MEMPHIS GRIZZLIES
Advanced Stats:
PACE #14 94.7
OFFENSE: #16 104.4
DEFENSE: #8 102.5
In the first half of last season, Memphis looked like to go for
a pretty average season for them, with a 19-23 record by January 19. Even
though they were showing a lot of potential, they were being incredibly
inconsistent and in point in December, they lost 4 games in a row, followed by
4 wins in a row and then, 3 more losses in a row. OJ Mayo was struggling and in
February, they lost Rudy Gay for the season. So, it’s quite remarkable that
this very same team finished the regular season on a 27-13 run. Then, they
knocked down the #1 seed San Antonio in 6 games, in a series where they were in
position of winning all six games played! They followed this huge upset with a
great fight in the conference semi-finals against Oklahoma City, where they
eventually lost the 7th and decisive game of the series.
With or without Rudy Gay, Memphis’ offense was just average.
They were a quite physical team, always ready to attack the basket and the
truth is that they were 1st in the league in points in the paint per
game, with 51.2 ppg. The problem was located on the outside shooting, where
they were the 4th worst team in 3pts% with 33.4% and 24th
in shooting from 16-23 feet with 38.4%. However, Memphis was the team that most
possessions created for their offense, as not only they were the best team in
the league in forcing turnovers, with an opp. TO/rate of 15.69% as consequently
helped the Grizzlies in being the 4th best team in fast break points
per game with 16.5 ppg, as they were also the 6th best team in
offensive rebounding, with an OR/rate of 28.89%!
The solution for the struggles in the perimeter may exactly be
Rudy Gay, as he was having career highs in FG% (47.1%) and 3pts% (39.6%) when
he got injured last season. In order for Memphis to consolidate as a top team,
they need to improve their outside shooting and they are counting on Gay for
such improvement and they even realized the potential importance of OJ Mayo and
they rejected Indiana’s trade proposal for him, as he can be a X factor to give
Randolph and Gasol some relief from the outside.
If Memphis was an average offensive team, it’s obvious that the
key for their great season was indeed their defense. Memphis wasn’t a top 10
team in terms of interior defense, as they were 13th in points in
the paint allowed with 40.3 ppg and 21st in FG% allowed at the rim
with 64.9%.However, Memphis decided to defend straight up the opposing big men,
so they could unleash their perimeter defense! Memphis led the league in steals
per game with 9.4 spg, with Tony Allen having a pivotal role in turning Memphis
into one pesky defensive team. When the playoffs came, the Spurs were
automatically in trouble as San Antonio was a more perimeter offensive team
during the regular season and the Grizzlies simply shut down them. In the
following round, OKC didn’t have any real interior offensive threat and
obviously Memphis made both Durant and Westbrook work hard for seven games.
Memphis secured Marc Gasol for the future with a long term deal,
but curiously the Spanish player had a down regular season when compared to the
previous year: fewer points per game, worse FG% and less rebounds per game.
However, his importance against the Spurs on his matchup with Tim Duncan was
crucial. Gasol reminded Duncan that he is not on his prime anymore and he
proved to be one of the few big men in the league who can defend anyone without
any help, while he’s offensively skilled enough to create his own shot. Also
his presence in the middle lifted Zach Randolph. Zbo was once again a beast. He
can’t dunk, but he gets the right spots to both score and rebound and the
result of that was 20.1ppg while shooting 50.3% FG – for the first time in a
long time (8 seasons), he was able to shoot above the 50% FG mark! At the same
time, he grabbed 12.1 rebounds per game – only Love and Howard had a better
rebounding average than him! We can expect this duo to dominate once again this
season all around the league, as they don’t look weaker than any other
frontcourt duo in the league right now, Bynum/Gasol included. Unfortunately,
Darrell Arthur suffered a bad injury and he will be out for the season, so the
depth behind Gasol and Zbo will be really thin and I don’t think the Grizzlies
can reach the elite level without more depth in the frontcourt.
Mike Conley might not be the next Chris Paul, but he had
arguably his best season as a pro last year. He improved in almost every
relevant statistic, but I highlight his jump in the assists department to 6.5
apg and steals with 1.8 spg – all career highs!
Memphis is considered one of the best teams in the West after
their great performances in the playoffs last season. Rudy Gay is their best
season “acquisition” and their backcourt is loaded. With more depth in the
frontcourt, they have the potential of being really good this season. However,
inconsistency may be a problem again. We are talking about a team who went
16-25 on the road last season, but still the Grizzlies that will surely be in
the playoffs this season. I have some doubts about their high ceiling, but they
are still a young team on the rise.
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