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Tag Archive - Memphis Grizzlies

HP 2011-12 Season Preview: The Gritty Grizzlies Of Memphis, Where What’s Past Is Prologue

December 23, 2011 in by with 0 Comments

Photo from the_amanda via Flickr

I can see clearly now, the rain is gone. The lockout has lifted, we have a season, can I get an Amen? (Amen.) And in the spirit of renewal, our shiny new cadre of writers is putting together previews for all 30 teams in true HP style. From where teams are going to what their disgrace is to explorations of pop culture, we are about to rock, salute us, can I get an Amen? (Amen.) So sit back, relax, and ponder the awesomeness of this fully operational Hardwood Paroxysm 3.0. -Ed. 

QUO VADIMUS (WHERE ARE WE GOING?)

By Sean Highkin

In the suddenly wide-open Western Conference, the Grizzlies as good a chance as anyone of reaching the Finals. Michael Heisley has finally put his money where his mouth is, paying up big to extend Zach Randolph and re-up Marc Gasol, keeping one of the toughest front lines in the West intact. Rudy Gay, who missed almost half of last season, is back. This team has about three years to capitalize on the situation they’ve put themselves in before the big contracts they’ve handed out turn from necessary expenses to financial albatrosses.

Gay is back, but Darrell Arthur is out for the year with an Achilles injury and Shane Battier left for Miami. Otherwise, though, the team that shocked the top-seeded Spurs in the first round of the 2011 playoffs and came within one game of reaching the Conference Finals is mostly intact. And that may be enough in a conference without a clear favorite. These Grizzlies are the kind of team nobody wants any part of in any series or during any road trip. To use one of Tony Allen’s favorite phrases, they’re a team that grinds. They’ll be physical, they’ll do the dirty work, they’ll find ways to shut you down. The biggest question mark in the rotation currently is O.J. Mayo, who the Grizzlies insist they’re not shopping right now despite almost trading him for Josh McRoberts last week. Off-court struggles and some on-court regression caused him to lose his starting job to Allen last year, and now he must find a way to bounce back amid an uncertain role and persistent trade rumors. The good news for him is that the Grizz’ roster and direction are more set now than they were going into last season, so he’ll get his opportunities to earn back his job.

With Arthur’s injury, the Grizz could stand to add another big man. Former Blazers and Bobcats forward Dante Cunningham signed an offer sheet recently, and by the time you read this he may or may not be officially on this roster. Either way, with Gasol and Randolph locked up and other key rotation players either healthy or poised to improve, this is a team to be scared of.

POPULAR THEORIES IN BASKETBALL-CULTURAL CROSS-REFERENCES

By Danny Chau

Was there life before Tony Allen?

Okay. Dumb question. The Grizzlies were a team on the rise before Allen ever inked his contract two summers ago. They were a game under .500, and the team had a standard framework with standard pieces. They had a big, burly center who was consistent on both ends of the floor. They had an excellent rebounding power forward with strong post play. They had a hyper-athletic archetypal small forward, a gunning shooting guard, and a crafty point guard still learning the position. They had the pieces, but something was missing. They were missing a bit of energy, a bit of imperfection, a bit of crazy.

If there was any criticism for Sam Cooke, it was the saccharine quality of his records. For the father of soul, his records were restrained. He didn’t pull people in with the power of his voice, but in the litheness and vanilla of the songs. But a completely different animal arrived during live performances. And perhaps the greatest gift he left (other than the gift of Soul, of course) after his untimely death in 1964 was his live performance at a club in Miami.

Listen to the first two minutes of the video above. It’s an interlude to “Bring It On Home To Me,” a rendition of one of his earlier hits, “You Send Me,” but only in name. While the original is a quaint, tender song, what he belts out in the interlude is a powerful story of the visceral compulsion.  It’s an unbelievable energy that he creates, a movement that summons not only his inner-most grit, but the audience’s audible adulation. Cooke unleashes his power, but always reins back. It isn’t about losing yourself completely. It’s about finding a balance between order and inspiration and discovering that optimal conditions might not always be right in the middle.

The Grizzlies’ second round series against the Oklahoma City Thunder was their Harlem Square Club performance. It was a nice encapsulation of everything the team was capable of despite adversity and losing the team’s most recognizable star. Now that star is back, but a few other injuries placed at least a touch of doubt in the team’s forecast.

So was “Heart. Grit. Grind.” just a tagline for the Grizzlies’ storybook season last year, or are they ready for it to define their future?

WILL YOU REMEMBER ME, I WILL REMEMBER YOU

By Noam Schiller

Once upon a time, in a land far far away, there lived a young underdog.

The underdog had been ridiculed all its life. It was heckled when they signed Bryant Reeves to a $62 million deal. It was violently dismissed when it amassed a distressing 0-12 record in its first 3 playoff appearances. It was guffawed at when it lost the best player in franchise history for a pack of smokes and a “hope the second rounder we just gave you loses a lot of weight and becomes a top-notch center” Hallmark card.

But the underdog didn’t mind. It enjoyed every second of Shareef Abdur-Rahim, both ends of the Mike Bibby-Jason Williams trade, Pau Gasol with or without the beard. It even loved DeMarre Carroll. Loved him with all its heart. Because it knew, deep down, that one day it will become a contender.

One day, a large-bottomed malcontent came to town. “Look at that underdog”, everybody laughed. “The large-bottomed malcontent couldn’t even make it in New York. Everybody knows that everything is better in New York!” But the underdog loved the large-bottomed malcontent so much. They loved his smooth shooting. They loved his offensive rebounding.  They loved how he couldn’t be stopped in the post, not if he really cared. They loved him so much that he started passing, and he started defending, and the underdog fed him in the post, and he became an all-star.

Then, the underdog signed a crazy free agent. “Look at that underdog!”, everybody howled, “just look at them! Didn’t they watch the crazy free agent in Boston? Didn’t they see him tear an ACL for a garbage time dunk? Don’t they know he can’t even make layups?” But the underdog loved its crazy free agent. They loved his grit, grind and heart so much, that they made t-shirts about him. And the crazy free agent started making layups, and became a Defensive Player of the Year candidate.

Then, the underdog gave a $45 million dollar contract to its left-handed bust. “LOOK AT THAT UNDERDOG!”, everybody bellowed, “look how much money they gave the left-handed bust! Don’t they know that he’s not a good point guard? Can’t they see he’s too small, and he makes too many mistakes on offense, and he can’t score?” But the underdog loved the left-handed bust so much. They loved how fast he was, and they loved how much he cared. And the left-handed bust posted a career high assist rate, and a career low turnover rate, and became a very good basketball player.

The underdog loved all of its players. And the players loved the underdog. And even more importantly, they loved each other. They fought and they hustled and they defended and they got back to the playoffs. And when they faced one of its old bullies, they punked them.

Suddenly, everybody was friends with the underdog. “Hey, underdog!”, they said, “nice job in the playoffs! Can we be friends, now? Can we have your borderline all-star swingman who has come back from injury? Can we have your skilled free agent center? We’re friends, and friends share!”

But the underdog didn’t want to share. It knew the other teams weren’t really friends. They were just scared.. Scared of the unstoppable frontcourt, scared of the defensive intensity, scared of losing to a silly underdog. Scared because the underdog had evolved into a big, beautiful contender.

The big, beautiful contender was about to embark on a journey towards a championship. But just before it went on its way, there was a hint of sadness. The success of a contender is never as fun as the success of an underdog. The contender wasn’t ungrateful – it truly was happy at what it had become. But that 2010-2011 feeling was unlike any other that it will ever feel.

Setting Joey Straight

April 25, 2011 in by with 0 Comments

Last night, as the New Orleans Hornets were trying to even their series with the Los Angeles Lakers, two tweets caught my eye. One came from the progenitor of this very site, Matt Moore (@HPBasketball):

BEST FIRST ROUND EVER!

The Knicks and their fans may disagree with that sentinment, but at least the Knicks put up a fight in the first two games in Boston. Amar’e Stoudemire’s balky back and the C’s typical stingy D made sure the Knicks didn’t get any strange ideas such as making a series of it.
It’s hard to argue with Mr. Moore’s sentiment, especially if you’re an NBA fan. The level of play has been consistently excellent. Combine that with the lack of clear cut favorite (the West’ No. 1 seed is down 2-1 and the No. 2 seed is tied at 2-2 and add to that, the drama of Kobe Bryant’s sprained ankle) and fans can now factor in the element of surprise. Or at least the prospect of it.

Which brings us to the other significant tweet of Sunday night from Sporting News columnist David Steele:

All the people back in March saying how college was better than the NBA went to bed early last night.

His tweet cuts to the heart of what the NBA and the NBA Playoffs truly are: a committment to basketball.

If you could get any light into the deep and dank basement of any blogger, you would see the dark circles under their eyes and the caffeinated beverage containers strewn across the floor. You’ll see 72 tabs open on Chrome, all to NBA sites and blogs. SportsCenter or NBA TV’s replays of “Inside the NBA” run on a constant loop on the flatscreen.

Why? Because compared to the NBA Playoffs, the NCAA tourney is a one-night stand.

After ignoring the college regular season, we as a nation come to the tourney looking to win the pool and not necessarily for the best basketball. You spritz the Binaca to cover the smell of Keystone Light, you mat down the cowlick with saliva and you try to slur your best lines in order to pick a national champion. If your pool drains before the end of the tourney, that’s just the nature of the amateur beast. These are kids, we’re told, after all and anything can happen. That’s what makes it exciting: the surprises.

Or that’s what college basketball defenders (usually playing a not-so-taxing 2-3 zone) want you to think. Even the little guys have a chance to win.

They may have a chance, but they don’t win, especially when you consider the lowest seed ever to win an NCAA title was a No. 8 Villanova team in 1985. A team from the Big East, beating another team, Georgetown, from the Big East. Milan (Ind.) High that ain’t.

Often the NBA Playoffs lack surprises or monumental upsets, but that familiarity may the most interesting thing about the NBA Playoffs. They’re like a relationships in that they ebb and flow, in that they take work and in that, yes, at times it can become a grind.

Yet in the end, we often get the best two teams playing each other for the Larry O’Brien trophy in June. Consider what many consider the NBA’s “Golden Age” in the 1980s. The Celtics and the Lakers met three times while the two teams snapped up 13 of the 20 Finals appearances.

Just look what happens when you get an “upset” in the NBA? You get the Cavs’ getting swept by the Spurs in the 2007 Finals. That was fun only for the Spurs.

Conventional wisdom tells us that experience — both the Spurs and Lakers have it in bunches — and talent — ditto — that the Memphis Grizzlies and New Orleans Hornets will regress to the mean and that hustle and heart can only take a team so far. Because when a talented team recognizes their passion (i.e. “flipping the switch), the less talented team often is all but making tee times. That’s not to say it wouldn’t be wonderful for the Grizzlies or the Hornets to advance to the Western Conference semis.

Thanks to days off between games, weaknesses get exposed and exploited by better teams. The proper preparation of talent will often bear itself out and after two months of playoff basketball, you know you’re getting the two finest teams in The Finals. There’s something comforting and compelling in that you will be witnessing excellence. It may not always be a great series, but you can take solace in the fact these teams have earned the chance to be playing in June.

Even if you don’t or can’t root for the final two teams, at least your mind can reconcile with your heart that, yes, this is the correct conclusion, that, yes, this is the most appropriate place for this journey to end and that, yes, this is the best spot for our passion for and committment to basketball to bloom.

After all, that’s not too much to ask from the thing you love.

The Grizzlies Are Being Dragged Back To The Precipice

April 13, 2010 in by with 0 Comments

First of all Heisley dodges the questions and makes no promises to lock himself into a Zach Randolph extension, despite the fact that Z-Bo is quickly becoming the most popular player in the Memphis Grizzlies short history. This move is clever because Heisley does have options — three 1st round picks in a PF/C heavy draft — that he can use to keep Randolph’s value below the maximum.

So why not run the same bluff with Rudy Gay? Because promising to match the money might actually drive down Rudy’s value — the exact opposite — because of the young scorer’s particular situation. A team, say the Knicks, won’t want to offer Rudy maximum money if it will be matched, because until Memphis responds a week later all that cap space is tied up. By threatening to match, as a bluff or not, Heisley has essentially bought himself time to negotiate with Rudy and the fanbase.

via Zach Randolph Wants an Extension; Michael Heisley Continues to Promise to Re-Sign Rudy Gay – Straight Outta Vancouver.

What do you do with Zach Randolph? I mean, honestly, what do you do with him? Has his play earned this season earned him an extension? It’s incredibly difficult to argue otherwise. A double-double machine, the emotional leader of the squad, the franchise’s first All-Star of this new core, and arguably the best player on the team (I’ll still maintain that’s Marc Gasol), how can you not think he deserves an extension?

But does his past lead to question marks? Absolutely.  He turns 29 this year, which means he’s good for another three seasons at least, but is his worth high enough to swallow the inevitable increase that his extension would take as he gets older?

Then you’ve got the dreaded question of space. And I don’t mean his ass.  The Grizzlies are on the books for only 14.9 million (HT: ShamSports) in 2011-2012, with Marc Gasol a post-CBA RFA. Same for Mike Conley. So they’ll be trying to lock up at least Gasol and potentially Conley if they decide that point guard doesn’t really matter in this league. Randolph’s making $17 million next year. As a 30 year old, what kind of money is he going to want, with a new CBA coming, with the Grizzlies needing to lock up Gasol (and Mayo the year after), and with the team working to re-sign Gay? They’re not going over the luxury tax. And they won’t know what the threshold is until after the CBA. It would be very dangerous to lock Randolph into a large extension without knowing the future of the CBA, and when doing so would threaten your ability to re-sign the players under 27.

SOV makes a brilliant point regarding Gay. Any team that makes a huge swing for Gay will automatically put a lock on their cap space, which limits their competitive flexibility with the unrestricted free agents. Minnesota might not care, since they won’t be targeting any of the major free agents, but the delay Heisley can put on other team’s offers means more time to get a reasonable deal for Gay in place. I’m also encouraged to hear him say Gay is not a franchise player. That’s a vital distinction that has to be considered for both sides before committing money.

The Grizzlies have made such strides in the last 12 months. They have to be very careful not to get dragged back to the edge of oblivion.

GRIZZLIES: Michael Heisley, The Most Dangerous Man With A Mic

March 18, 2010 in by with 0 Comments

Griz owner Michael Heisley told a group of season ticket holders that the team intends to match any offer Gay might receive as a restricted free agent this summer. Heisley spoke before the game at the team’s annual “State of the Franchise” Chalk Talk where season ticket holders could ask questions.

via Griz owner Michael Heisley told a group of season ticket holders that the team intends to match any… – Straight Outta Vancouver.

First, he couldn’t re-sign him because attendance wasn’t good enough. Then he said he would make every effort. Now he’s going to do it no matter what.

So which is it?

I’m about to sympathize with Michael Heisley, so let’s all hold our noses as we plunge into this cesspool.

It’s an impossible situation. If he doesn’t re-sign Gay, no matter how overpaid the offer sheet may be, he’s a cheap owner. But Gay is simply not worth all that much. He’s worth a lot, don’t get me wrong. But he’s worth the most to the Grizzlies as a symbol that they’re willing to spend to compete. Which is something the fanbase, whatever’s left of it, needs.

The attendance in Memphis is bad news bears, pardon the pun. I support small markets. I stick up for small markets. I defend small markets. But the team has been over .500 for the vast majority of the season and was in the playoff hunt as recently as last night when Aaron Brooks hit his 900th three pointer. And yet attendance has been pathetic. Not bad. Pathetic. The Grizzlies have given Memphis every reason to come out and support this team, and instead, the city had basically decided what they thought about the Grizzlies back in October, and have refused to reconsider.

But if they’re going to buy back in, they have to believe this is a franchise committed to winning.  And Heisley’s discussions with the press are not helping matters, even if I can sympathize. The attendance thing? Does not need to be confused with the Rudy issue. If you want to win and think Gay is the way to get there, re-sign him. Don’t try and hold the fans hostage, because that’s not going to work. The people that care if you re-sign Rudy Gay? They’re already coming to the games, decked in blue. Furthermore, as much as it may suck, turning the issue into you being vilified, even if true, is not going to help matters. Who cares who the owner is? Ask Clippers or Warriors fans.

These complicating factors make it really difficult to get a good sense of the real problem here: Rudy Gay isn’t worth a max contract. He’s not worth anything near it. There are players younger than Gay with worse numbers that you can look at and say “That’s going to be a complete player.” With Gay, you’re left with the fact that he’s a pivotal part of this team and yet he’s not clocked in all the time. O.J. Mayo has his struggles. He’s gotten better at the rim, he’s killer from outside, but he has his shooting slumps and gets worn down on defense. But OJAM’s clocked in on every play, every night. Gay is clocked in for about 3/4 of the time. That other quarter is when you can’t figure out where he is or what he’s doing. The things Gay is tremendous at, creating that shifty leaning sideways runner, dunking in the open floor, nailing big shots, these are all valuable components for a contributing piece, not a centerpiece.

Neither Mayo, nor Gasol, and definitely not Randolph (due to age, not effort) may be the future of the Grizzlies, but you can look at their games and see them either becoming those primary components, or laying the foundation of a supporting cast for a true superstar. Gay doesn’t even work in that model, because he demands so much money. But if the Grizzlies let him walk, they’re unlikely to get a true superstar in return, through trade or free agency. They’re handcuffed by the market, and in return, are trying to handcuff the fans.

And the result is simply that both sides are tearing the Grizzlies apart, in what should be a hopeful time for them.

Breaking News From The Department Of The Grizzlies Making Me Look Like A Moron Again

March 11, 2010 in by with 1 Comment

If anybody should be complemented, though, it’s Hasheem Thabeet. In his second game after returning from the D-League (he DNP-CD’d in the first), Thabeet was practically the Grizzlies 6th man. He saw 26 minutes of court time and, even though his counting stats weren’t impressive, had a +25 for the game for a reason. ‘Our Favorite Mistake” was playing solid defense and offense, using his length to change shots and tip boards.

via What Fight?: Grizzlies Hammer Boston Celtics – Straight Outta Vancouver.

I don’t know what happened in Dakota, but it sure as hell worked.

Hasheem Thabeet, who I have (un)lovingly referred to on a consistent basis as “The Pogostick” was an infinitely better player last night than I’ve seen him be the entire season. And it has nothing to do with the 3-5 shooting for seven points and 6 boards.

Thabeet, for the first time I’ve seen this season, looked like he knew where he should be. His spacing was right. His hands were ready. Marc Gasol murdered the Celtics with the extra pass to Thabeet on several possessions. He was in position for rebounds.

HE CUT OFF THE BASELINE.

It’s these little things that make me jump out of my chair,  now. And seeing Thabeet smartly slide to the edge and deter the Celtics’ penetration, forcing a reset was a big moment. Because before, Thabeet was waiting to make sure he didn’t lose his man, and arriving too late ,then picking up a foul.

His weakside defense, his man-post defense, the whole shebang. The only thing he didn’t do was follow Sheed out to the arc. And I don’t care about that because Sheed’s more than welcome to bomb it away as long as the Grizzlies have a better than 1.5:1 rebound ratio advantage.

I didn’t think there was anything Thabeet could pick up in a week and a half in the D-League. But whatever it was he did while it was down there, it resulted in the best game I’ve seen from him as a professional. Unworthy of a second overall pick? Surely. But a phenomenally solid effort for a defensive cog.

Decisions That Haunt A Lifetime: Hasheem Thabeet

February 26, 2010 in by with 3 Comments

The onus here, though, is clearly on meddling Griz owner Michael Heisley. The basketball people definitely wanted to draft local Memphis standout Tyreke Evans, but were overruled by their boss. For some reason, Heisley bought into the old school theory about the need to draft centers – even longterm projects – even though far superior players were available.

If Evans had gone to the Grizzlies, and Oklahoma City had stuck with James Harden at No.3, I’m confident the Kings would have bypassed Thabeet (whew!) and selected a point guard – albeit, the wrong one. From all accounts, they would have drafted Jonny Flynn, leaving Stephen Curry for Golden State. As Doug Collins noted on TNT&apos;s telecast of the Nuggets-Warriors game earlier tonight, most NBA types failed pegged Curry as an undersized shooting guard and failed to appreciate his pure point guard skills.

via Kings Blog and Q&A: What if the Grizzlies hadn’t outsmarted themselves?.

Okay…

Wait, hold on a second.

There. I feel better now.

You may remember the reason I broke up with Memphis while we were still “dating” before I committed to them this season.

I’ve also made it a habit of whenever Tweeting Memphis Games to make sure after analyzing Mike Conley’s latest unforced turnover and Thabeet’s third foul in four minutes to follow it up with “In unrelated news, (insert Tyreke Evans stat).”

It’s not that it was an obvious choice. I mean, it was. You had an all-world point guard with killer size coming out of the college in the same city. This isn’t rocket science. No, no, what kills is that this rookie class has turned out so well that it was such a difficult thing to do to miss!

James Harden, Jonny Flynn, Stephen Curry, Jordan Hill (seriously, the guy gets almost no playing time and was traded for Tracy McGrady and was still a much better draft selection), DeMar DeRozan, Brandon Jennings, Ty Lawson, Jeff Teague, Eric Maynor, Darren Collison, Omri Casspi, Rodrigue Beaubois, Taj Gibson, Wayne Ellington.

And those are just the guys we KNOW are better! I’d take Terrence Williams, Gerald Henderson, Tyler Hansbrough, Earl Clark, Austin Daye, James Johnson, Jrue Holiday or whatever pieces New York would have given up for Rubio!

The Grizzlies literally could NOT have picked a worse player with the #2 overall. Had the Clippers passed on Griffin, and he still have broken his kneecap, he still would have been a better pick! Two guys who haven’t even played were better selections! I’m reduced to ending paragraphs with exclamation marks!

It’s been that kind of season for the Grizzlies. Finally get a good lottery bounce, waste the draft pick completely. Find yourself in playoff position, don’t find a bench contributor or suitable point guard and watch the playoffs slip away. It’s not the worst that could happen; if the team outright sucked that would be way worse. But it’s just that they had such potential to set themselves up for long-term success, and instead they may hit August and wonder “what happened in the last eight months?”

…

Pogo-stick.

************

One more note. There’s some discussion out there about this being a good thing for the D-League. That’s a lie. He’s there for ten days. The Grizzlies don’t have much to any interaction with Dakota. They’re not devoting time and money into the hybrid system. They didn’t do this back in November when they should have.

If Thabeet dominates, it just makes the D-League look bad by comparison. If Thabeet struggles, it just makes Thabeet look worse (“He can’t even compete with D-Leaguers!”). There’s no long-term development plan. There’s no concentrated effort to develop him slowly on a timeline. They’re just getting rid of him for ten days. There’s no upside to this.

It Could Have Been Better

February 17, 2010 in by with 1 Comment

But the selection of Hasheem Thabeet was a disaster that could haunt the franchise for years, the bench can&apos;t be counted on, and no team should be able to make a playoff run with just four guys who can play.

The Grizzlies need more guys. The question is whether they&apos;ll go out and get them by Thursday, whether owner Mike Heisley will allow general manager Chris Wallace the flexibility to make a move.

So far, it doesn&apos;t look good. Heisley has indicated he doesn&apos;t want the team to take on a player whose contract extends past this year. That essentially dooms the enterprise. It&apos;s also wildly short-sighted for a franchise that is still building for the future. Why spend valuable assets to get a player who won&apos;t help long term?

via Geoff Calkins: A big, fat trade the cure for what ails the Grizzlies » The Commercial Appeal.

There’s a little debate going on about whether it would be better for the Grizzlies to make or miss the playoffs. The argument goes that getting swept out of the playoffs would do no one any good, that this team has already justified Heisley’s maneuvers, and that the draft pick is more important, even if it’s just a few slots.

The problem is that it didn’t have to be like this. Even while the Grizzlies were killing it, I was trying to live in the moment and enjoy it because I was pretty sure there was no way they could keep it up. Making the eighth seed would be awesome, but was far from a sure thing. And now that’s turning out to be true.

But it didn’t have to be like this. If they’d not wasted the second overall pick on the worst player in the first round, a player so bad that Kahn’s decision to draft a guy who REFUSES TO PLAY FOR HIS TEAM looks smarter? They’d be above Portland. They were right on Randolph. Gasol got better. Mayo got better. But they didn’t do the one thing they obviously needed to do. Take the best player, who happened to be a point guard, and make it a competition for point.

I’m not even talking Evans, though to me it was the most obvious choice in the world. The all-world, super-big point guard who played for the local college. Forget that. Take Rubio. Take Curry, for God’s sake! Anyone at point, and anyone but Thabeet.

But instead, you have two massive problems out of one decision. Mike Conley isn’t a starting point guard. And I loathe using this little device, but I can’t help myself here: Period. That’s just it. He’s not. Everyone looks at the blown layups and poor passing, but those aren’t even what bothers me. He can’t dribble!

My favorite (read: most loathesome) Conley-ism is how he “probes” the defense. Usually a point probes by driving straight forward, then backing out. If the defender reaches, he turns his back to him and backs out of it, keeping his vision high for a cutter. If a secondary defender doubles, he immediately splits to where the defender is giving up position. Any guard does this. Not just Chris Paul or Deron Williams. We’re talking Chris Duhon or Lou Williams.

But Conley? He dribbles a foot in, then immediately panics, dribbles low, increasing the likelihood of it getting stolen, and then just sits there. No movement. Doesn’t back it out. He can’t maintain his dribble against any pressure on something simple.

Meanwhile, the bench is horrific, and so Thabeet gets time. But that’s a double problem. You need to get Thabeet minutes, but you also need quality bench minutes. He’s their really ONLY true big bench guy, and he’s a nightmare. It’s a no-win.

I’m with Calkins that a significant trade would capitalize on what the Grizzlies have accomplished. If you buy into the three-year plan, then you’re buying into fool’s gold. It looks shiny but when you get it home you’re disappointed.

NBA TRADE DEADLINE: Dorrell Wright Becomes Relevant, Yippee!

February 15, 2010 in by with 0 Comments

At that stage, Feb. 18 was going to be the easy part: Find someone operating below the tax to take on the $951,066 remaining on Wright’s contact, throw in some extra cash or a draft pick to make it worth their while, and then take a place in line for a $4.5 million rebate check that goes to all non-taxpayers.

That was five weeks ago, when Wright still was a bitter reminder of a 2004 draft gone bad.

Now? Now Wright is, undeniably, the Heat’s best small forward, a significant contributor, an anchor of the second unit.

And that has created a $7 million dilemma (the tax money that would have to be paid to keep Wright, plus the rebate money lost).

If winning still matters, if showing Dwyane Wade that such focus is unwavering, if Erik Spoelstra is to have a chance to comfortably secure a postseason bid, then how can Riley simply sell off an asset who finally has arrived?

The simplest solution might be to package Wright in a trade, and therefore create the appearance that he simply had to be included to serve the greater good. Then there would be no issue with the approach, just as there wasn’t when Caron Butler was included in the Shaquille O’Neal trade.

via Miami Heat Pat Riley needs to keep Dorell Wright – South Florida Sun-Sentinel.com.

You know, someone’s going to lose the 2010 summer. I mean, not everyone’s going to end up with a star. Most people assume the Knicks and Nets are sunk. After all, why would you leave a contender you’ve made a home in for a worse team? But someone’s still going to be out. And that’s where teams are stuck. Take the Heat, for example. Please. Wah-wah.

If Riley stocks up on players now, makes a huge trade, and it doesn’t work out, he’s got two realities. One, Wade’s gone. Riley not only has to prove he can get a superstar, but that he can get the right one to put next to Wade. And two, he’s without his best player, and still under the gun for a large sum of money, headed towards the post-lockout 2011-2012 season where there is very likely to be at least a considerably lower cap if not a hard one. Being on the books for $55 million under a $45 million hard cap would be like having sex in a very uncomfortable place, like the back of a Volvo.

That’s where Wright comes in. For a rebuilding team, for a long-term view of things, Wright’s a guy to keep, to build on, to see where his development takes him. But Riley doesn’t have that luxury. He’s got two options. Win big or burn the place down and sell it for insurance money.

I’m still at a loss for why the Memphis Grizzlies aren’t hurling offers at the Heat. Take the Lakers pick. Just take it. I’d trade the 30th or even 29th pick in the draft for Dorrell Wright so that the team has some semblance of a bench.

But Riley’s stuck, trying to make sure he pulls the right wire at the right time so the bomb doesn’t go off. Everyone thinks he’ll be there after everyone else detonates. Watching this Heat team, even with the recent wins, I’m not so sure.

The Grizzlies Worrying About Making A Bad Trade Is Like Mrs. Lincoln Wondering If The Theatre Was A Bad Idea

February 8, 2010 in by with 4 Comments

FACE REALITY PEOPLE! Ronnie Brewer can’t get the Grizzlies past those teams as a bench player and he is the best option I have heard so far. CDR? Nice player and a home town connection which could put butts in the arena but is he going to be the player who gets us past Denver or Dallas? I don’t think so.

The reality is that missing the playoffs might actually work out best in the long run for the Grizzlies anyway. Sure the fans want to see the Grizzlies win a playoff game but they aren’t going to advance this season. Wouldn’t it make more sense to acquire another lottery pick and then next season be in a stronger position to get past the first round of the playoffs?

There are plenty of top quality players available in the draft. Memphis picking in the top 14 would be guaranteed a player who can step in right away and help score or defend off the bench. Carroll, Young and Thabeet will be a year older and Arthur will as well and he should be healthy too. The team will be a top contender next season – all season – without making a go for broke deal that sacrifices the future well-being of the team.

via Shopping Season: When to Buy? | 3 Shades of Blue.

With all due respect to Chip Crain and the boys in three shades, Memphis’ target is pretty specific based on the first half of the season. Not the lottery. Not the second round. First-round exit. Period.

It’s a terrific pinpoint of how different expectations can be and what those expectations mean for different clubs. For example, the New Orleans Hornets are precisely where Chip’s talking about. They’re not making it past the first round. Under no circumstances are the collective Army-of-Darkness-esque bones of the Hornets’ wings going to be enough to get out of the first round. Peja, Posey, Mosepher? Even if Thornton spontaneously bursts into flame and becomes J.R. Smith with a conscience and rebounding ability, that team isn’t going anywhere. Getting blasted out of the first round similar to last year does them no good, and would actually be harmful. This team has the appearance of a contending team, but in reality it’s not.

The Grizzlies? A first round exit is FINE. AWESOME. Because it gets Memphis excited about the team being in the playoffs. Getting wiped out in four? Who cares? They weren’t even supposed to make it! Zach Randolph was their big acquisition, for God’s sake! But if this team has a season where they make it to the halfway mark in the 8th spot, beat the Suns on national television, get people to start to buy in, and then fade away into suckitude again? That’s crushing. You ruin all the good will you built up with the hot start.

Is Ronnie Brewer going to get them over the hump and able to beat LA? Of course not! Nothing barring a miracle would grant that. But Brewer provides an upgrade that could get them into the playoffs and set them up for next year. The biggest reason a trade needs to happen now? Conley.

I wake up every day and ask myself this question:

“What starting point guard in the National Basketball Association would I not trade Mike Conley for?”

I’ve yet to come across an answer. Rafer Alston? By all means. Lou Williams? Heavens, yes. Jonny Flynn? Absolutely. Chris Duhon? … I’d have to think about it, but for not for very long. It’s a glaring hole at a position a running team desperately needs. Wasting time waiting on the “best deal” to come along is just going to wind up putting the pressure back on the Grizzlies. Why? They have nothing of value except Rudy Gay. Teams aren’t going to come calling, even for cap relief, and if they do, I doubt the Grizzlies will take it on.

Making the playoffs represents an opportunity for the franchise to move past the perception that they ruined themselves in the Gasol trade. It gives a little life to Memphis and gets the young’ns some experience, plus nets Heisley a little extra cash. Making a move now shows a commitment to winning, and that in and of itself is worth the investment. If you’ve got a chance to improve your team in this league, you need to take it, not settle and then yell “Just wait till next year!”

Just because you’re both bears doesn’t mean you’re the Cubs.

Podcast Paroxysm: Good Vs. Eh

January 28, 2010 in by with 0 Comments

On this episode, Graydon Gordian from 48 Minutes of Hell stops by to discuss Amare to the Spurs potential, the strength of the Western Conference, and how much of a jerkface Vince Carter is.

Oh, and check us on iTunes, sweetheart. You’ll never love anyone like you love us.

Download it here.

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