Tag: Marc Gasol

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Beyond the Arc Sports

Grizzlies Close Out Wizards 107-95

CREDIT: Larry Kuzniewski

Since the Grizzlies don’t play on Halloween, FedExForum celebrated the holiday Tuesday night with trick-or-treating for the kiddos pregame, and spooky sketches and in-game music. Fittingly, the first half of basketball was a nightmare for both teams. The Grizzlies finished the half shooting 39 percent from the floor on 42 shots. The Wizards shot 41 percent on 37 shots. At the half, the Grizzlies led 46-45. By comparison, the Warriors scored 48 points in just one quarter on Sunday.

The Grizzlies coaching staff and players have been throwing around the word “thrust” a lot recently, saying that they need to more strongly initiate their offense quicker, and with more power and direction. Basically, imposing pressure on the defense and making the defense bend and react.
Larry Kuzniewski

The Grizzlies did not show any “thrust” in the first half of Tuesday night’s game. Instead of lifting off, the offense taxied aimlessly, like they were cruising the parking lot looking for an open space, in no hurry whatsoever.

Indeed, the Grizzlies have a problem unfolding their offense in a reasonable amount of time. In his piece for The Athletic, Peter Edmiston crunched the numbers and the Grizzlies are the slowest team in the league, getting their shots off later in the shot clock than anyone else.

Grizzlies Close Out Wizards 107-95

Memphis started the game shooting 1-8. Conley missed consecutive free throws (for the first time ever?). Temple started 1-4. Jaren Jackson entered foul trouble early (and remained in foul trouble for the rest of the game).

Thankfully, the Wizards had a frighteningly bad half as well.

The Grizzlies have struggled coming out of halftime for a while now, but that wasn’t the case last night. Jackson committed his fourth foul before a minute had passed in the third quarter, and wasn’t able to make an impact on the game in the second half. Other than that, the Grizzlies came out strong on both sides of the ball in the third quarter.

Suddenly, the offense had flow. Conley and Marc Gasol worked their magic two-man game. People moved and were found off the ball. Good looks and shots were generated. The Grizzlies opened the quarter on a 18-1 run, at one point extending the lead to 19.
Larry Kuzniewski

Grizzlies Close Out Wizards 107-95 (5)

On defense, the Grizzlies’ energy and length generated a number off turnovers. Unfortunately, Memphis wasn’t able to capitalize on these turnovers, and converted just three of their 13 fast-break opportunities.

The Wizards rallied in the latter part of the third, cutting the Grizzlies lead to 6, and finished the quarter with 27 points to the Grizzlies’ 32. Their run continued till midway through the fourth quarter, getting the Wizards to within four points.

For a bit, it looked like the Grizzlies were poised to cough up another big lead (like they did in Sacramento). Instead, Memphis closed out the win with a steady hand. Garrett Temple’s defense on Bradley Beal was clutch down the stretch. Aside from Omri Casspi officially becoming a Grizzlies defender by fouling Beal on a 4-point-play, Temple held Beal scoreless in the final period, and hit a three of his own.

Shelvin Mack, whom the Grizzlies leaned on heavily throughout the game, allowed Conley to play off the ball down the stretch, greatly enhancing Conley’s scoring opportunities without over-taxing his stamina, and enhancing Conley and Gasol’s two-man game overall.

In back-to-back offensive sequences, Gasol received the ball wide open from midrange and from deep due to his two-man game with Conley as Mack brought the ball up the court and initiated the offense. After drilling the dagger triple, Gasol let loose this celebration.

Grizzlies Close Out Wizards 107-95 (3)

Grizzlies Close Out Wizards 107-95 (4)

The Grizzlies have wanted to get Conley off the ball, and to alleviate the primary ball-handling burden, for a while now, and Mack enabled just that in last night’s game. He scored 14 points in 29 minutes, shot 2-3 from deep, and handed out eight assists.

Another surprise from last night’s game? The Grizzlies shot 46 percent as a team from deep, and made 13 threes. And the space that shooting provided Conley and Gasol was impressive to say the least. Also, Anderson quietly, finally, had a nice game. He finished with five points, 11 rebounds, three assists, and four steals. I expect his scoring to bump up a bit when he finds his groove with the team.

Special shout out to Ivan Rabb, by the way. Due to Triple-J’s foul trouble, Rabb played nearly 12 minutes tonight and made the most of them. He played with composure, facilitated the offense, and outworked Otto Porter’s defense in the post.
Larry Kuzniewski

The Grizzlies return to action on Friday, when the Jazz get a chance to even the score at home in Utah.

Tweet of the night:

Grizzlies Close Out Wizards 107-95 (2)

Categories
Beyond the Arc Sports

Grizzlies Bounce Back, Defeating Suns 117-96

CREDIT: Larry Kuzniewski

Uncertainty hung in the air going into Saturday night’s home game against the Phoenix Suns. After a compelling win against a scary Utah Jazz team, the Grizzlies suffered a disappointing loss in Sacramento. The Grizzlies coughed up a halftime lead when the Kings clamped down on defense and clawed their way to victory.
Larry Kuzniewski

Worse than the loss, Marc Gasol suffered what appeared at the time to be a potentially season-altering injury when De’Aaron Fox came down on Gasol’s upper back area fighting for a rebound. The good energy from the win over Utah evaporated.

Fortunately, Gasol wasn’t seriously injured after all. “It was a pretty bad scare when it happened. Thankfully, everything is okay. No structural damage or anything too serious to worry about,” he told The Daily Memphian.

Doubts remained elsewhere, however, regarding the team’s rebounding, defense, and especially with Kyle Anderson. Anderson’s length, ball-handling, and IQ portended to him quickly fitting in with the Grizzlies, but he’s struggled to find his groove.

While Anderson didn’t make much headway acclimating himself to the team in this one, the Grizzlies were able to hold their own on the boards, gobbling up 39 to the Suns’ 35. The Grizzlies performed better on defense, as well, with Ayton being the only Phoenix player to score in the 20s, but the Suns’ offensive woes were more indicative of their youth, inexperience, and lack of Devin Booker tonight.

The matchup also featured another marquee rookie matchup between number one overall pick DeAndre Ayton and fourth overall pick Jaren Jackson. With Saturday night’s game, Jackson has faced off against every top-5 draft pick except Luka Doncic.

The Grizzlies built up a sizeable lead in the first half, creating a 25-point cushion behind 61 percent shooting, including 7-13 from deep.  The high shooting percentage may speak more towards the Suns’ defense than the Grizzlies offense. The Grizzlies are currently rated last in the league in offense, and it shows. The offense frequently falls stagnant, and fails to generate good or easy looks for anyone.

Grizzlies Bounce Back, Defeating Suns 117-96

Ayton, the lauded #1 overall pick for the Phoenix Suns, didn’t impose himself at all in the first quarter. He routinely passed out of the paint despite having the physical advantage against his defender, and finished with 2 points on just one shot.
Larry Kuzniewski

Ayton turned that around, however, in the second quarter, going 6-6 and scoring 6 straight on Jaren Jackson when Gasol sat. He would finish the game with 25 points on 12-13(!) shooting, 8 rebounds, and 5 assists.

One thing that stood out in the first half was the Grizzlies’ offense not immediately going down in flames when Conley exited the game for rest. Shelvin Mack buoyed the team nicely and dished 4 assists as backup point guard, and Wayne Selden chipped in 10 points and 2 two assists.

Gasol, Conley, and Selden all finished the half in double digits, with five other Grizzlies scoring at least 5 points. Ayton was the only Suns player to finish the first half in double-digits with 14 points, with only 3 players notching at least 5 points.

Anderson continued to struggle finding his groove with the team. After starting, he got the hook with 7:46 remaining in the first quarter after missing a couple bunny shots near the rim, and going 0-3. He finished the half with 0 points on those three shots.

The Grizzlies maintained their advantage in the second half, keeping a healthy points margin over the Suns. Their solid lead late into the game allowed Yuta Watanabe to check in, and become the second Japanese player to play in the NBA in league history. Japanese NBA Twitter definitely paid attention to the moment. My two most viral tweets, by an enormous margin, were crappy handheld phone videos of Yuta dunking in the warmup line, and spinning to the hoop, missing, but drawing the foul. Virtually all of the RTs and favs were from Japanese basketball fans.

Grizzlies Bounce Back, Defeating Suns 117-96 (2)

Grizzlies Bounce Back, Defeating Suns 117-96 (3)

Jaren Jackson had a rough game defensively. He wasn’t able to deter Ayton, got into foul trouble early, and earned the first technical of his NBA career after receiving his 5th personal foul. It’s funny that his offense has come along more quickly than his defense.

Grizzlies Bounce Back, Defeating Suns 117-96 (4)

Garrett Temple has absolutely locked down the starting shooting guard spot. His defense has been crucial, his ball handling on point, and he finished the game with 15 points on 4-6 shooting. It appears to be for the best, as Dillon Brooks gets to come off the bench with more freedom to impose his will as a dynamic playmaker. Brooks actually ended up playing about four more minutes than Temple, but that’s partially indicative of the Grizzlies comfortable lead for most of the game.
Larry Kuzniewski

The Grizzlies bench contributed nicely in this win. Wayne Selden continued to impress. He finished with 16 points on 6-8 shooting, and provided a nice punch at the two spot. Marshon Brooks played his role perfectly as instant offense off the bench, pouring in 18 points in 19 minutes. Larry Kuzniewski

Gasol didn’t look limited in his return to action. He finished with 19 points on 8-16 shooting, and hit 3-6 from deep (including a Steph-range near buzzer-beater to end the first half). Larry Kuzniewski

Mike Conley had a solid game without having to soak up super-heavy minutes. He scored 11 points and tallied 7 assists in 28 minutes. Usually when Conley leaves the game to rest, the Grizzlies offense goes down in flames. Garrett Temple and especially Shelvin Mack were able to buoy the offense when Conley exited, and to not immediately enter a tailspin without Conley is a new development.

When I asked Conley what it’s meant to be able to go to the bench and the offense stay afloat, he said Mack, Temple, and Anderson have been huge. “[It] allows me to keep fresh legs longer.” He also noted that their play will allow him to regain his conditioning with each game as he returns to pre-injury form. J.B. Bickerstaff understood the importance of being cautious with how much the Grizzlies lean on Conley, saying “I feel bad because there’s been times where it feels like we’re wearing him down, so we’ve got to do a better job of giving him some breaks.”

The Grizzlies are now 3-2 on the season, and return to action on Tuesday when they take on the Washington Wizards at FedExForum.

Epilogue: the Grizzlies blared Kid Rock’s Bawitdaba to pump up the crowd late in the fourth, and I’ve never seen less of a reaction. Let us pray that this trash song gets retired and forgotten sooner rather than later.

Categories
Beyond the Arc Sports

Grizzlies Maul Hawks 131 – 117

CREDIT: Larry Kuzniewski

Larry Kuzniewski

Everybody poops. Just ask my 8-month-old daughter. Or the Grizzlies when they shat the bed in a 111-83 loss at the Pacers to start the season. It’s a part of life. Poop is smelly and gross, but it can also be funny and heartwarming. Need proof?

Grizzlies Maul Hawks 131 – 117

As far as Grizzlies gamebreak entertainment goes, this one is immediately in my top ten. The premise is perfect for Conley and Gasol, both fathers with young children. The video says so much about them, even though the two men barely utter a word. You see them as humans and fathers. You see their personalities. You see how they’re able to have a conversation without words.

Conley and Gasol scored 11 and 13 points, respectively, with heavy minutes in the season-opening blowout loss against the Indianapolis Pacers. The Grizzlies’ overall team offense looked flat and dysfunctional. Nobody could break down the Pacers’ defense. Grizzlies fans were quick to hit the panic button on Twitter, with some calling Gasol washed up.

That foul mood changed Friday night, when Conley and Gasol revived their high-level two-man play, proving they can still be the engine of a successful team. Conley sped all over the court, breaking down defenders off the dribble, swishing two threes, and setting up his teammates with 11 assists. Gasol didn’t appear to be limited by the back spasms he experienced earlier that morning, running the floor normally and whipping crisp passes to his teammates to the tune of 5 assists.
Larry Kuzniewski

Although they didn’t lead the way in scoring, Conley and Gasol’s two-man game set the table for the rest of the team. The Grizzlies would hope to see this pattern repeated throughout the regular season, as Conley and Gasol are aging veterans with lots of mileage, and they should conserve their energy and health as much as they’re able before the Grizzlies are (hopefully) wrestling for playoff seeding.
Larry Kuzniewski


In his first regular season game with the Grizzlies at FedExForum, Garrett Temple quickly caught fire, and that blaze raged for the rest of the night. He lit up the Grindhouse with 30 points on 10-11 shooting, and was nearly flawless from deep, hitting 5-6. He also defended and handled the ball well.

Grizzlies Maul Hawks 131 – 117 (2)

Was he 100 percent happy with his performance? In the locker room after the game, Temple said “I was actually real upset at myself for giving up that three to Taurean Prince — the first three he got.” When asked about Temple in his postgame presser, Coach J.B. Bickerstaff was quick to laud his defense, saying that there will be some nights where Temple won’t hit as many shots, but he’ll lock down the opponent’s best player.

Grizzlies Maul Hawks 131 – 117 (3)


Larry Kuzniewski

How did the Grizzlies’ top draft pick do in his first home game of his first NBA season? Let’s just say he’s doing a pretty good job at endearing himself to the fanbase.

Grizzlies Maul Hawks 131 – 117 (4)

Triple-J poured in 24 points off the bench, shooting 8-12 and going 2-4 from deep. His length and quickness transformed the defense. His shooting and defensive impact come as no surprise. What does surprise me, however, is how good he looks in the post and attacking the paint. Consistently, he was able to use his size, strength, and athleticism to work his way into the paint and finished over defenders like 7’1″ Alex Len. His touch around the rim has been impressive.

Grizzlies Maul Hawks 131 – 117 (5)

Grizzlies Maul Hawks 131 – 117 (7)

Chandler Parsons got the start over Kyle Anderson, but played fewer minutes than Anderson. Parsons shot 3-6 from deep and contributed 11 points in the game. One sequence stood out to me in particular: Conley beep-beeped through the defense and jumped beneath the rim, and slung a pass to Gasol at the top of the arc. Gasol immediately swung the ball to a wide-open Parsons for a made triple. It was a rare glimpse at the power of what the three highest-paid Grizzlies can do to a defense when they’re healthy and in sync.

I wrote about this in-depth for the Flyer‘s cover story this week, but the Grizzlies basically haven’t seen and don’t know the capabilities of a healthy version of this team. I’m betting that those unknowns play out as unexpected positives. Did you know that the Grizzlies set a franchise record last night by scoring 77 points in the first half?

Larry Kuzniewski

The one down note from the home-opening win was JaMychal Green’s injury. He broke his jaw colliding with a player’s elbow while contesting a fast break dunk attempt. He hit the ground, pounded the court with his hand, hopped up, and ran straight to the locker room. He underwent a “surgical stabilization procedure” this morning.

J.B. Bickerstaff said the injury shows how selfless Green is — that he was the only one contesting a difficult play. And how tough do you have to be to leap up off the floor and jog to the locker room with a broken jaw?

Dillon Brooks saw limited minutes, logging just two in the first half, but got more run in the second. Even though he was (conspicuously, for Grizzlies fans) on the bench for most of the first half, Brooks was highly engaged, celebrating when Shelvin Mack hit a buzzer-beating floater, and jumping up and cheering harder than anyone else when Jackson slammed home a lob.

Andrew Harrison didn’t play at all in the home opener. And unlike Brooks, he seems disengaged, seclusive, and dissatisfied sitting on the bench. I don’t know how much to read into that, though, since their personalities are so different and perhaps that’s just how Harrison is in general. In any case, people forget how good Andrew Harrison was at the end of last season, and he’s by far the best defender among Grizzlies point guards. I hope Memphis manages to work him into the rotation again, because he brings a lot to the table when he’s playing well.

The Grizzlies de-escalated an anxious fanbase on Friday. They’ll look to build some momentum when they take on one of the West’s scariest teams, the Utah Jazz, on Monday on the road.

Burn of the night:

Grizzlies Maul Hawks 131 – 117 (6)

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Cover Feature News

Out of the Blue

CREDIT: Joe Murphy/NBAE

The Memphis Grizzlies will catch you, the NBA — and maybe even themselves — off guard in 2018-19. If the team can stay healthy, Marc Gasol and Mike Conley will enjoy a supporting cast that’s the best fit for their talents they’ve ever had — and one that’s ideal for the pace-and-space era.

You heard it here first: Assuming the Grizzlies avoid the kinds of extraordinary injury issues that plagued the past two seasons, they will make the playoffs. If the Grizzlies are healthy in the playoffs, this season’s iteration of the team will be well-suited to upset any of the NBA’s current elite, so yes … they could win it all.

Joe Murphy/NBAE

Mike Conely and Marc Gasol

Memphis hasn’t seen Marc Gasol and Mike Conley play a meaningful stretch of games since Tony Allen and Zach Randolph’s departure fundamentally reshaped the landscape of the court by adding spacing and broadening lanes to the rim. Conley was playing the best offensive basketball of his career in the season before last year’s injury-wash. Marc Gasol started shooting threes just two seasons ago, and the Grizzlies have not been able to utilize this aspect of his game while paired with Conley at his best for any length of time.  

In his 2017-18 League Pass Watchability rankings, analyst Zach Lowe said, “Gasol and Conley work the most subtly gorgeous two-man game in the league — a bob-and-weave, give-and-go symphony only possible when two genius players compile a half-decade of shared knowledge.” Lowe came to this assessment when Conley and Gasol played on a team that routinely offered the league’s worst spacing. This unparallelled two-man game will fuel many wins if it’s operating on a team that can space the floor, knock down open threes, and widen driving lanes to the rim.

The return of the Conley/Gasol two-man game, and the fate of the “win now” Grizzlies, mainly rests in Conley’s hands. His value can’t be overstated for Memphis: He’s an elite NBA point guard who can carry the team with his scoring and facilitate the offense as a floor general. The Grizzlies have no replacement for what Conley brings to the team, and they will not contend if he can’t play or if he’s seriously limited. Speaking of which, there’s a frightening stat that shows guards under a certain height experience a tremendous statistical drop off after a certain age, and Conley is a candidate to fit that pattern.

On his fantastic Patreon page, writer Matt Hrdlicka calculated a list of guards 6’3″ or under, age 29 or older, who were as good as Conley was in 2016-17. The list is only five people long, including Conley, and features Chris Paul, 2016-17 Kyle Lowry, and Chauncey Billups and Steve Nash. The majority of smaller guards not on this list experienced drop-offs in explosiveness and quickness, two things Conley will need in order to get to the rim, set up his teammates, and play at a level where it’s still reasonable for the Grizzlies to win.

Conley’s time in the league and the energy he’s had to expend for the Grizzlies to win stands out on Hrdlicka’s list, so the odds — and time — wouldn’t appear to be on Conley’s side. Which is to say, it may be now or never for these Grizzlies. The hope is that a healthier team, and new ball-handling and play-making personnel, will alleviate Conley’s burden and prolong his ability to play in the league. Speaking of new guys …

Joe Murphy/NBAE

Kyle Anderson

Kyle Anderson may end up being the biggest Grizzlies non-draft acquisition since Zach Randolph. Like Randolph, he’s contractually locked in to spend his prime years with Memphis. Anderson likely won’t have the same cultural impact as ZBo — nor the potent, ride-that-horse type of scoring, but he will be able to defend multiple positions against the best teams in the NBA, take over some ball-handling and facilitation responsibilities, and stick around for a while.

Anderson probably won’t be awarded accolades like Tony Allen got as the league’s best one-on-one defender, but he will be a better and more versatile overall team defender. It’s a role that’s better suited for combatting the pace-and-space Curry-Thompson-Durants and CP3-Harden team-ball that now dominates the league instead.

Plus, unlike Allen, who was often a liability on offense, Anderson can keep the offense running. Also, with Anderson potentially in the starting lineup, Conley won’t have to hit the gas as often, and can play off the ball. I can’t wait to see how Anderson looks in an expanded role.

Joe Murphy/NBAE

Chandler Parsons

Another development this season that may take many by surprise is Chandler Parsons. Ever since the ill-considered #Chancun Instagram, we’ve grown accustomed to Parsons maintaining a relatively clean PR presence. He’s now sharing Instagram videos of innovative workouts and gym shootarounds. But he kicked things up a notch this year by writing a “letter to Memphis” in the Players’ Tribune. Chandler basically tried to bury the hatchet with frustrated Grizzlies fans and detailed the impressive efforts he’s made to rehab his body. He says he woke up early and spent most of his days rehabbing and fortifying his body with a litany of exercises. He flew to Germany so doctors could inject his knees with enormous needles, using the same treatment that revived Eric Gordon’s career. Parsons certainly makes the case that this year will be different, and if training camp and preseason have been any indication, he might be telling the truth. He’s running the court well, knocking down threes, and even played both nights in a pre-season back-to-back.

Parsons wants to prove that he still has it, and he appears to be on track to becoming a reliable wing that can provide scoring and playmaking off the bench. If his health and ability return to near what the Grizzlies signed him to be, the Grizzlies could start either Parsons or Anderson, depending on the defense and shooting necessitated by the opponent. So, Kyle Anderson may be the biggest acquisition since Zbo … unless it’s year-three Chandler Parsons pulling an Eric Gordon. If that’s the case, look for Conley and Gasol’s efficiency and production to spike in ways not unlike the success seen by other stars around the league who are teaming up in threes and fours.

The Grizzlies also appear to be on the verge of starting their best shooting guard since Courtney Lee. Garrett Temple, the likely starter, is a reliable veteran and a classic 3-and-D player. He will also help the Grizzlies reclaim their strong defensive identity.

Don’t sleep on Wayne Selden, though. He’s another player that could catch people off guard this season. Analysts pinned him for a potential big breakout season at the beginning of last year, but he was sidelined due to the same quad-injury that plagued Kawhi Leonard. Selden’s sample size from when he was healthy with the Grizzlies is tiny, but he shot very well from three and packed a lot of athleticism and rim-attacking ability into the two spot. It’s another small sample size, but Selden thrived when he was given the opportunity in a preseason game against the Pacers, scoring 16 points and dishing nine assists in 27 minutes of play. Selden could provide more of a scoring punch in the starting lineup, or serve as a backup point guard behind Conley.

Having options for backup point guard is another overlooked development that will make this team more successful than most have predicted this season. The Marc & Mike Grizzlies have frequently suffered from not having a backup primary ball-handler that can facilitate the offense. By adding a veteran backup point guard like Shelvin Mack, and ball-handlers like Kyle Anderson, Conley won’t have to shoulder the floor general burden alone.

JaMychal Green is another player who could surprise people with his effort and production this season. It’ll be a contract year for the power forward, and he should see better looks more often from deep with the makeup and health of this year’s roster. Green’s steady ability to defend the four and space the floor gives rookie Jaren Jackson Jr. plenty of time to adapt to the NBA, which is nice, because overextended young big men tend to get injured.

Joe Murphy/NBAE

Jaren Jackson Jr.

Speaking of Jaren Jackson Jr., I think it’s possible he may go down as the best player to ever wear a Grizzlies uniform. His youth, size, quickness, ability to guard the perimeter, block rate, 3-point percentage, and FT percentage made Jackson’s ceiling — and unicorn potential — stand out in the recent draft class. The Commercial Appeal‘s Peter Edmiston, one of my favorite number-crunching analysts covering the Grizzlies, had Luka Doncic and Jaren Jackson Jr. on a tier far above everyone else, and I think he’ll end up being right in his assessment.

Jackson can defend the perimeter, protect the rim, space the floor, hit threes, and sink free throws. Many big men aren’t able to remain on the court late in games due to poor free throw shooting and difficulty guarding the perimeter. Jackson will have no such issues. But Grizzlies fans will need to be patient with Jackson, as foul problems should be expected for a 19-year-old rookie big man. If Jackson had one serious knock on his NBA potential going into the draft, it was his ability to score in the paint and the post, but that aspect of his game has steadily improved with each game he’s played. Don’t forget to thank the tanking gods for Triple-J.

One of the most difficult reads an NBA team’s front office and head coach have to make is whether their team should try to win now or rebuild for the future. How much of your future are you willing to compromise to try to win at this moment? Should the rotation lean on its stars and veterans if mid-level playoff success is not a forgone conclusion? How do you walk the line between winning games and developing players further down the bench so your team becomes deeper and ultimately better equipped to compete in the playoffs?

The call was easy to make last season. With Conley going down early, Parsons not healthy for most of the season, and Gasol being the only star besides Tyreke Evans on a team with no consistency or identity, it was clear that the season was a wash.

To anti-tankers: I say Jaren Jackson Jr. is better than losing in the first round of the playoffs and getting some broke-ass project like Michael Porter Jr.

Injuries have kept the Grizzlies from finding and refining their next identity. Memphis has been wandering in the wilderness, to an extent, ever since Grit ‘n Grind reached the true end of its road in a four-game sweep by the Spurs in the 2013 Western Conference Finals.

The Grizzlies finally moved on from that anachronistic blueprint in 2017, when they shipped off ZBo and TA, but the team had barely scratched the surface of its new identity last year (beating the Warriors and Rockets in the first couple weeks of the season) before Conley went down.

The Grizzlies were lauded for having some of the best locker-room chemistry in the league before falling on hard times. And in that nadir season, what was the worst thing that happened? Marc Gasol got fussy? That pales in comparison to the days of punching teammates in the face over gambling debts while on the team plane, or the well-documented feuds that have plagued other teams in the league. Another bonus from last year’s disastrous tank-a-thon season was Dillon Brooks, who grew into a solid rotation player and gives the team yet another weapon.

The Grizzlies have a mature locker room that isn’t driven by ego, and additions such as Garrett Temple and Anderson can only fortify the status quo. The Grizzlies team chemistry up and down the roster should prove to be an advantage as new players gel and find their roles.

On the Grizzlies’ Media Day, Conley said he and Gasol had signed their recent contracts with the intention of retiring as Grizzlies. When pressed about his plans in the year before his player option, Gasol was less forthcoming, saying that it was hard for him to make guarantees when he didn’t know what the future would look like.

It would’ve been nice if he’d given a more comforting response, but I think Gasol appreciates better than most how much the unknown governs the game — and players’ careers. The Grizzlies could get bitten by the injury bug again, and Gasol might find himself wanting to join another team to contend for a title while he still has gas left in the tank.

In a worst-case scenario, this could be Conley and Gasol’s last season playing together in Memphis. But it could also be a beginning that brings a return of high-level playoff action to FedExForum. I think most of the litany of unknowns going into the season will reveal themselves as unexpected positives. And I believe that you should be more excited for NBA basketball in Memphis than ever before.

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From My Seat Sports

2018-19 Memphis Grizzlies: 5 Predictions

CREDIT: Larry Kuzniewski

Here’s a prediction for the most predictable league in American sports, and you can consider this guaranteed: The Golden State Warriors will not face LeBron James in the 2019 NBA Finals. (See if Vegas will give you odds.) With King James now a member of the Los Angeles Lakers, he will have to beat the mighty Warriors in the Western Conference playoffs merely to reach his ninth straight Finals. Is James enough to transform a 35-47 team — a franchise that hasn’t reached the postseason since 2013 — into a title contender? Let’s put it this way: James is the only player who might perform such, ahem, magic in L.A.

As the Grizzlies prepare to tip off their 18th season in Memphis (Wednesday night at Indiana), here are five more predictions as 29 NBA teams try to prevent a third-straight Bay Area championship parade.

Mike Conley will make things right for Memphis.
What exactly right means remains to be determined. But Conley’s absence last season significantly compounded the departures of Zach Randolph and Tony Allen. Limited to 12 games by an injury to his left foot that required surgery, Conley watched with the rest of us as Tyreke Evans, JaMychal Green, and longtime running mate Marc Gasol did what they could to make a 22-win season feel competitive. But when a rookie finishes second on your team in minutes played (as Dillon Brooks did last season), playoff basketball is rarely in the conversation. Considering his size, Conley has been remarkably durable over his NBA career, last season being the first of 11 in which he played fewer than 50 games. He turned 31 last week and is now in the third year of that mega-deal he signed in 2016 paying him $30 million annually. Conley won’t play 82 games, but he’ll play more than 50. It’ll be enough to feel like “our Griz” are back.

Jaren Jackson will be more popular than Chandler Parsons.
I like the idea of an athletic four — we once called them “power forwards” — running the floor with Conley, helping Gasol on the defensive end, and flushing offensive rebounds. Memphis chose Jackson with the fourth pick in June’s draft for these purposes. Can he become the kind of player who sells tickets, a team “personality” we tend to crave in the Bluff City? Let’s give the kid some time. (He’s 19 years old, three years younger than Memphis Tiger point guard Jeremiah Martin.) But he’ll lap the veteran Parsons in popularity by Christmas while earning a fourth of the salary.


Kyle Anderson and Garrett Temple won’t overwhelm anyone. But they won’t underwhelm, either.
Anderson started 67 games for the San Antonio Spurs last season. Consider me sold on those credentials alone. Temple averaged 8.4 points and 2.3 rebounds as a part-time starter for Sacramento last season. He’s starting his 10th NBA season but has reached the playoffs only three times (with the Spurs and Washington Wizards). These are rotation players for the Grizzlies, “glue guys” in college terms. They won’t move the needle when it comes to highlight clips, but they’re the kind of players who tend to deliver what’s expected. And that’s needed at FedExForum.
Larry Kuzniewski

Marc Gasol


Marc Gasol will finish the season atop the Grizzlies’ leaderboard in games played, points, and rebounds.
With images of a pudgy Gasol learning the game at Lausanne, Big Spain’s 11th NBA season has me dodging AARP flyers. He’s already the Grizzlies’ career leader in scoring (10,850 points), trails Conley by just two games (716), and needs 126 rebounds to pass Zach Randolph atop the rebounding chart. He’s become an active franchise icon, something very few NBA teams can claim. Like Conley, he stuck around when other franchises may have offered clearer paths to a championship. He’ll be here at least one more season and will be central to any playoff aspirations in the Memphis locker room.

The Grizzlies will be among the NBA’s most improved teams, but will still miss the playoffs.
The Western Conference was stacked before the century’s best player immigrated from the East. And James joined a Laker team that didn’t qualify for last year’s playoffs. That’s at least nine teams competing for eight spots before Memphis enters the conversation. Let’s say the Grizzlies improve by 15 games (not ridiculous considering the absence of Conley a year ago and his return this season). Those 37 wins would have been 10 games short of a playoff berth last season. There are simply too many teams the Grizzlies must catch and pass to rejoin the Western Conference elite. If the Griz improved by 20 wins, where would 42-40 leave them? Lots to hope for in the season ahead — starting with a ban on four-letter words that start with “t” and end with “k” — but within the sobering context of a heavy Western Conference that got heavier over the summer.

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Beyond the Arc Sports

Watanabe, Conley, Gasol, Jackson Speak Out at Grizzlies Media Day

Memphis inched closer to the return of Grizzlies basketball with media day on Monday. There were a couple of themes that ran throughout, including youth meshing with veteran leadership in the locker room, and the international media’s infatuation with Japanese basketball star and two-way signee Yuta Watanabe. Here are some major takeaways (both basketball-related and not) from some key players.

Dillon Brooks seemed relaxed and focused. He cracked a couple good jokes while saying everything you’d want to hear from a dynamic young guard looking to take the next step as a player.

Watanabe, Conley, Gasol, Jackson Speak Out at Grizzlies Media Day (4)

Asked about Marc and Mike getting older, Dillon Brooks said the Grizzlies have a lot of youth. “It’s like when grandma and grandpa get a new grandbaby: it gives them new life.” Despite literally calling them grandparents, Brooks expressed gratitude for Conley and Gasol. From Gasol getting drafted by the Lakers and traded to Memphis, and how he’s changed his bod, to Mike Conley getting drafted 4th overall and experiencing a slow start to his career (where often he’d only play in home games), Dillon said they’ve been like mentors, sharing the wisdom they’ve gained from their adversities.

Jaren Jackson Jr. opened his inaugural media day appearance by saying he’s excited for the new Young Thug album, and that casual ebullience characterized much of his interview and presence. When asked about his first post-contract luxury purchase, Jaren answered without hesitation: “Scorpion,” by Drake. He followed that up by saying he’s actually going to take it easy on luxury purchases.
Matt Preston

One thing that frequently bothers me in the NBA world is the lack of representation for Memphis in the league’s TV promos, League Pass commercials, etc. I know Memphis is a small market, but the Grizzlies just drafted a theoretical unicorn with the fourth pick, and he had an amazing Summer League outing. So why is Jaren Jackson conspicuously absent from promos that tease the incoming rookie class? When I asked Jaren about this, he was at a loss for words, and said he doesn’t pay much attention to sports on TV, lauding Netflix instead.

Watanabe, Conley, Gasol, Jackson Speak Out at Grizzlies Media Day (3)

I asked Jackson what he’s currently into on Netflix, and that kick started a lengthy aside about Ozark, and trying to remember a particular episode with another reporter. In some small way, I feel partly responsible for 40 percent of JJJ’s appearance being Ozark-related, but it was a fun glimpse into Jackson’s easygoing and easy-to-talk-to personality. But don’t let Jackson’s amiable spirit mislead you.

Leading up to training camp, Jackson says he’s focused on conditioning, improving his shot, and being aggressive and explosive. While he amicably interrupted a couple other player interviews to bust chops or crack a joke, you get the sense that he’s an open, positive, and constructive communicator, and the Grizzlies hope to see that translate into being a vocal leader and defender on the court. For what it’s worth, Conley said Jackson’s already a pretty good leader in his appearance. Speaking of…

Matt Preston

Conley appeared to be in good spirits, and there’s plenty of positive buzz about his health. Responding to questions about the Grizzlies’ dismal year last season, Conley said “last year was an anomaly,” remarking on the all the consecutive playoff appearances in years prior. Conley also talked about helping younger players in the locker room, giving them advice on staying out of trouble, and the importance of nutrition and adequate sleep

Gasol spent a decent amount of his time fielding questions about saving lives and helping refugees stranded in the Mediterranean Sea. He said his love for his young daughter motivated him to get involved with helping refugee children in the off-season, and truly seems to have experienced something that was bigger than basketball and bigger than himself. Gasol said he wants to sit down with someone in the media and have a longer conversation about the issue.
Matt Preston

Gasol also mentioned he’s heard the criticism that he’s too harsh on his teammates when they make mistakes, and plans to adjust his leadership to be more supportive in that regard. Just don’t ask him to be even slightly okay with lapses on defense.

Matt Preston

Kyle Anderson said he’s ready to take on more pressure and responsibility in Memphis, and showed the old grit-n-grind Grizzlies a lot of love and respect (having played against Memphis as a San Antonio Spur). He believes that playing with Pau taught him how to move off the ball, and prepared him to play with Marc. Maybe they’ll have quick chemistry?

Matt Preston

On an unsurprising note, Garrett Temple confirmed that he found out about his move to Memphis from NBA writer Adrian Wojnarowski, with his agent calling to confirm minutes afterward. Temple said he’s excited to join a team that wants to win now, and expects the Grizzlies to make the playoffs. Temple came across every bit the well-composed veteran, which is interesting, because his locker borders Jackson’s. “Most of the time he’s smiling and laughing and telling us about rappers he likes,” Temple said of Jackson.

Matt Preston

Monday was JB Bickerstaff’s first Grizzlies media day as head coach, and he was dialed-in heading into his first training camp. He pushed back harder than anyone at notions of Gasol and Conley beginning their decline. It’ll be interesting to see how this team looks out of the gate and into the mid-season, especially if the Grizzlies manage to avoid the Injury Vortex.

Watanabe, Conley, Gasol, Jackson Speak Out at Grizzlies Media Day (2)

And finally, the one, the only, Yuta Watanabe. His presence was felt long before he even entered the room. It felt like half the media present at media day were reporters from Japan, solely there because of the 6’9″ international sensation. His name bled into almost every player interview, as the international reporters asked everyone on the team about their thoughts on Watanabe.
Watanabe went out of his way to thank his family and friends for their support. One of his favorite players to watch growing up was Shaq, he said, and while he hasn’t had any BBQ in Memphis, he has been to Sekisui.

Watanabe, Conley, Gasol, Jackson Speak Out at Grizzlies Media Day

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Cover Feature News

The Way Forward: Grizzlies Start a New Era

CREDIT: Joe Murphy (NBAE/Getty Images)

Nostalgia is a subtle nihilism. It denies the possibility that anything will ever be better than it was in the past and robs us of the ability to see what’s in front of us because we’re always comparing what is with what we remember.

This season, there’s no way for the Memphis Grizzlies to avoid that trap.

With Zach Randolph and Tony Allen gone and suiting up for other teams, you can’t deny that an era has ended and a new one has begun. The “Core Four” era has been, without question, the most successful in the history of the franchise — and the period in which the team’s fanbase finally blossomed into something bigger than a bunch of die-hards hoping the next Three Year Plan will finally be the one that works. The things that happened between the 2010-11 and 2016-17 seasons will not soon be forgotten.

The catch, of course, is that all eras end. Players age out of their primes, injuries derail plans, wild swings of fate move the ground out from under even the best-laid foundations. It was inevitable that eventually the most successful group of players in the team’s history would no longer be together in Beale Street Blue and that there’d be a season in which the Grizzlies first had to face that reality and build something for the future.

This is that season.

The Core Four is gone, and the Grizzlies — still helmed by Mike Conley and Marc Gasol and in the second year of head coach David Fizdale’s tenure — have to figure out what to do next. But regardless of what happens, will it hold up when compared to the glory days that just passed? Will the Grizzlies be able to succeed or fail on their own terms this season, or will they be judged harshly when they fall short of fan expectations because they can’t replicate the glory of the Grit & Grind Days? That’s the question that will be answered over the next 82 games. What will the 2017-18 Grizzlies be, and will that be enough?

Joe Murphy (NBAE/Getty Images)

Chandler Parsons

The Chandler Parsons Project

As the Grizzlies look to reinvent themselves around Conley and Gasol, all eyes will be on the Grizzlies’ big $94M free agent signing from last summer, forward Chandler Parsons. After trying to rush back from a knee injury and then failing to ever reach playing shape, to say Parsons’ 2016-17 was a disappointment would be like saying the Titanic didn’t have a great maiden voyage. The hope is that this year, he’ll be able to contribute in some sort of meaningful way. That way didn’t make itself apparent during the preseason, and given how much Fizdale has talked about using Parsons as a power forward, it seems like his role this season (at least at first) will be coming off the bench to play that position in smaller, two-point-guard lineups.

Obviously, no one thinks that paying $23M per year to the eighth man in the rotation is a successful outcome for Parsons, but at this point, the money is spent, so as long as he can contribute, he’ll play. But Fizdale has made clear that one thing won’t happen: the mandated 20 minutes of playing time while Parsons tried to rehab last season, which frustrated everyone and accomplished nothing.

Parsons was signed to be a playmaker, a scorer with the starting unit that the Grizzlies never had in the Core Four days (apologies to late-period Tayshaun Prince and to the Platonic ideal of whatever people see in Jeff Green). It’s clear heading into this season that the 2015 Chandler Parsons is never, ever coming back, so now the challenge is to figure out a way to get something out of him. If he can play above replacement level, I’ll call it a “win” (and break out the Wild Turkey when it’s time to look at the salary cap numbers). But he won’t be the player they signed him to be — not this year, not ever again.

Joe Murphy (NBAE/Getty Images)

Tyreke Evans

On a Wing and a Prayer

Don’t let the Parsons debacle cause you to give up hope, though, because there is something positive brewing in the wing positions: a depth that the Grizzlies have not had in recent years. The offseason additions of Tyreke Evans and Ben McLemore helped to shore up a rotation already starting to come into its own with James Ennis’ decent season (I won’t call it a “breakout,” really, but it was solid) and the emergence of Wayne Selden as a potential starter during last season’s ill-fated San Antonio playoff series. McLemore won’t be ready to play for a while yet — he broke his foot this summer in a pickup game, just part of the Grizzlies’ ongoing multi-season injury curse — and I wasn’t very excited about his addition on its own, but coupled with Evans, it’s a notable upgrade from the days of Tayshaun Prince and Austin Daye (or even Jeff Green and Matt Barnes, or the 2015 “can’t run” version of Vince Carter). Add the near-miraculous return of Mario Chalmers to the mix as another point guard, and you have a team poised to play smaller and faster with much greater skill at the positions needed to do so.

The operating premise here is that even though none of these guys is particularly a star on his own — Evans is probably the closest thing, but he’s been too inconsistent and injury-prone to ever earn the title — together, as a unit, they’re better top-to-bottom than anything the Grizzlies have been able to put on the court in a while. Since Parsons isn’t going to be the small forward of the Grizzlies’ dreams, Plan B will have to become Plan A. It’s a small victory, then, that there are so many decent-to-good role players ready to step in. For a team that has been so hard up for offensive production the last few seasons, the sudden presence of several versatile (if imperfect) players on the perimeter will feel like a sudden breath of fresh air, even considering the big piece (that is, Parsons) that will forever be missing.

Joe Murphy (NBAE/Getty Images)

JaMychal Green

The Young and The Restless

On Monday, the Grizzlies cut their roster down to the 15 required for opening night, saying farewell to 2016 first-round pick Wade Baldwin IV and Serbian forward Rade Zagorac. Baldwin is a high-upside player who doesn’t seem to be developing toward that upside, and Zagorac was a young Euro player who didn’t seem to be able to make the leap to the faster, more athletic NBA game. But even though the ranks have thinned, the Grizzlies will still be relying on young guys to step up and produce.

Some of these (Andrew Harrison and Wayne Selden, especially) stepped up last year. Others (thinking specifically of Dillon Brooks, who has looked very good in Summer League and in preseason action) are still mostly unknown quantities. But regardless, if the Grizzlies are going to be any good this year, it will take a burgeoning of player development the likes of which we haven’t seen since the days when O.J. Mayo was scoring 30 points a night for Marc Iavaroni.

What the Grizzlies are doing, really, is rebuilding in place around Mike Conley and Marc Gasol. The plan was to have a Big Three that included Parsons, but that plan’s no longer workable. That means the process of retooling is more important, because the young players have to be able to contribute more than was previously expected but also need to be able to do so on a much shorter timetable. It’s not the position the Grizzlies thought they’d be in when they signed Conley and Gasol to 5-year max deals, but they’re determined to make the most of it while they can.

Joe Murphy (NBAE/Getty Images)

(left to right) J.B. Bickerstaff, Dave Fizdale, Keith Smart

The West

It’s worth considering what the best-case scenario would be for this season’s team before talking about what’s the most likely outcome.

The top tiers of the Western Conference continue to become cartoonishly overpowered. Houston added Chris Paul over the summer. The Oklahoma City Thunder added Paul George and Carmelo Anthony to supplement Russell Westbrook. The Warriors will be the same as they were last year. The Spurs will continue to ride Kawhi Leonard’s dominance.

And while the top teams will all be the same or better, there’s a new crop of younger teams looking to break into the postseason for the first time. Denver will be strong this year. Minnesota added Jimmy Butler to a team that was already brimming with young talent. Both teams look to make the leap this year.

Where does that leave the Grizzlies? They won’t be in the top tier. They probably won’t be in the second tier of teams that could conceivably make it to the NBA Finals if they catch the right breaks or a top team suffers an injury. In this season of transition, they’re looking to make the playoffs and develop what they can with an eye toward maximizing the next two years. That’s not to say this year is a throwaway — just that it’s unreasonable to expect a team with this many question marks (even one that still features Conley and Gasol in their primes) to be much better than a low-end playoff team.

Ultimately, the teams around the Grizzlies have (mostly) gotten better, while the Grizzlies rode the same venerated core for a long time, and now the Grizzlies are reloading while their peers are leveling up. That’s not an indictment of the Grizzlies — it seems unlikely that Carmelo Anthony would have come to Memphis, for example — but it does make the failure of the Parsons signing that much more real. The Grizzlies could’ve had that, too. They tried, and instead they’re scrambling to develop a rotation and a style of play.

Conclusions

So what’s the ceiling for this year’s Grizzlies team? How good can they be, given the challenges in front of them? I think an optimistic projection would put them somewhere around 44 wins, which I figure might be good enough to make the eight playoff spot in the West. They’re in a group of teams (also including the L.A. Clippers, the Portland Trail Blazers, and the Utah Jazz) that could all finish around the same place, teams with a lot of uncertainties yet to be ironed out that look decent on paper.

That’s an optimistic projection. One serious injury to Mike Conley or Marc Gasol and things could get away from them in a hurry. They’re deep, but that depth is unproven. They’re tough, but that tenacity hasn’t been tested the way it will be over the course of the upcoming season. They’re faster, more athletic, and younger, but that doesn’t mean they’ll gel out of the gate.

A pessimistic projection gets dark in a hurry. With two big-name players on what are likely the biggest contracts they’ll ever get, if the Grizzlies think the current configuration isn’t going to work, the smartest thing to do may be to trade them for picks and start over. If things are going poorly, you can expect the rumor mill to be churning out reports about Gasol trades left and right, but ultimately I’m not sure the Grizzlies “have” to make that trade the way national conventional wisdom would suggest. It’s the downside of being in this position, though. If it’s January and the team is significantly below .500 for some reason, you will start hearing these rumors. It’s just the way the NBA works, for one thing, but also, it wouldn’t be the craziest move for the Grizzlies to make.

That said, I honestly don’t expect things to come to that. The Grizzlies have been pronounced dead several times over the last five seasons, and they’ve always found a way to over-perform. They’re due for a year where that doesn’t happen, but until it does, it seems safe to bet on their success, at least “success” on the terms of this season. There’s a way forward for the Grizzlies, and they’re only now starting to discover it in the young talent on the roster. The process of finding the next great Griz core could be a long one, but they’ve got no choice but to start that journey.

It’s tempting to compare this season to the seven before it, the best run of success in the history of the franchise. But to live in that (recent) past is to deny that this season can be a success on its own merits — even if that’s admittedly a smaller scale of success than the fanbase is used to. The Grizzlies will not contend for a title this year, but that’s not the interesting thing about them. What we should watch for is whether they learn what they’re going to be next. If you’re not watching for that, if you’re living in the past, you’ll probably be very disappointed.

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From My Seat Sports

Villainy, Thy Name is Spurs

Once, there was Louisville. When Memphis State basketball (as the program was then known) ruled this city’s landscape, the Louisville Cardinals played the role of arch villain. There was a glorious, 10-year stretch (1982-91) in which the Tigers and Cardinals faced each other in the Metro Conference tournament nine times, after having played twice already in the regular season. It was pure hate. Milt Wagner and the McCray brothers against Doom Haynes and Keith Lee, games that served as prelude to deep NCAA tournament runs for each program.

Alas, Louisville remains a Final Four threat annually, now from the most prestigious neighborhood in college basketball, the Atlantic Coast Conference. To say the Memphis program has taken a different direction would be an exercise in sugarcoating. There is no more Tigers-Cardinals rivalry . . . except for the emotion those distant memories stir.

But we now have the NBA. We have the Memphis Grizzlies, embarking on their seventh playoff run in seven years. And we have the San Antonio Spurs. Arch villains by a few measures. These dastardly ballers even wear black.

Do you find the prolonged success of the NFL’s New England Patriots tiring, oppressive in their Tom Brady-driven dominance for the better part of two decades? Well, the Patriots can best be described as the San Antonio Spurs of football. Since Gregg Popovich’s first full season as head coach (1997-98), the Spurs’ lowest winning percentage for a single season is .610. (They went merely 50-32 in 2009-10.) San Antonio has won five NBA titles over the last 20 years, and has won at least 50 games 18 years in a row (including the lockout-shortened 66-game season of 2011-12).

The Spurs lost one of the 10 or 15 greatest players in NBA history before the 2016-17 season (Tim Duncan), and went 61-21, second only to Golden State in the Western Conference. Turns out Duncan is not actually a cyborg; it’s the franchise itself that is machine-built and operated, programmed for the kind of sustained success 29 other NBA franchises consider fantasy talk. They now have their own Gasol brother, Pau appearing in the postseason with his fourth franchise, though toe-to-toe with his kid brother for the first time.

Over their 16 years in Memphis, the Grizzlies have enjoyed exactly four 50-win seasons. They’ve yet to reach the NBA Finals (thanks to the Spurs, who swept Memphis in the 2013 Western Conference finals). In nine previous appearances in the postseason, the Grizzlies have been bounced by San Antonio three times. These are bad dudes who play very good basketball, commanded by a man who — even with five rings — is known (sometimes celebrated) for abrasive brevity with on-air reporters, and resting his stars when he damn well pleases, TV ratings be damned. Patriot coach Bill Belichick bows to Gregg Popovich in the Temple of Arrogance.

Memphis will always have 2011, of course. Shane Battier’s corner jumper beat the Spurs in San Antonio (Game 1) for the first playoff win in Grizzlies history. The underdog (8th seed) proceeded to eliminate the top-seeded Spurs in six games. (The 18-point beat-down of the Spurs in Game 4 remains the loudest crowd I’ve heard at FedExForum.) Memphis has lost all nine of its playoff games against the Spurs since that upset six years ago, perhaps a sign that a Faustian deal was, in fact, struck somewhere along the San Antonio River Walk before Battier’s 2011 heroics.

Villains are good. At least in sports, where the stakes are merely trophies and endorsement deals. Memphis-Louisville may be a thing of the past. Soon enough, the Grizzlies’ “Core Four” (first names only: Mike, Marc, Tony, and Zach) may be a thing of the past. But for a couple of weeks, we’ll see some real animosity on the hardwood. No need for “Memphis vs. Errrbody” when we have the Memphis Grizzlies vs. the San Antonio Spurs.

• Sportswriters track milestones, including — once in a great while — our own. This is the 700th column to be posted under the “From My Seat” banner on this site. When my first column went up (in February 2002), Stubby Clapp was preparing for his fourth season of back-flipping to second base for the Memphis Redbirds and Mike Conley was in the 8th grade. The column has been a happy distraction — for 15 years now — from my regular chores as managing editor for Memphis magazine. I’ve enjoyed hearing from readers — touched, angry, or in-between — over the years, and remain grateful for the loyal, engaged readership the Flyer has cultivated for the better part of three decades. So thanks for reading. And if you’re new to the dance, get on the floor and join the fun.

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Cover Feature News

Grind’s Last Stand

CREDIT: Photographs by Larry Kuzniewski

This is not the season the Grizzlies thought they’d have, for better or for worse. In their first year under new head coach David Fizdale, and the first with big free-agent signing Chandler Parsons on the roster, it was expected that they’d have some bumps in the road. A transition to a new era and style of Grizzlies basketball was going to take time, and patience.

Instead, Parsons never really played a meaningful minute, forcing the Grizzlies back into the mode in which they’ve operated since 2010–11, when the “Core Four” of Mike Conley, Marc Gasol, Tony Allen, and Zach Randolph took to the floor for the first time together and beat the top-seeded San Antonio Spurs in six games. There are new wrinkles — Randolph now comes off the bench in place of starter JaMychal Green; Gasol now shoots three-pointers and carries more of the load on offense; Conley, armed with a $150 million max contract, seems to be able to score 30 points at will — but the basics are still there: a reliance on Conley, Randolph, and Gasol for scoring, on Allen and Gasol for defense, and a wing rotation of veterans that’s just barely this side of replacement level. Their continuity is their curse.

In this season of déjà vu, it comes as no surprise that the Grizzlies are now set to face the Spurs in the first round for the second year in a row and for the fourth time in seven postseasons. The Spurs are different now, led by Kawhi Leonard and LaMarcus Aldridge, but they’re still “The Spurs,” a basketball leviathan, and it’s unclear whether they’re set to struggle with the Grizzlies as they did in the regular season (the two teams split the season series) or whether they’re just waiting for the right moment to unleash the same sort of unbeatable game plan they’ve deployed against the Griz in years past.

Photographs by Larry Kuzniewski

Mike Conley

The Good News

There are reasons to believe that things could go the Grizzlies’ way this postseason. For one, for the first time, they’ve prioritized rest and recovery for their most important players. Neither Conley nor Gasol even played in the 2016 series. Conley broke his back earlier in the season, and Gasol recently missed time with a sprained foot, but there’s no lingering, “just gotta play through it” injury as was the case in 2015, and no one is fresh off a long layoff, as was the case in 2014 when Gasol was still very limited by an MCL sprain. This is truly the first year since 2013 that the Grizzlies’ “Big Three” of Conley/Randolph/Gasol are all healthy. (Nevermind Parsons in this equation; for our purposes he might as well not be on the team.)

Marc Gasol

The Grizzlies are a better offensive team this year, when shots are falling. Gasol’s three-point shooting, combined with bigger offensive output from Conley and Vince Carter and newcomer shooter Troy Daniels, mean they’re a little more versatile, even though for the season they’re really no better or worse than any other year of the Grit & Grind era.

The other good news is that it’s not a given that the Spurs have a higher gear to go. They’ve been a bit of a mess this year at times, and Tony Parker has been noticeably hobbled by age for the first time. While Leonard still has the ability to wreak havoc on the Grizzlies on both ends of the floor, the Spurs’ other primary weapon is Aldridge, who Gasol, Randolph, and Green can probably defend well. It’s a better matchup than it appears.

Zach Randolph

The Bad News

None of that means anything if the Grizzlies’ defense, which hasn’t been what it used to be, can’t handle the Spurs’ ball movement. As has been the case since 2011, the Grizzlies are vulnerable to teams that shoot well from outside, and they’ve never ironed out the wrinkles in Fizdale’s new scheme that would let them prevent some of those problems.

Allen, let it be said, has not been the consistent force on defense that he’s been in years past, gambling for steals more often and failing to deny the ball to his man quite as much. That in itself isn’t surprising; Allen’s defensive gifts have always relied on his ability to get through screens and to move laterally at unreal speeds, and, as he ages, there’s no way to avoid the loss of speed over time. But with Gasol not quite as “there” defensively (especially after the All-Star break), Allen’s gambles leave the Grizzlies far more susceptible to the weak-side three-pointer than they should be. And Allen’s still the best perimeter defender on the team. Guys like James Ennis, Carter, and Andrew Harrison just aren’t on that level, and sharpshooter Troy Daniels is such a poor defender that it cost him minutes at points this year.

Jamychal Green

The other bad news is that without Parsons in the mix on offense, the Grizzlies still depend so much on action inside the paint that the Spurs could probably pack the lane with four guys on every possession, especially when Randolph is on the court. Since he bullied Antonio McDyess into retirement in 2011, the Spurs have always had an answer for Randolph, and even in their slightly diminished state — bringing Pau Gasol and David Lee off the bench—I don’t see any real reason to think Randolph has an advantage over the Spurs’ bigs that he didn’t have previously.

Last Stand?

Indeed, that’s what I said. The Grizzlies have a lot of decisions to make this summer, and it’s very possible that next year’s team could be different. For one, with next year’s salary cap projections falling to around $100 million, they don’t have a lot of room to make moves this offseason. Green is a restricted free agent and will almost certainly draw a $10M/year offer sheet from some other team that the Griz will then have the option to match. Randolph and Allen are both free agents this summer. Randolph’s offensive output has been invaluable to the second unit this year — he’s been a strong candidate for Sixth Man of the Year — but Allen’s defense and rebounding have kept the Grizzlies alive at times (though they’ve also been admittedly subpar at others).

The problem with putting things on a credit card is that eventually the bill comes due. The Grizzlies have a crop of young players; they have three guys (Conley, Gasol, and Parsons) on max deals; and they have some veterans whose time may have come (Randolph, Allen, and Carter). With the space they have left, how much sense does it make for them to run it back yet another time? How content are they with being a perennial 6th or 7th seed? At what point does the wave of the last few seasons inevitably crash on the beach?

It could be this summer. The raw truth is that Conley and Gasol will never be more valuable as trade assets. How the Spurs series (and thus the rest of the Grizzlies’ postseason, if there’s going to be a “rest”) goes will probably determine the conversations happening inside the organization this summer. Are they confident that Parsons will recover enough to be a meaningful contributor from opening night next year? Do they think they can shore up the wing rotation and run it back one more year even if he can’t? Those are all questions that will start to be asked whenever the season inevitably ends. If the Grizzlies can stave off that end a little longer, they may be able to defer those payments another year. If they’re handled by the Spurs without offering up much resistance, it may be time to start asking the tough questions now, before time and the relentless improvement of the rest of the Western Conference force the issue.

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From My Seat Sports

Giving Thanks for Sporting Events of 2016

This is my favorite column of the year, a chance for me to fill that mocking space on my screen with the sports-related subjects I’m most grateful to have in my club car on this train called life.

Gratitude. Give it a chance.

• I’m grateful for Year Seven of the Memphis Grizzlies’ “core four.” I wish we could come up with a more distinctive tag for our “fab four”: Mike Conley, Marc Gasol, Tony Allen, and Zach Randolph. They’ve earned that much, sticking together in one of the NBA’s smallest markets in an age when as many as five years with a franchise — for a single player, let alone a quartet — is considered lengthy. For some perspective, the Lakers’ great foursome of the Eighties — Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Magic Johnson, James Worthy, and Michael Cooper — played exactly seven seasons together. More recently in San Antonio, Tim Duncan, Tony Parker, Manu Ginobili, and Bruce Bowen broke up the band after seven years. Four years with one super-teammate (Dwyane Wade) was enough for LeBron James, and they won a pair of titles together. We won’t see another foursome like this at FedExForum.

Tubby Smith

• I’m grateful for Georgia Tech hiring Josh Pastner . . . and Memphis hiring Tubby Smith. Exhale. Last winter was excruciatingly uncomfortable for anyone in proximity to Pastner and the multiplying empty seats on game nights at FEF. And that contract(!) that made it all but impossible for the U of M to dismiss him. Thankfully, these kinds of divorces seem to unfold as they should. A good man is in a happier place. And a good program can aim to be great again under the wise watch of a man aiming to take a sixth program to the NCAA tournament.

• I’m grateful for an early look at Alex Reyes. The big righty appears to be on his way to stardom with the St. Louis Cardinals. It was nice to watch a few Reyes outings at AutoZone Park, the latest Redbirds coming attraction.

• I’m grateful for George Lapides and Phil Cannon and all they gave the Memphis sports community. Like days of the week, a sports community — its teams, its fans, its sponsors, its venues, its media personalities — has a “feel.” George and Phil brought a warmth — and distinct passion — to sports in Memphis. They live on in every one of us who attends a ball game now and then.

• I’m grateful for Mike Norvell’s energy and confidence. He’s the first Memphis Tiger football coach in generations to face an imposing task in filling his predecessor’s shoes. He has graciously saluted Justin Fuente’s achievements in building the program . . . while emphasizing it’s not where he and his staff want it be. Not yet. His prematurely gray hair gives Norvell the appearance of a man beyond his 35 years. So does his attention to detail and single-minded focus in making Memphis a premium program. It’s the hardest sports job in town.

• I’m grateful for my daughters’ continued commitment to team sports. One will play her senior high school softball season as an All-Metro outfielder, while the other played her first varsity soccer season as merely a freshman. They are bright, skilled, beautiful young ladies. And they know well the values that make a good teammate. Such is necessary in the wide world that awaits them.

• I’m grateful to be following in the footsteps — literally, and rapidly — of my 5K-running wife. Her commitment to not just running, but competing, is a healthy rebuke of any middle-age ceiling on athleticism. I’m especially grateful for her waiting for me at the finish line, one race after another.

• I’m grateful for you. And every one of the Flyer readers who give us a platform to share news, views, and analysis of the people and events that make Memphis such an extraordinary town. I appreciate your counterpoints, value your applause, and listen to your criticism. You give my job redeeming value.

Happy Thanksgiving to all.