Grizzlies On The Prowl

The Memphis Grizzlies beat Golden State as I predicted. Golden State was able to keep Mayo and Gay in check but they failed to account for Gasol who went off for 27 pts and 16 rebounds. Four games into the year and the Griz are 2-2. Now they travel to the West and play four teams that are beatable- Sacramento, Golden State, Denver, and Phoenix. I’m not the only one to notice the new Memphis. Marc Stein from ESPN has already moved them up on his power rankings from 29 to 21. Is this the beginning of a new era in Memphis? It very well may be. However we must temper our expectations until after this road swing.

The road for Memphis begins now. This team is young and full of talent. I hope they continue with their new found confidence in the West. Sacramento is a young team without a rudder now that Artest has bolted. Golden State will continue to flounder without Monta. Denver is in a state of flux until Chauncey settles in. To the average NBA fan Phoenix is a not a beatable team. However since they started a half court set with Shaq they have become beatable. Especially when playing young teams like Memphis that push the ball. Memphis will probably not beat Phoenix but they have a good chance at beating the other three opponents. That would leave them 6-4 after the Western swing. The Griz return home to face NY, Milwaukee, and Sacramento three teams that hardly strike fear into my heart. Let’s say they go 2-1 in that home set. Their record would be 8-5. Memphis fans enjoy your Thanksgiving the Griz will have a winning record. After Thanksgiving it gets a whole lot tougher and odds are they will have a losing record by Christmas. But stranger things have happened so don’t give up hope Memphis.

The Griz found a winning recipe by feeding the ball to Gasol down low. Gasol needs to become a consistent scoring option for Memphis. Since Gay and Mayo draw defenders they will open up the floor for Gasol. Gasol must continue his intensity on both ends of the floor. I don’t except Mark to put up 27 pts, 16 boards, and 3 blocks every night but he needs to stay the course on defense. His offense seems tied to his defense. He has said exactly that in the past. If Memphis can continue to stay focused on defense they will continue to win.

The offense is only averaging 83 points a game which is last in the NBA. To have a 2-2 record with the lowest point totals of the NBA can only be accomplished with strong defense. Memphis needs to continue their new defense presence. The Griz are 4th best in the NBA allowing only 85 point per game. Memphis is 6th in the NBA in rebounding. This improvement is due in part to Marc Gasol and Darrell Arthur. Their rebounding prowess and defense cannot be ignored. Gasol is averaging 10 RPG with 6 of those being defensive rebounds. Arthur is averaging 8 RPG with 6 being defense while only playing 21 minutes per game. If success is going to continue for this franchise they need to find a successful offensive system. They must not be content with isolation plays for Mayo and Gay. The Griz must push the ball down low to Gasol, Arthur, and Warrick. Use the low post players to add another dynamic to offense. This will in turn help to give Gay and Mayo more open looks. Marc Iavaroni must continue to preach his defensive philosophy while developing a more potent offensive attack. If he is successful in harnessing an offensive philosophy Memphis will begin to come out of the dungeons of the NBA and will be embraced by the masses. The key here is the development of an offense that is sustainable. Understand that this team will have their ups and downs but if they continue to focus and play with intensity the wins will come and they will come out of this road trip with a winning record!

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2 Responses to “Grizzlies On The Prowl”

Isles Guru on November 6th, 2008 12:54 am

Can the Grizzlie keep it up? I am not sure, but if they do I’ll grin and *ahem* bear it. Good article Dix.
Greg on November 6th, 2008 1:47 am

well they choked tonight against SAC…hopefully the recover for their next game against GS and DEN…they have got to get the offense goin again it looked real weak tonight

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