarke at Grizz Bash.

Michael Donahue

Jae Crowder at Grizz Bash.

Michael Donahue

Grizz Bash.

Colton Rhoads with his hero, Pau Gasol, who gave him his first Grizzlies autograph.

Marc Gasol with Colton Rhoads.

Brian Rhoads autographed baskeball collection.

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Beyond the Arc Sports

Quarter Season Progress Report, Part Two: Hope on Board

CREDIT: Larry Kuzniewski

Larry Kuzniewski

Jae Crowder

This is part two of a three-part series of player progress reports from the first quarter of the season. You can read part one here.

Dillon Brooks – So far Brooks appears to have bounced back well after missing most of last season due to injury. He’s had some tremendous shooting games, and the Grizzlies are undefeated this season when Brooks scores 20 or more points. These are all good things and should be celebrated as such. However, inconsistency in scoring is still an issue with Brooks, as is the number of fouls he’s amassing. None of this is so dire as to make him a liability, at least not yet. His potential far outweighs his shortcomings. B  

 

Jae Crowder – Crowder has been the face of veteran leadership for the Grizzlies, in addition to playing the largest number of minutes of any player on the roster. He does a lot of things well, better than perhaps was expected. Even on the nights that he’s not producing a ton of points, he’s obviously putting in a lot of effort in other ways. His game-winning bucket against the Brooklyn Nets brought the Grizzlies their first victory of the season, and it was just his second made shot of the game. Crowder also has the second-highest number of rebounds for the Grizzlies this season and the third-highest number of assists. Bossman, indeed. A

 

Solomon Hill – Any evaluation of Hill must also come with the knowledge that his arrival in the Bluff City facilitated the departure of Chandler Parsons and his albatross of a contract. For that alone, I’m willing to give him a key to the city. On a team as young and green as the Grizzlies are currently, there is value in having experienced players on the roster. As it stands, Hill has outperformed expectations and offered real contributions on the court. All in all, the Grizzlies are getting more from Hill than just salary cap relief. Given the context in which he was acquired, any actual basketball accomplishments are a bonus. B 

Jonas Valanciunas – The Lithuanian big man is the sole remaining player acquired from the trade that sent Marc Gasol to Toronto last year. Valanciunas has been the picture of doing more with less for the Grizzlies this season. His minutes per game are lower than they were last year after he joined the Grizzlies, but his shooting percentages are higher. As the team’s primary rebounder, I would like to see Valanciunas having more double-digit rebound games. But for a team in the earliest stages of a rebuild, with a new coach and multiple inexperienced players, the Grizzlies are getting their money’s worth out of him so far this season. A

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Beyond the Arc Sports

All About Ja

Larry Kuzniewski

Ja Morant

Sunday night belonged to the most electrifying man in Memphis, Ja Morant. The Grizzlies rookie point guard made his mark, as he went toe-to-toe with one of the league’s best players, Kyrie Irving.

With only 3.7 seconds left in OT, Morant delivered a dime to a trailing Jae Crowder, who hit a game-winning three-pointer as time expired to seal the victory before 15,517 delighted fans at the FedExForum. Memphis beat Brooklyn 134–133.

“It was a great play call by coach,” said Morant on the game winning dish to Crowder. “I’m not going to lie. At first, when I went behind the back, I was just trying to get my feet set. But then Jae called ‘Trailer!’ and I knew that both defenders were on me, so I just pitched it back and backed into the other defenders so they wouldn’t be able to contest his shot. I believed in Jae the whole way and he delivered for us tonight.”

This marked the first win of the 2019 season for the Grizzlies and the first win for rookie head coach Taylor Jenkins.
Larry Kuzniewski

Taylor Jenkins

In his third NBA game, the rookie point guard tallied 30 points (career-high), nine assists, and four rebounds in 32 minutes. The Murray State alum became only the third player in NBA history to score at least 30 points and have at least nine assists within the first three games of their career, joining Isiah Thomas (1981) and Trae Young (2018).

He had 17 points in the fourth quarter, while leading the Grizzlies back from a 118-110 deficit with 3:20 remaining. Also Morant had a key block on Irving to send the game to overtime.

Morant on the final sequence of the fourth quarter, “On that last play, coach was just telling us to stay down, and once he pump faked it, I was down and I knew the shot was coming,” Morant said. “Man, it was great. Special talent — he’s [Irving] a handful; I can say that. Definitely was putting pressure on our defense tonight.”

After the game, Morant said it felt great to get the win in front of the rousing home crowd after coming up short the first two games.

Jenkins was glad to get his first win and was very proud of his rookie. Jenkins said, “We’ve said to him daily that he’s our engine. We go as he goes. I think he’s starting to see how defenses are going to guard him. He’s got to be full throttle early on. Credit to him, the last couple of days watching film and in his individual work, working on different finishes.”

Jenkins added, “To see him finish at a pretty high level tonight, to be able to complete those attacks is huge. To be able to find his teammates in great times, getting in there and kicking out, it was great to see. That was a great Ja Morant performance. A lot of guys played great tonight. Hopefully we continue building on this moving forward.”

“Obviously, he’s a very talented player. He hit some tough shots and his quickness and speed to the rim to get downhill,” said Brooklyn Head coach Kenny Atkinson about Morant.

Irving also had high praises for Morant: “I expected him to come out aggressive, be who he is. He got downhill a few times and finished over our bigs. Didn’t really hit the outside shot tonight, which we wanted to encourage, but he did pretty great at what he is known for and that is getting in the paint and playing with a lot of passion, and I think he showed that tonight.”

Nets guard Caris LeVert said Morant made good decisions and said he thought Morant was going to be really good in the league.

Notes:
The Grizzlies converted on a season-high 14 three-pointers and shot 48.5 percent from the field.

Jonas Valanciunas recorded his second double-double of the season, tallying 16 points and 11 rebounds in just 20 minutes of play. Dillon Brooks had a strong night as he went 9-of-15 while shooting 3-of-6 from three. Brooks ended with 21 points.

Solomon Hill saw his first action in a Grizzlies uniform. Hill went a perfect 5-of-5 from the field and finished with 13 points and five rebounds.

Irving led all scorers with 37 points, seven assists and seven rebounds while shooting 11-of-27 from the floor. Caris LeVert also had a good night for the Nets as he tallied 27 points, five assists and four rebounds as the Nets fell to 1-2 on the year.

What They Said
Grizzlies forward Jae Crowder ended the night with six points, seven rebounds and five assists. All of Crowder points came in OT and including the game winner.  Larry Kuzniewski

Jae Crowder


On the win: “Obviously, just to get the win, get our first win and try to get some momentum. We’ve been playing well these first two games and we put five quarters together and came out with a win.”

On keeping an even keel in the fourth quarter:
“We just wanted to stay with the game plan and obviously we felt like we took our foot off the gas pedal the other two games and we wanted to try and finish a full game with some veteran presence down late and it helped out. We just played very scrappy on the defensive end, coming up with loose balls. They had a five out there. We had four smalls I think at one point so we’re just playing scrappy and doing whatever it takes to win the game.”

On what he tells the young players:
“We want to limit those guys to one shot where, like I said, we were playing small in the clutch so we didn’t want to give any second chance points. I think all game we were getting beat with second chance points, so there late we just wanted to limit those guys to one shot, make or miss, and get out and have a good offense on the other end and find the best shot we can get. So I think we limited those guys. I think they got a tip-in late which we tried to not give up, but we did a good job of limiting those guys to one shot.”

On the locker room celebration:
“We’re coming together. I think that’s what it’s about. It’s about coming together as a team. Coming together as one. And obviously a win always brings a team a little closer and to get that first win for coach speaks volumes for him. We’re just happy for him. Happy for our rooks, they played a great game and we’re just trying to get a win and get some momentum here early in the season.”

On Ja Morant:
“He stepped up especially in that to force overtime. That defensive stop that he had on Kyrie [Irving], stayed down on the pump fake, contested it, got a piece of the ball. That was big. That was probably my highlight for him of the game along with the points. He did a good job of scoring and facilitating but that defensive stop to push it to overtime was huge.”

Up Next
The Grizzlies head out to take on Anthony Davis, LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers on Tuesday night, with a 9:30 p.m. start, Central time.