Memphis Grizzlies from a fan's seat

New Season just ahead.

2009-10-19T14:12:00.002-05:00

I have only been able to attend one of the home preseason games this year. Wasn't very impressed by the performance of the team that night. Am anxiously awaiting though the start of the regular season. Will be updating the blog throughout the season so please check back often.

Grizzlies acquired Zach Randolph

2009-07-18T08:24:00.002-05:00

We have known that this was coming for a while now, but on Friday it became official. Here is a link to the story on the Grizzlies website.

http://www.nba.com/grizzlies/news/grizzlies_acquire_zach_randolph-090717.html

I have read articles and fans comments regarding this move and how crazy they say it is. I am willing to agree with some that we are taking a risk, but the Grizzlies are a franchise that needs to take a gamble or two.

This move finally gives us a legitimate 20-10 player down low. Ever since we traded Pau away, we have not had an inside scoring presence. I believe this move gives us the inside presence that will allow us to better use Mayo and Gay to their abilities. It will be a tough job though for Coach Hollins and Mike Conley to get these 3 players to play together well and to distribute the ball so that each player gets the touches and shots they need.

As a fan of the team, I come into this season with a brighter outlook to the future because of this move. If the gamble doesn't pan out for us, well then next season we will have a big expiring contract that could be a valuable trade piece or else at the end of the 2011 season, we will have a big chunk of cap space available again. If the gamble pays out for us, then this move could push us much closer to competing for a playoff spot.

I believe the glass is half full, now Chris Wallace, please finish filling it up.

Grizzlies get Randolph

2009-07-02T07:38:00.002-05:00

There is a story on ESPN that the Grizzlies have traded for Zach Randolph.
Here is the link to the story.

http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/news/story?id=4301324

This is an interesting move for the Grizzlies and one that must leave some national media shaking their heads. The Grizzlies made a move that wasn't a salary dumping move. We are actually spending more money than we have to. This is a move that will make the Grizzlies better.

I am glad to have an offensive power forward to start the season with. It will be interesting to see who the backup will be. Will they resign Warrick who is a bench scorer or will they go with Arthur who is more of a rebounder and defensive presence.

Our starting lineup now has 3 guys who could average 20 points per game and 2 others who could average around 10 or more. Will we win the NBA championship this year? No, but I can see us closer to making the playoffs than I could 1 or 2 years ago.

Now let us wait and see what moves Chris Wallace makes in obtaining a back up point guard for Mike Conley.

What are the Bucks Thinking?

2009-06-29T20:59:00.003-05:00

ESPN is reporting that the Bucks have not made a qualifying offer to Charlie Villanueva. I am not understanding what their mind set is on this. A qualifying offer was only 4.6 million. In only 27 minutes of playing time, Charlie was the 3'rd leading scorer at 16.2 ppg and the 2'nd leading rebounder with 6.7 rpg. He shot 34.5% from 3 point range and was at 83.8% from the free throw line.

As a Bucks fan, I would have to really question the logic in allowing a player of that talent to walk for nothing. I do realize that the Bucks are over the salary cap. So the Bucks are going to say goodbye to a steady contributor to their team.

Here is where the Grizzlies come into the equation. We need a Power Forward. We need 3 point shooting on this team. We are dealing with a 3 year plan in which we are looking for younger players that can learn how to win together and be there in the future. So how does the Grizzlies and Charlie match up together.

1. Charlie is a 6-11 232 pound power forward. Though maybe just a few pounds on the slim side for his height, he does fit the position we are shopping for.

2. The Grizzlies need 3 point shooting. Charlie last season made 89 3 point shots while shooting 34.5% from 3 point range. That is a much higher percentage than any other power forward the Grizzlies have had.

3. The Grizzlies 3 year plan with younger players. Charlie fits into the 3 year plan as well. Charlie turns 25 this August. So he is young enough to grow with the franchise and be coming into his prime when our other stars are coming into their prime.

I am not saying that if we sign Charlie V that he is the Power Forward to lead the Grizzlies to the NBA Championship. But Charlie does fit the position and some of the needs that our team has at this time. Charlie would be a big improvement for the Grizzlies at the starting power forward position. I am slightly worried about his rebounding numbers. In 27 minutes last season he only averaged 6.7 per game. I would hope playing with the Grizzlies he would be playing around 34 to 36 minutes. In that amount of minutes, we would need him to be averaging 10 rebounds a game.

A starting lineup of Conley, Mayo, Gay, Villanueva, Gasol would be a nice starting lineup with 5 guys capable of averaging in double figures. That would also leave some scorers on the bench. The addition of Charlie V along with the draft picks I believe would allow us to compete for 35 to 40 wins next season.

Chris Wallace's Comments

2009-06-28T11:46:00.003-05:00

Unfortunately for me I had ACL surgery on Thursday. This meant that I missed the Draft Party and the FedEx Forum and the press conference the following day. I emailed Chris Wallace in regards to the draft and am posting his comments here.

We are happy with the draft. Thabeet is the defensive presence the team has always lacked. He and Gasol will compete for the starting center spot. No one is handed anything, this is a competition. Haddadi will be given a shot as well. He is currently working out with us and is scheduled to return agaon in late August which should be a real benefit. Remember, he came in last year within three days of training camp.

We feel the additions of Young and Carroll will bolster our weak bench from a year ago. Young will play both the off guard and small forward positions while Carroll is a small forward and versatile enough to flop over to power forward when we size down, as they say in the NBA, and go small.

We are upbeat on Arthur's future and look forward to seeing him in summer league.

Blair was ranked below Young and Carroll with us, however, if Young had been select prior to 36 we would have picked Blair as he was the highest ranked player still available at the point. So we were very close to getting him.

We will be aggressive seeking out trading opportunites but it is too early to forecast what awaits us on that front.

Go Grizzlies!

Chris Wallace

I want to thank Chris Wallace for taking time to give me these comments regarding the draft.

David

Thabeet rolls on in Memphis

2009-06-26T08:08:00.002-05:00

Last night the Grizzlies ended up keeping the 2'nd pick and drafted Hasheem Thabeet. I kept wondering if they were then going to trade him later in the night like the Grizzlies did last season with Kevin Love. When it was announced that the Grizzlies instead traded Darko Millicic to the New York Knicks, that told me they intend to keep Thabeet. So we now have another international 7 footer on the roster.

It will be interesting to see how they are going to use Thabeet. You know he will get playing time ahead of Hamed Haddadi, but will he start over Marc Gasol. I can't believe that would be the case because you can't afford to take the offensive game of Gasol and put that on the bench with the lack of offense of Thabeet. So with that in mind, does that mean Gasol will play about 31 minutes like he did last season and Thabeet back him up and play the other 17 minutes. That seems like not enough minutes for the 2'nd pick that you drafted to make a defensive difference. However the playing time works out for these 2 players, I am sure that this will put Hamed Haddadi back on the bench or perhaps back in the NBDL.

I have heard an option mentioned is to move Gasol to the 4 spot and play him along side Thabeet at the 5. The problem I see with this is that you drafter Arthur last season and then you drafted DeMarre Carroll with the 27'th pick. He averaged 16.6 ppg and just over 7 rebounds per game. If you play Gasol at the 4 with Carroll coming off the bench, then what do you do with Arthur and Warrick if you resign him.

I believe the Grizzlies did well in the 2'nd round drafting Sam Young. I believe he will be a great backup for Rudy Gay. He averaged 19 ppg and just over 6 rebounds as well. Hopefully he will be able to score well off the bench. He could be possibly be a great 6'th man for the Grizzlies. Hopefully, Young along with the newly acquired Richardson and Warrick will be able to provide some consistent scoring from the bench. Richardson in 26 minutes was averaging just over 10 ppg. Warrick averaged 11.6 in 24.7 minutes off the bench. I think the bench with these 3 guys leading need to average 25 to 30 points on a nightly basis.

What do you do with Arthur, Jaric, and Buckner? As it stands now, Jaric would be again the backup for Conley at the point. But I think now might be the opportunity to play O.J. at the point some in relief of Conley and give a few of Jaric's minutes to Richardson. That would allow the Grizzlies to maintain more scoring threat on the floor. To many times last season when the 2'nd unit came in, the scoring died. The only somewhat consistent scorer was Warrick. As far as Arthur and Buckner, I think they won't see much playing time this season. If I was Chris Wallace, I would try to see if I could trade any of the three, Jaric, Arthur, or Buckner and try to obtain a backup point guard.

NBA Draft Lottery Must Be Legit!!

2009-05-20T09:45:00.003-05:00

Wow, what a night last night for the Memphis Grizzlies. They were not treated or bad mouthed like the red headed step child that they are usually treated like. When looking at the results of the draft lottery, it proves that it must be done legitimately. Just look at the draft order.

1. Los Angeles Clippers
2. Memphis Grizzlies
3. Oklahoma City Thunder
4. Sacramento Kings
5. Washington Wizards
6. Minnesota Timberwolves

If the Draft Lottery was rigged as it has appeared to have been several times in the past, then Oklahoma City should have won this draft and gotten their hometown player. Such was the case for the Chicago Bulls with Derrick Rose and the Cleveland Cavaliers with LeBron James.

If the Draft Lottery was rigged to get a certain team back in the spotlight I don't think the team that they would fix the lottery for would be the Los Angeles Clippers. I would think that the fix would have been in for the New York Knicks, or possibly the New Jersey Nets or Washington Wizards or the Phoenix Suns.

Also giving the Memphis Grizzlies the 2'nd pick isn't what you would expect from a "fixed" lottery. I would have expected the Grizzlies to come out with the 8'th or 9'th draft pick. I am very happy and excited to see the Grizzlies picking 2'nd.

My hopes for the 2'nd pick are mixed. I would love to see them make a deal and send Darko Millicic and the 2'nd pick to the Clippers in return for the 1'st pick. We really need Blake Griffin. I would prefer to send Darko with his expiring contract instead of Hakim Warrick but would be willing to send either player.

If we keep the 2'nd pick, then I would prefer that the Grizzlies draft Ricky Rubio instead of Hasheem Thabeet. We already have three 7 foot centers on the team. Hamed Haddadi is a project that showed a little promise at the end of last season. I believe he could be developed into a good backup center to Marc Gasol. The problem on this team isn't at the center position, but at the power forward. This is why I still go back to my first hope for this draft and that is to trade up 1 spot and draft Blake Griffin.

All the excitement of drafting number 2 and the possibilities that come with it makes us sometimes forget that we have 2 other draft picks in the top 36 picks. We need to make sure we use all our picks wisely. That could mean trading multiple picks to move up as well.

Chris Wallace, good luck as you have this opportunity to improve our team.

Grizzlies Locker Room Pics

2009-04-08T22:07:00.008-05:00

I was given a tour of the Grizzlies locker room last night prior to the game. Here are a couple of clips and pics taken during that tour. The quality of the clips aren't that great.

Pictures of me with Quentin Ross and Darko Millicic.

I hope to have a few more interior pictures to post in the next couple of days.

Grizzlies suffer 2 tough losses

2009-04-08T22:00:00.002-05:00

The Grizzlies have suffered 2 straight tough losses. Last night the Grizzlies were the better team, but unfortunately, didn't come away with the win. Portland's coach McMillan said "We got lucky, We got some breaks in this game." Memphis had 15 fouls called on them in the 2'nd half while Portland only had 6. In the last 10+ minutes of the game, the Blazers weren't called for a defensive foul.

Again tonight the Grizzlies played another good playoff bound team and played well, but didn't win. The Grizzlies got into foul trouble early and played through it very well. But when it came to the 4'th quarter, they just ran out of gas. It is encouraging to see the Grizzlies battle 2 playoff bound teams to a one possession game with a chance to win both games at the end. Hopefully this is a glimpse of what we will see next season.

Grizzlies have been Winning

2009-04-07T22:53:00.002-05:00

I have been out of the country on vacation and come back home to find that the Grizzlies are on a 4 game winning streak and have won 5 of their last 6 games. Maybe the Grizzlies should pay for me to go on an extended vacation next season. I went to tonight's game and had a great experience tonight. I will post tomorrow regarding tonight's game, but it included a pre-game locker room tour. I have pictures that I will post tomorrow from the tour.

Memphis wins in Detroit

2009-03-15T18:37:00.003-05:00

Wow, what a first half today in Detroit. The Grizzlies played inspired basketball in the first half. To go into Detroit who is a great defensive team and to score 57 points while only allowing 40 points was great. Detroit made some great adjustments in the second half to make a great comeback. They actually took a lead late in the 4'th quarter. Something that rarely ever happens lately is that Memphis didn't fold and lose the game when pressured in the last 3 minutes. I realise that the Pistons were missing a couple of players, but injuries occur all throughout the season.

Darko Milicic came out with a grudge and played a great game. In just 20 minutes, he had a double double with 12 points, 11 rebounds along with 3 assists and 1 block shot. Conley also had a great game scoring 20 points. He must cut down on the 7 turnovers that he had today, but most teams are as good defensively as Detroit is. For Detroit I was quite surprised with Kwame Brown. He played great with 13 rebounds, 5 steals and 6 points.

Today's game was an enjoyable game to watch and just hope that the Grizzlies learn from today's game. They must remember how they played team ball today. They played aggressively both on offense and defense. Come home and win tomorrow night and build a small winning streak.

Another loss, but glimpses of the future

2009-03-08T21:39:00.002-05:00

Last night the Grizzlies fans experienced another loss. Fortunately this game was an exciting game that wasn't decided until the last 3 minutes. The Grizzlies have shown the last week some individual improvement. The last week, Marc Gasol has been a beast on the court. Gasol has set some career highs in points and assists. In the 3 games last week, he averaged over 22 points, nearly 12 rebounds, 5 assists and 3 blocks per game. I hope this is a glimpse into the future of Gasol.

Mike Conley has been playing very well also. He had a nice career high of 31 points last night. Hopefully, next season will be a continuation of his current play. Consistently averaging double figures and a great number of assists.

We must get the recent play of Marc Gasol and Mike Conley along with the play of O.J. Mayo from the beginning of the season with the play of Rudy Gay from last season and this team could become dangerous. We see glimpses of great play from these players, but we need to see it from all 4 of them doing it together.

Frustration

2009-03-01T10:46:00.002-06:00

The feelings of a true Grizzlies fan right now is just pure frustration. The Grizzlies lost another game last night at home to a team that has a worse record than us. The last two home games have been losses to teams with worse records than us and have had players missing. Last night the Thunder were playing without Kevin Durant. We have our full team and couldn't win. What is our excuse for losing this game.

Taking a look back over the season, it is very frustrating to look at the facts that 9 of our 15 wins came in two stetches of games. Between December 5'th and December 14'th we won 5 of 6 games. We won against Chicago, Miami, Houston and the LA Clippers at home, and Oklahoma City on the road. This was a nice stretch of the season and we thought we were seeing some growth. Then the team proceeds to lose 20 of its next 22 games. Then we go on a 4 wins in 5 games again stretch under new Coach Hollins. Since then we have lost 7 straight games again.

Having won 9 of our 15 games during a stetch of 11 games means that we have gone 6 and 41 outside of those 2 periods. That is a winning percentage of just .128. I am a loyal Grizzlies fan, but it is very frustrating to keep seeing them lose games that they shouldn't lose. At the beginning of the season, I was hoping for 25 to 30 wins with the addition of O.J. Mayo and Marc Gasol. I thought an improvement of 3 to 8 wins was reasonable. Now I don't believe the team can get to 20 wins this season. If they win just 20 games this season, that would mean 64 wins over the last 3 seasons when the 3 seasons prior to that gave us 144 wins and 3 playoff appearances. That is a dropoff of 80 wins and that is frustrating.

No, I am not a bandwagon jumper and was a fan of the Grizzlies prior to the playoff runs. I am still a Grizzlies fan after these last 3 losing seasons, but a true fan can voice frustration when their team isn't performing like they should. Losing to the Kings and the Thunder at home when the opponents are playing short handed is unexplainable for a team that should be improving.

It is a new month and hopefully the Grizzlies can play better in March than they did in February.

Go Grizzlies.

Larry H Miller, Owner of the Utah Jazz, passed away

2009-02-21T07:56:00.003-06:00

I was sad to read last night that Larry Miller had passed away. What I know of him from afar, he was a great owner of the Utah Jazz. He was responsible for keeping the Jazz in Utah. The record of the Jazz over the last 20 years is a testamony to his dedication to the Jazz. I can only hope that Michael Heisley can duplicate the success of Larry Miller as an owner. My sympathy to the family.

Here is the press release from the Larry H. Miller Group of Companies:
SALT LAKE CITY (February 20, 2009) -Larry H. Miller, husband, father, grandfather, a well-known entrepreneur, community advocate and humanitarian, died from complications due to type 2 diabetes today, at home, surrounded by his family. He was 64.
Miller, a man who truly loved Utah, its people and its land, was born in Salt Lake City in 1944. From modest beginnings, he grew up in the Capitol Hill area and went on to become one of Utah's most successful entrepreneurs and business leaders.
Leaving behind a profound professional and personal legacy, the entities Miller created have had a significant and lasting impact on the communities in which he did business, and the more than 7,000 individuals he employed.
The Larry H. Miller Group of Companies began with the Larry H. Miller Toyota store in Murray, Utah on May 1, 1979. Through the years, Miller amassed more than 80 businesses and properties in the western United States. Most notable are the Utah Jazz, EnergySolutions Arena, the Salt Lake Bees, Miller Motorsports Park, Megaplex Theatres, and 39 automobile dealerships spanning the Rocky Mountain West. Miller also developed a vast real estate holdings including commercial and agricultural properties.
A dynamic entrepreneur and business leader, Miller also became known for his charitable efforts. Miller coined the phrase "Go about doing good until there is too much good in the world."
Miller and his wife Gail provide close to 300 college scholarships each year. Larry H. Miller Charities, a foundation funded by monthly contributions from his businesses, fundraising events in the community, and personal donations from employees, has donated millions of dollars to communities in which Miller does business.
"Larry and Gail have always stressed the importance of giving back to the communities in which we do business. Our customers have supported us and it is important that we show our appreciation by helping those in need," said Greg Miller, eldest son and CEO of the Larry H. Miller Group of Companies. "Larry felt that his legacy isn't in business as much as it was in creating opportunities for good jobs and higher education."
Larry and Gail have also donated millions of dollars to Utah-based colleges and universities for campus improvements such as the state-of-the-art softball and baseball complexes at BYU. The Larry H. Miller Campus of the Salt Lake Community College (SLCC), was completed in fall 2001 and includes the Larry H. Miller Entrepreneurship Training Center and The Larry and Gail Miller Public Safety Education & Training Center.
Despite all of his success, Miller always maintained that his greatest accomplishment is the family that survives him: his wife, Karen Gail Saxton Miller, their four sons and one daughter, 21 grandchildren, and one great grandchild.

Frustrating loss to the Kings

2009-02-21T06:38:00.002-06:00

This week has been a frustrating week for Grizzlies fans. We start off with a loss at the Utah Jazz. They were missing Okur and Boozer but are still a good team so it was an understandable loss. Then we go to Portland and suffer a tough loss there. The technical foul called on coach Hollins really hurt us down the stretch. Then we come home to play the lowly Kings who were shorthanded dressing only 8 players for the game. The Kings have the worst record in the NBA and came into last nights game with just a 3-26 road record which is the worst road record in the NBA as well. So with that in mind, you would think that the Grizzlies would take care of business at home.

Last nights game just seemed destined for the Kings to win. Every time the ball got loose on the defensive end, it seemed to always bounce into a Kings player. One time there were 3 or 4 Grizzlies players around 1 Kings player and it still bounced into the Kings players hands. The Grizzlies couldn't shoot well last night either. They had 21 more shot attempts yet only hit 2 more shots than the Kings. The Kings out shot them from 3 point range 10-5 and also hit 8 more free throws than the Grizzlies.

Some positives for the Grizzlies was the play of Mike Conley. He didn't shoot the ball well going 3-13 but did get to the line 10 times converting 9 of them. He also tied Rudy Gay with leading the team with 10 rebounds for his second straight double double. He should have had a triple double but he ended with just 7 assists. The frustrating part was that he had 7 assists at the end of the 3'rd quarter and didn't get a single assist in the 4'th quarter. We must have our point guard setting us up for scores in the 4'th quarter if we are going to win ball games. We got outplayed in both the 2'nd and 4'th quarters last night.

Another positive was the play of Darko Milicic. He had 12 points, 8 rebounds and 2 block shots in just 21 minutes. I thought he should have been on the court more last night. The team was +10 points when he was playing. Darrel Arthur was the only other player that had a positive number while on the court. He was at +3. Marc Gasol who Darko shares time with was -14 last night.

The Grizzlies made a strong run with 2.5 minutes to go in the game and got as close as 3 before stumbling in the last minute. We must learn how to close out games. The next home game is February 28'th against the Oklahoma City Thunder. They currently have the 2'nd worst record in the league and are only 3-23 on the road. We MUST win this game at home. If we don't the fans are really going to lose hope in this team. February started so well, don't lose the momentum we had built.

This is Mike Conley's team.

2009-02-19T15:16:00.002-06:00

ESPN has this posted on their website
POSTED: Feb. 19 -- 3:05 p.m. ET

"Marc Stein: Looks like we have a fairly significant three-way deal that was submitted to the league just before the trade deadline.
NBA front-office sources tell ESPN.com that Orlando is acquiring Rafer Alston from Houston to fill the void at point guard created by Jameer Nelson's shoulder injury.
The Rockets will receive Memphis guard Kyle Lowry, Orlando forward Brian Cook and perhaps two other minimum-salaried players to make the finances work.
The Grizzlies will receive a first-round pick from Orlando."

In my opinion, it seems like a low first round draft pick wasn't enough in return for Kyle Lowry. Currently the Magic have the 5'th best record in the league which means the Grizzlies would get a 26'th pick if this pick is in next years draft. I wonder if there is anything else to the trade.

This definitely gives the keys to the team to Mike Conley. He has been playing much better lately since Hollins has been coach. He has scored double figures in 10 straight games. Great game last night with 15 points and 10 assists. I hope he is in good shape because he is going to need to play 35 to 40 minutes every night. It is great to see him playing with confidence. Teams have been leaving him open and he is hitting his shots.

Cash considerations

2009-02-18T20:34:00.002-06:00

The Grizzlies have acquired Chris Mihm and cash considerations for a future 2'nd round draft pick. I believe this is the 3'rd time this season that the Grizzlies have acquired a person via trade and received cash considerations along with them. Ron Tillery is reporting that "The Grizzlies are likely to consummate one or two more financial-related trades between now and the league's trade deadline Thursday at 2 p.m."

Obviously the Grizzlies are assisting some other franchises in avoiding some luxury tax penalties, but hopefully the Grizzlies are earning some positive points with other teams that they might be able to use in later trades. I am sure that they are making some money on all these transactions, because I can't imagine that Mihm is going to see the floor for the Grizzlies.

O.J. Mayo Rookie of the Year

2009-02-13T13:16:00.002-06:00

It is great to see that the Grizzlies are putting a campaign together to get O.J. the Rookie of the Year award. Here is the story that is in the commercial appeal.

http://www.commercialappeal.com/news/2009/feb/13/all-star-campaign-promotes-oj-mayo-rookie-year/

The Grizzlies have setup a website for O.J. at www.voteoj.com. It is a very nice site that gives information to show why he deserves the award. He will go against tough competition in Derrick Rose. The only time the national media will get to see him is this weekend at the all-star break. On the other hand Derrick Rose has 12 nationally televised games after the all-star break. I believe O.J. is stepping up with the team and leading us to victories as of late. If he continues the play as of late he will make a strong case for winning this award.

This would be one positive to come out of the season. We are looking had for positives right now.

Amare Stoudemire?

2009-02-12T14:47:00.004-06:00

I have heard that the Grizzlies have rejected a trade offer from the Phoenix Suns to obtain Amare Stoudemire. The Grizzlies reportedly would have to give up Conley, Gay, and Warrick. Considering the way these guys are currently playing, I believe that would be a little to much to give up for Amare. Since the coaching change, all 3 of these players are averaging over 10 points per game. Rudy is at 21.3 ppg, Conley is at 13.5 ppg and Warrick is at 12.5 ppg. Their regular season ppg this season is 39.6 or their recent ppg is 47.3. That is too much scoring and potential to give up to obtain Amare Stoudemire. Amare is only at 21 ppg and 8 rpg.

I have heard that Warrick is not in the long term plans of this team. If that is the case, then I would like to see them make this trade with a couple changes. Lowry, Gay and Warrick would be one option. I imagine Lowry would like the opportunity to backup Nash, knowing that Nash is only going to be the guy for a few more years. I don't know how much desire Lowry has to stay here if the Grizzlies are going to make Conley the man at point.

Another option would be Gay, Warrick, Arthur, and the Lakers' first round pick next year. I wouldn't mind giving up Arthur becuase if we get Stoudemire, than Arthur isn't going to be needed. You would have Amare, Darko, and Marc to play the 4 and 5 spots. I think you could play Darko as a good backup to Amare and Marc and would have a great trio in the post.

I believe it is very important that the Grizzlies try very hard to get Amare on this team within the next week. It will show the fans that the team is very commited to winning and will make a big splash in the national media. If we could get Conley, Mayo, Stoudemire, and Gasol together, that is a nice core to build around.

Please Grizzlies, GET AMARE!!!!!!!

UGLY can be Pretty

2009-02-09T21:42:00.003-06:00

The last 2 games haven't been the prettiest games in the NBA, but when the home team wins them both, they are very pretty. It is good to see what Coach Hollins is doing with this team. I haven't been able to attend the last 2 games due to other obligations and I have only seen the last few minutes of each game, and it is nice to see O.J. taking over to insure us the win.

Good job tonight to the Grizzlies on the boards. Setting a franchise record 64 rebounds. 3 players having double-double are very nice. Hopefully they will play well tomorrow night on the road and go into the all-star break with a nice month going.

Grizzlies got clipped!

2009-02-07T09:06:00.002-06:00

It didn't take long for the Grizzlies fan' bubble to get popped last night. Fans were expecting the Grizzlies to extend their winning streak to 3. After just a couple minutes of the 1'st quarter, I knew the Grizzlies were in trouble. The refs were calling many fouls so that the Grizzlies were in foul trouble early. Also, the Grizzlies weren't hitting shots and the shots they did hit were clean hits. They would roll around on the rim and then fall in. At the end of the 1'st quarter, Darko was on the bench with 3 fouls and the Grizzlies were shooting 30 percent.

Last nights game was very ugly for a Grizzlies fan, but if you were a Clippers fan, you had to be excited. The Clippers made 16 3's to set a new franchise record. None of them was crazier than Zach Randolph's 3 at the buzzer of the 2'nd quarter. Being defended bringing the ball down the court, he nearly lost his dribble and then launched a shot from past half court and sunk it nothing but net. At that point, I knew it was all over but the crying for the Grizzlies.

I look at last nights game as an important learning lesson for the team. This team is still learning how to win. When a baby is learning how to walk, they take a few steps then they fall on the butt. Last night the Grizzlies fell down after 2 wins with one win that wasn't expected against the Rockets. What they must do tonight against the Raptors is go out and stand back up and take another step. O.J. must have a better night tonight than his 3-9 shooting last night. He even missed 2 free throws. For the Grizzlies to win, O.J. must not be outscored by Buckner.

Houston has a problem in Memphis

2009-02-04T21:37:00.002-06:00

Wow, what a great game tonight in Memphis. It was great to have Darko back tonight as he made a great contribution tonight. Coach Hollins mentioned that it will allow us to have 6 additional fouls on Yao. Not only did it allow us to have an additional 7 foot defender but he also went 4-4 from the field for 9 points along with 2 rebounds, an assist and a block. Several times he didn't get the rebound but he had Yao boxed out properly so that the Grizzlies got the rebound. Welcome back Darko. We even had a nice Marko dish to Darko for the slam tonight.

What can we say about O.J. Mayo? When the Rockets started to make it close, he came out in the 4'th quarter and made sure we kept the lead and won the game. He had several clutch shots to put the game away. I don't know what it is about him, but when he goes for 30+, he follows it up with another 30+ game. I do believe that he will have a 40+ point game this season. It is good to see Rudy and O.J. starting to play well together.

We are starting to see the potential of Mike Conley lately. He had a great game tonight. 10 points with 9 rebounds and 7 assists tonight against only 1 turnover. I believe several of his rebounds were because the big men were boxing out properly. It is great seeing the team play team ball. They are having fun playing ball right now. It has been a while since we have seen them having fun on the court. When the Grizzlies are having fun on the court, the fans are having fun in the stands.

Coach Hollins, keep up the good work. We could have another 4 game winning streak after this weekend.

Congratulations Coach Hollins

2009-02-04T15:22:00.002-06:00

Congratulations to Coach Hollins on getting his first win as a permanent head coach. The Grizzlies came out and took it to a team that they should have beaten. It was great to see O.J., Rudy, Marc, and Mike playing so well in a game together. I have been impressed with the job Coach Hollins has done in such a short time. We will see if the effort continues. Hopefully the Grizzlies will get back to playing better ball and give us some hope for improvement going into next season.

I will admit I was disappointed in the hiring of Coach Hollins. After 1 week, he is changing my opinion of the hiring. Keep up the good work, and I will become a believer in you.

Good luck tonight against the Rockets.

Lakers roll through Memphis

2009-02-02T13:46:00.002-06:00

Wow, what an exciting evening in FedEx Forum Saturday night. You knew that the Lakers were in town because the arena was packed and there was a lot of purple and gold in the crowd. It was great to see the Forum full of fans.

The game itself was a tale of two halfs. The first half was the Grizzlies half. The Lakers I believe were distracted by the injury to Bynum, more on that later. Everybody was playing well for the Grizzlies. O.J. and Rudy both came out aggressive and was shooting the ball well. The lakers were playing well, but weren't being aggressive on defense. There was one play where the ball was on the right side of the court. Kobe was standing on the left side just inside the 3 point line and was watching the ball, not aware that O.J. has slid into the corned. O.J. received the pass and drained the 3 with Kobe about 10 feet away.

The Grizzlies stumbled at the end of the first half by allowing the Lakers to cut a double digit lead down to 6 at the half. The second half continued the way the first half ended. The Lakers came out determined on defense and shut the Grizzlies down. After giving up 61 first half points, the Grizzlies only scored 37 in the second half. Kobe played some aggresive denial defense on O.J. so that he couldn't get his hands on the ball. The Grizzlies continued to fight but came up well short.

Interesting note about the Bynum injury. On January 13, 2008 in L.A., Bynum injuried his left knee against the Grizzlies and was out for the year. On January 31, 2009 in Memphis, Bynum injured his right knee. Interesting how you transpose the 13 to 31 and the location from L.A. to Memphis and it is the same player with the other knee getting injured again. I am guessing he will hope that the Lakers don't play the Grizzlies in January 2010. If they do, I recommend he take the night off.

The Hollins Era Began with a loss

2009-01-28T14:58:00.002-06:00

To be honest, the result of last night's game wasn't a surprise to many. Just because we changed coaches, doesn't mean the losing is going to stop. It will take time for Lionel Hollins to get the team on the track that he is guiding them. I did notice that in the 1'st Quarter, the Grizzlies came out with a different philosophy than they have been playing with. On the very 1'st possession, O.J. Mayo brought the ball down court. Then we were playing full court defense and creating turnovers. At the end of the 1'st quarter, we had a lead. I believe this will help them realize, that his system can work.

In the 2'nd quarter, the game started to slip away from us. We lost the quarter by 10. The officiating last night was horrible. I am NOT saying this cost us the win, but it made the game so miserable to watch. There was no flow for the players to get into. O.J. Mayo came into the game and it took him 2 seconds to get a foul called on him so he had to go sit down again. All the foul calls also made the game go very late. The game didn't end until 9:41. That was with it being a 15 point loss so there wasn't all the timeouts and fouls at the end of the game. Normally that game should have ended around 9:20. 61 personal fouls and 2 technical fouls. The refs needed to let them play ball.

The Grizzlies kept fighting and made it close in the 4'th quarter. We got down by only 4 but couldn't finish the comeback. Hollins in his post game press conference said that the players aren't in shape. I believe this is a big cause of the 4'th quarter collapses that keep occurring. Hopefully he can correct this soon and in the 2'nd half of the season we can see some improvement.

Darius Miles provided some great bench points last night. I hope that the Grizzlies will sign him to a contract for the remainder of the season. I believe he has proven worthy of it. We need some scoring off the bench more than just Hak and Lowry.

Hopefully, Hollins can get his first win tonight.

Lionel Hollins - Really????

2009-01-23T16:11:00.002-06:00

Grizzlies fans were excited to hear that Coach Ivaroni was fired. People were throwing names around that we were hoping to be the new head coach of the Grizzlies. Avery Johnson, Flip Saunders, Maurice Cheeks, Jeff Van Gundy. I never heard anybody mention Lionel Hollins. I know Lionel Hollins is a nice guy and still has a home here in Memphis, but we need a veteran head coach that can develop the talent that we have. We need a coach that will be the right coach for the next 5 years. Counting the interim head coaches, this will be Rudy Gay's 5'th head coach in 2.5 seasons. That is instability.

For the sports radio listeners outside of the local area, I don't know if this is even being mentioned on your stations, but here in Memphis, this is getting ripped to shreds. The talk shows are all in an uproar over this hire. Chris Vernon on FoxSports 730 said he could think of 30 other coaches he would have hired before this hire.

Espn story about the firing and mentions the hiring as well.
http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/news/story?id=3853749

Grizzlies story on Iavaroni being relieved of his coaching duties.
http://www.nba.com/grizzlies/news/iavaroni_relieved_of_coaching_duties-090123.html

ESPN is reporting that Avery Johnson was offered a 5 year contract to come coach the Grizzlies. I am glad to see that we made an offer for Avery because I think he might have been a good coach for this team. But when Avery turned down the offer, was Lionel Hollins really #2 on the coach wishlist?

Espn story about Avery Johnson turning down the Grizzlies coaching job.
http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/news/story?id=3855045

I am still going to support the Grizzlies and I hope Hollins proves everybody wrong.

Iavaroni fired in Memphis

2009-01-22T21:51:00.002-06:00

The Commercial Appeal is reporting that the Memphis Grizzlies have fired head coach Marc Iavaroni. This isn't much of a surprise to the fans of the team. Many have been wondering what was taking so long for this to happen. The regression this team has been showing over the last several weeks was justification for this firing.

Since the Grizzlies decent start of 9-15, they have now gone 2-15. This is totally unacceptable. There has been a disconnect between the coach and the players it seems. The Grizzlies games seem to have turned into something similar to the movie groundhog day. The games keep having the same results. The Grizzlies get off to a slow start, battle back to try to get into it then lose it down the last 4 minutes.

http://commercialappeal.com/news/2009/jan/22/source-memphis-grizzlies-fire-coach-marc-iavaroni/

This isn't change for change's sake, this must be change for the sake of growth and progress.

As a season ticket holder, I implore the Grizzlies to make sure they hire the right coach that can help the younger players to grow and learn how to finish games out. We must have a coach that can get this team to play together.

MLK day in Memphis

2009-01-22T10:44:00.002-06:00

The Memphis Grizzlies have a nice tradition going in Memphis with the Martin Luther King Jr. Day celebration game. The day is filled with many events. The Marines present the High School Classic that is played early in the day. Then there is a sports legacy symposium that is held and presented by the Hyde Family Foundation. Then prior to the game, the National Civil Rights Museum Sports Legacy Awards are presented. David Aldridge of TNT hosts the symposium and speaks when the awards are given out. This years recipients were Dave Bing and Dr. Julius Erving. Dr. J commented on receiving this award, that "This makes this Martin Luther King Jr. celebration day the top one since its inception for me." David Aldridge commented on hosting they symposium that "it was very moving and I was privileged to host that today."

The Grizzlies also had Brandy there to perform the national anthem and to perform at half time. Brandy's performance put I believe thousands of people in the seats. It was one of the biggest crowds I have seen this season. The crowd there was very different from what I had seen even in the Lakers or the Cavaliers game when Kobe or LeBron was in town. People weren't leaving at half time to go get food or drinks. I think there was more cheering in the upper deck during half time then the rest of the game.

The Grizzlies did put up a great effort before losing to the Pistons 87-79. The Grizzlies fought hard and even took a lead into the 4'th quarter. But in the 4'th, the Grizzlies could only muster 10 points. Nobody that day was hot. We had 5 players in double figure scoring, but you didn't know coming down the stretch who was going to score. The Pistons knew they were going to Iverson and he was going to carry them to the win. The Grizzlies need somebody to develop into that go to guy that when it comes down to the last 4 minutes of the game, will score and carry them to the win. Right now we keep turning the ball over to much in the last 4 minutes of the game. We didn't even score a point in the last 2:55 of the game.

Where to eat - Spaghetti Warehouse

2009-01-22T10:38:00.003-06:00

My father and I ate at the Spaghetti Warehouse Monday for dinner. We were so surprised at the great special that they are currently offering. They are offering a warehouse trio's special starting at $8.99. Enjoy a 3 course meal at a great price. You choose your entree, it comes with a soup or salad. Then choose an appetizer and a dessert. These weren't small portions either. My father and I couldn't finish our meals. The food was very good. I ordered the lasagna with the soup and had the mozzarella cheese sticks and the brownie sundae. The service we received was excellent as well. I am looking forward to going back there very soon.

O.J. Mayo and Ashley Furniture

2009-01-17T19:42:00.004-06:00

Tonight, O.J. Mayo was out signing autographs and taking pictures with the fans at Ashley Furniture in Cordova, TN. He was very friendly in his actions tonight. I arrived and 5:30 and was told that the line was closed because he was scheduled to be there from 4:00 until 6:00. At 5:30 the line was half-way through the store. I was told I could stand in line, but wasn't guaranteed and autograph. At 6:00 they made an announcement that O.J. said he would stay and sign autographs for everybody still in line. There was probably at least 50 to 75 people still in line and he stayed until everybody had received his autograph. O.J. is a class act and I want to thank him for his generosity with his time.

Jazz find their notes in Memphis

2009-01-17T19:17:00.002-06:00

The Utah Jazz found winning notes in Memphis last night. They broke their 5 game road losing streak with a 101-91 win. Deron Williams led the way with 27 points and 12 assists. The Jazz shot 52% from the field.

The Grizzlies had 5 players in double figures scoring led by O.J. Mayo with 23 points. He had a nice bounce back game after the 6 point outing against the Cavaliers. Rudy Gay was not one of the five players the Grizzlies had in double figures. He ended the night with 5 points and 2 rebounds. Hopefully come Monday against the Pistons, he will break out of his slump and have a big game for us.

A couple other bright spots was the double double by Marc Gasol with 12 points and 10 rebounds despite being in foul trouble. Also, Darius Miles nearly posted a double double in only 14 minutes. He ended with 10 points and 7 rebounds. In the last 2 games, he has proven he can play and contribute to a team in this league. I hope the Grizzlies sign him for the remainder of the season.

The last dozen games or so have been very tough to watch. The crowd last night was very sparse. I would estimate about 4,000 or so fans actually in the stands. The Grizzlies are finding out who the TRUE fans are right now. After the last 2 seasons and the way this season is going, we are not bandwagon jumpers, we are Grizzlies loyalist.

Jazz playing in the city of the Blues

2009-01-15T18:27:00.003-06:00

Friday night will find Jazz playing off of Beale Street in Memphis. Hopefully the Jazz will be sour and leave town feeling the blues. The Jazz are currently struggling on the road having now lost 5 straight after losing to the Thunder in Oklahoma City Wednesday night. This does give hope to Grizzlies fans that if the Thunder could beat the Jazz, then maybe we can too. Their road record for the season stands at 7-12. Their last road win was December 19 @ Detroit in double overtime.

The Jazz are suffering from injuries this season. They have missed over 100 games due to injury. As a Grizzlies fan, I am not crying over the fact that Carlos Boozer is out and that Paul Milsap is listed as day to day and didn't play Wednesday night. We need wins and I don't care who we are playing, I just want a win. At the end of the season when we discuss their record, we don't discuss who played and who didn't play for the teams we beat.

The 3 keys to the game are as follows:

1. Until the Grizzlies break this trend, this will always be the first key. They must score 20 points in the 1'st quarter, We are winless when we score less than 20 in the first quarter. I don't understand why so many games we come out flat in the first quarter. It seems that there may be a lack of proper preperation so we fall behind and then have to play from behind. If Arthur doesn't start due to injury, I hope that Warrick starts. This might help with this key if we put our 4 top scorers on the court to start the game.

2. Kyle Lowry must play tight defense on Deron Williams. We must contain Deron. He is averaging 15.4 ppg and 9.8 apg. Against the Thunder he scored 25 points. Against the Pacers on the 12'th he scored 23 points with 11 assists. We must contain him and keep him from getting his teammates involved. We need to keep him under 20 points and around 6 assists.

3. Rudy Gay and O.J. Mayo must recover from the horrible game against the Cavs. These 2 must score their season averages and get at least 40 points combined. Getting 16 points combined will not win us any games. They also need to hit more 3 point shots. Extend the defense out and open it up for Warrick and Gasol down low.

http://scores.espn.go.com/nba/preview?gameId=290116029

The LeBron Show in Memphis

2009-01-13T23:05:00.004-06:00

The LeBron show made its annual trip to Memphis tonight. If you were in attendance tonight to see LeBron play, you didn't leave disappointed. He put on a show tonight which included 30 points, 11 rebounds and 10 assists for his second triple double of the season. He had several highlight dunks and a circus shot that ended up being the #2 play of the day on ESPN. He also had a block shot on a Kyle Lowry layup attempt that was the #6 play also.

Let me review my 3 keys to the game:

1. Rudy & O.J. must score at least 50 points. These two must step up and play above their season averages. These two combined for 16 points on 8 of 27 shooting. One fan sitting next to me mentioned that it seemed as if they were intimidated by the presence of Lebron on the court.
2. LeBron James must be held to under 25 points and 5 assists per game. We must keep LeBron from taking over the game and getting his teammates involved. As previously stated, LeBron had a triple double tonight. Not only did he score, but he got his teammates involved so that they had a dominating performance tonight. The grizzlies were only able to lead the game for 1 minute at 13-12.
3. The Grizzlies must not turn the ball over more than 12 times. We must return to the ball control that we experienced during the 4 game winning streak. Marc Gasol had 4 and Rudy Gay had 3 turnovers. They struggled with the handle tonight. The team as a whole did well with only 12 turnovers. We succeeded with this goal.

Having completed only 1 of the 3 keys leads to another loss.

Some other notes from tonight's game:

Darius Miles showed that he is in physical condition to play in this league still. In 13:45 of playing time tonight, he score 13 points on 4 of 6 shooting and 5 of 7 from the line. He was playing in the 3'rd quarter when the Grizzlies were struggling to score. I am sure Portland now realizes that his salary will be back on the books after Friday night's game. I believe that not only will he play out this 10 day contract, but will also sign another contract either in Memphis or somewhere else this season.

Kyle Lowry had a career night tonight. He posted 25 points on 5 of 11 shooting. He got to the free throw line 16 times converting on 15 of them. He also had 7 assists as well. He has proven that putting him into the starting lineup we the right choice. On one shot attempt tonight, he should have dunked the ball instead of doing a finger roll layup. LeBron chased him down from behind and blocked his shot attempt. See tonight's SportsCenter top 10 play #6.

Hamed Haddadi played tonight for 5 minutes. He had 3 rebounds and 1 nice assist.

Hakim Warrick continued his double digit scoring streak to 11 games. With Darrell Arthur injuring his hamstring, maybe Warrick will get to start like he probably should be.

Here is something to ponder. In Darko's last 10 games prior to his injury, the grizzlies were 5-5. Since his injury, the grizzlies are 1-8. Hurry back Darko!!

Cavaliers @ Grizzlies Preview

2009-01-12T21:10:00.003-06:00

Come Tuesday night, the FedEx Forum will be rocking. The bad thing is that in Memphis, there are still many fans here that aren't fans of the Grizzlies. There will be nearly as many Cavs fans as there will be Grizzlies fans. When the Lakers were here, at the end of the game the fans were chanting MVP MVP. That is the frustrating thing for a Grizzlies fan to be in your own house and here so many cheers for an opposing star.

Now I expect tomorrow night that the Grizzlies will be up for this game. They seem to be up for some of the better teams in the league. 4 of the wins we have this season are against Houston, Miami, Dallas, and Orlando. We sometimes beat some of the better teams in the league while we don't show up half the time against the lower level teams like the TWolves.

3 keys for the Grizzlies to win against the Cavaliers:

1. Rudy & O.J. must score at least 50 points. These two must step up and play above their season averages.
2. LeBron James must be held to under 25 points and 5 assists per game. We must keep LeBron from taking over the game and getting his teammates involved.
3. The Grizzlies must not turn the ball over more than 12 times. We must return to the ball control that we experienced during the 4 game winning streak.

http://scores.espn.go.com/nba/preview?gameId=290113029

Grizzlies signing Darius Miles

2009-01-10T12:01:00.006-06:00

It is being reported in the Commercial Appeal that the Grizzlies are going to sign Darius Miles to a 10 day contract.

Here is a link to the story.
http://www.commercialappeal.com/news/2009/jan/09/memphis-grizzlies-re-sign-darius-miles/

I think it is a good move. I hope he does play the 2 games so that the contract goes back on Portland's books. Chris Wallace is worried about our team and not what happens to Portland. This may assist us in signing a free agent, because it could eliminate Portland from possibly trying to sign the same free agent.

Go Grizzlies

Frustration

2009-01-08T19:46:00.005-06:00

I have delayed this post trying to let my frustration subside. The game against the Twolves was so frustrating as a fan. My dad and I was discussing during the game, that although we are only down 4 to 8 points, we never felt like we had a chance in the game. Then we do make a run and tie the game up at 87 with 90 seconds to go. Then the biggest frustration came in that to a team that is considered worse than us could finish the game in our house with a 7-0 run. Why they have learned how to close out a game on the road and we can't close it out in our own house is frustrating. It seemed that because the Twolves aren't one of the elite teams in the league, they weren't as up for the game. On Sunday against Dallas, they came out strong, but on Tuesday they came out flat.

It was nice to see Mike Miller again. He didn't get the start, but he did receive a warm welcome when he came in during the 1'st quarter. We saw him go down in the 2'nd quarter and I was hoping it wasn't serious. He did come back in the 3'rd quarter and finish the game. I am imagine that he is the only Memphis resident who went home happy with the result of the game.

I am sure that against Cleveland next week, they will come out with some fire since there will be a big crowd and they are playing a good team.

Mike Miller returns to Memphis tonight

2009-01-06T10:49:00.001-06:00

Tonight will be the first time that Miller will play at FedEx Forum since being traded this past off-season for O.J. Mayo. Memphis received a good player in Mayo who has the potential to be a great All-Star in this league for years to come. But Memphis lost a good player and a great charitable person in Mike Miller. I would encourage all Memphis fans to show up for tonight's game and give Mike Miller a warm reception home. As the Grizzlies always say, "Tickets are still available for tonight's game."

Below is a link to a video where he answers the following question. Why are you giving $1 million to help the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit at Sanford Children's Hospital in Sioux Falls, SD?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-E5aAXu2Unw

Here is a list of some of the beneficiaries of the Mike Miller Foundation

SANFORD CHILDRENS HOSPITAL
MAKE-A-WISH FOUNDATION
MITCHELL HIGH SCHOOL (South Dakota)
M33M BALLERS (Memphis AAU Basketball)
SOUTH DAKOTA SCHOOLERS (South Dakota AAU Basketball)
HOUSTON HIGH SCHOOL (Collierville, TN)
St. Jude Childrens Hospital

This past summer, he donated $200,000 to the St. Jude Childrens Hospital. It is the largest single donation by a Grizzlies player. Here is a link to a video of the donation.
http://vimeo.com/1082464

We just want to thank Mike Miller for his contributions to children and wish him well.

Grizzlies Win

2009-01-04T19:11:00.001-06:00

Unfortunately I missed today's game due to being in church. I listened to part of the 1'st half on the radio, but was skeptical that they would be able to close out the Mavs in the 2'nd half. Wow, was I shocked when church was over to learn that we put a beat down on the Mavs. Maybe they have learned something from the tough losses over the last week. Now we must win on Tuesday night against the lowly Timberwolves or else this game will look like a fluke win. We must be able to win the games against the lower competition and then try to steal some wins against the upper teams in the league. Great win today.

I noticed that Miles saw his first action today. 1 game played and 9 to go to put the money back on Portland's books.

Go Grizzlies

Grizzlies New Year Resolutions

2009-01-01T09:28:00.000-06:00

Here are a few resolutions that the Grizzlies need to have this year.

1. Develop a PG. This is like the team who alternates 2 QB. It doesn't work. I have heard people say just look at their combined numbers. They would be 15.5 ppg, 7.5 apg, 5.4 rbg, and 1.66 spg with 2.66 turnovers. Not bad numbers but let us do a comparison on this. If you look at Steve Nash this year, he is averaging 14.3 ppg, 7.9 apg, 2.9 rbg and .8 spg with 2.69 turnovers. Yes those numbers are about even. The problem with this argument for our system is that Nash gets these numbers playing 33.5 minutes per game while our 2 players are playing all 48 minutes. The suns have somebody else playing 14.5 minutes. Also Nash will turn 35 in a month and our 2 PG are early 20's. Combined they should be able to outperform a 35 year old guy who doesn't play as many minutes. If you go back just 2 or 3 seasons ago, Nash was averaging around 18 ppg with 11 apg while only playing 35 minutes per game. Our 2 PG system doesn't work. Please develop a legitimate starter and play the other one accordingly.

2. Use Warrick properly. I don't understand why our 3'rd leading scorer plays less than half the game. He is currently averaging 23.9 minutes per game. Hak shares playing time with Darrell Arthur and while Hak plays 4.5 minutes per game more, He scores more than twice what DA does. I think Hak should play at least 30 minutes if not close to 35. The grizzlies need to put their best 5 out on the court and leave them there for the majority of the game. Right now we only have 2 players that play more than 30 minutes per game. If you look at the Celtics right now, who are one of the better teams in the League, their 5 starters average 29.0 to 36.6 minutes per game. Our starters average 19.4 to 38 minutes per game. Put Warrick on the court since he is one of the best 5 players on this team and play the best 5 players the vast majority of the game.

3. Finish games. It is very frustrating sitting in the stands with a 8 point lead going into the 4'th quarter and people around you keep saying that we will lose because an 8 point lead isn't big enough. Seeing a good tight game go down to the wire and then we fold every time is getting old. I keep hearing people say that this team has to learn how to finish games out. I know that is true, but it seems that they keep repeating this lesson over and over and I don't see them changing what we are doing. You know when it comes down to the end, we are going to have 3 or 4 turnovers in a row and miss 75% of the shots. Please learn from the past and finish the games positively more often that we have been.

4. Develop Gasol & O.J. Mayo. We have 2 rookies that can be a great foundation along with Gay to a bright future. This threesome needs to be developed and learn how to play with and off of each other to maximum potential. I truly believe that these 3 players should average close to 65 ppg and 20 rbg. If they can do that, that is a great core to add to so that we can have a winning team again. Develop the stars.

I see hope for the future, but we must make sure we do the right things to maximize the potential we have. Go Grizzlies in 2009!

Grizzlies made NBA history last night

2008-12-31T08:34:00.000-06:00

Trying to find positives in another grizzlies lost can be hard. But last night, the grizzlies made NBA history when Hamed Haddadi was inserted into the game. He became the first Iranian born player to play in the NBA. He played 4 minutes and contributed with an offensive rebound and earned 2 free throws which he made both of them. He also hustled back on defense to attempt to block a shot on the suns fast break but was called for a foul. I was glad to see that his first action wasn't during trash time.

Last nights loss was very frustrating to watch. I understand that the players may have been tired due to this being the 4'th game in 5 nights and traveling across country for 2 road games. Also, they had to play 3 overtime periods in those games. But to come home and play the suns who are without Steve Nash and then without Amare Stoudamire for over half of the game and to lose it again in the last 6 minutes is unacceptable. This team needs to learn how to close out games. And that goes for the coaching staff as well. I disagree with 2 coaching moves late in the game.

1. Kyle Lowry was taken out and Mike Conley put back into the game. Conley went 0-5 in the game with 2 points and no assists in nearly 20 minutes of playing time. Why would you replace the starting point guard at the end of the game with a player who isn't getting it done. Lowry had 6 points, 6 assists and 2 steals last night. I realize that isn't great numbers but it sure beats Conley's numbers. When the team only scored 11 points in the 4'th quarter, you can look at a PG who wasn't successful in running the offense.

2. Again, we only scored 11 points in the 4'th quarter. So why with 3+ minutes to go in the game do you take out your leading scorer. Hakim Warrick had 25 points on 7-11 shooting. That is very effective shooting, because he averaged 2.27 points per shot attempt because he kept getting to the free throw line. We couldn't score in the 4'th quarter so the leading scorer sits coming down the stretch?

We have several pieces of the puzzle, but we must learn how to put them together.

Darko

2008-12-28T22:11:00.000-06:00

Wow, I never thought I would have said this a month ago. I am going to miss Darko as he recovers from his injury. We are going to miss him. As of the last couple of weeks, he has been stepping up his play and starting to play like a starting big man should play in the NBA. I know he is only 23 years old and is still young, but being in the league now for 5 years, he needs to start playing up to his potential and doing it consistently. As of late he was doing that and we wish him a speedy recovery.

With Darko out, Marc needs to step up his play and become a force again for us. Hak and Arthur will also need to step in and help out on the boards and defensively as well. I imagine at some point we will also see Hamed. Hopefully he isn't as big a project as I am afraid he will be. I imagine there is a reason why we haven't seen him at all this season.

Good Luck Grizzlies in Minn.

Grizzlies WIN

2008-12-27T10:37:00.000-06:00

I didn't attend last nights game due to traveling back from Kentucky for the Christmas holiday with family. I was dissapointed to find out that it wasn't being televised. So therefore I didn't get to see that game at all. I was glad to see though that the Grizzlies continued fighting and was able to pull out the win.

There are 2 trends that seemed to continue though in last nights game that must be of concern for the team.
1. Getting down by double figures early in the contest.
2. Allowing the opponent to shoot a very high percentage.
The team must step up their defensive effort.

With that being said, they did win. Go get the Spurs.

Gasol versus Gasol

2008-12-24T21:09:00.000-06:00

Wow, what an evening of fun and excitement in FedEx Forum on Monday night. Last night was the largest crowd I remember seeing all season. There was a definite buzz in the air with several different points of interest last night. First, you had the excitement of Kobe and the Lakers in town. Second, you had the return of Pau Gasol back in the bluff city for the first time since his trade to the Lakers last season. Third, and of most interest to myself, was the matchup of Pau versus his brother Marc. It was noticed that there was a much larger contingent of press on press row of which many were of Spanish media.

The Grizzlies organization should be commended for putting on a good show last night. During a timeout in the 1’st quarter, they had prepared a nice tribute video in appreciation of Gasol’s contribution to the team. I noticed that Pau and his teammates and some Lakers staff watched the video when played. They also had the famous Radio City Rockettes for a half time show that was very enjoyable.

I was glad to see that the lackluster performance from Friday night’s game against the Bobcats had been put into the past and the young and hungry Grizzlies were back in uniform tonight. The Grizzlies came out in the first quarter and showed that there are not intimidated by the Lakers. They were able to match them blow for blow and finished the quarter with a 25-25 tie. It was good to see that they were not getting off to the slow start that has been happening of late.

The second quarter continued with the grizzlies going on a couple of runs to build some decent leads. One thing I noticed though, the Lakers always withstood the runs to never allow us to build a double digit lead. They always kept us within reach. We would build a lead up to 6 or 8 points and they would answer and bring it back to 2 or 3 points. We were able to finish the quarter strong and build an 8 point lead at half.

Now the question was, will we have another good third quarter or will we revert to the way we played at the beginning of the year and lose the third quarter. The Grizzlies came out strong in the third and played well and tried to keep pace with the Lakers. We ended up losing the quarter by 5 but was able to enter the fourth with a 3 point lead. At this point, the place was rocking with excitement. Grizzlies fans were holding the breath that Kobe wouldn’t go off and kill us again. All the Lakers fans, and yes there was a large number of them there, were trying to cheer their team on to victory.

The fourth quarter started off great as we were maintaining the lead and actually built it up to a 6 point lead with 4 minutes to go. That is when Kobe and the Lakers decided they would play their A game. There were several exciting plays made by both teams. O.J. drilled a clutch three pointer only to have Kobe answer with a three of his own with 1 on the shot clock. With the game tied at 96, the Lakers ended the game on a 9 point run. We turned the ball over several times and showed that we are still a young team that is trying to learn how to close out a game against the top teams in the league.

The motto for this year has been Young and Hungry. Yes, tonight, we came out Hungry all game, but in the end showed we are still YOUNG. In tonight’s game, you can see hope for the future.

Grizzlies Bitten by Bobcats

2008-12-24T21:08:00.000-06:00

With the Grizzlies coming in having won 4 of their last 5 games, expectations were high for the Grizzlies against the lowly Bobcats. The night was starting of great with the General Manager Chris Wallace at the main entrance greeting fans and answering questions. I spoke with him regarding the future possibilities of O.J. Mayo and all-star weekend. He mentioned that this year O.J. will definitely be in the Rookie – Sophomore game. He did say though it will be a tough fight but he expects O.J. to make the all-star team in the future. There is a good group of back-court players that are all-star caliber that O.J. will have to fight his way into.
As the first quarter was being played out, I remember thinking, we are down by less than 10 with them shooting 70%. When they come back to reality we will be right in this game. But the first quarter ended with us being down 36-26. We thought, it can’t get worse than this.
The second quarter continued down the same track with them continuing to shoot around 70% and us losing the quarter again and being down 58-44. Surely the worse part is behind us. We are switching goals at half time, so maybe their shooting touch will change. Hopefully they will cool off during the halftime break.
The third quarter ended up being worse that either the first or second quarter. We could only muster 16 points while giving up 28 to be down 86-60 going into the 4th quarter. It was so bad that fans had already started leaving and during the quarter break, they didn’t play any of the normal video clips of trying to pump up the crowd. There was no Stand Up Memphis, make some noise. Surely it couldn’t get worse.
The only good thing about the 4th quarter was the fact that it ended the game. The boo birds were out in the quarter because hardly no grizzlies were displaying effort or hustle tonight. I know O.J. was trying, but the fans were disappointed that coach didn’t play him more so that his streak of scoring in double figures would continue. It was a nice streak to start his career. Maybe that now the streak is over, he can play a little more relaxed. Mercifully the clock ran down to zero with us losing 112-83. Surely the worst was over.
Then I walk out to my car which was parked on Beale Street behind the Forum just down from the Baptist Church. I get to my car and find that some thieves had broken into it and stolen my GPS device. What a horrible night. Fans beware, the policeman who came and did my police report told me that they have been having trouble with cars getting broken into over there. If you park there be prepared for the worst.

Hornets sting the Grizzlies

2008-12-16T22:31:00.000-06:00

Wow, even though the Grizzlies lost, what an entertaining game it was. The Grizzlies started off horribly in the 1'st quarter and led me to think it was going to be a long night. Once we got through the 1'st quarter, the Grizzlies of the last week showed up and put up a fight and got back into by half time. Then in the 3'rd quarter they played some excellent defense and brought the game to within a point for the final quarter. The final quarter was very exciting as we traded the lead with them. We just got out played down the stretch and lost an exciting game.

O J Mayo is a budding star for the Memphis Grizzlies and will be known around the league in a short while if he continues to play the way he has all season. That said, the refs we had tonight obviously hadn't been introduced to him and treated him like a rookie. Mayo just couldn't get any calls to go his way tonight. Give Mayo another year or two of playing the way he is and he will get some of the calls that other stars get such as Chris Paul was getting tonight.

Rudy and O J were great again tonight with both players scoring 28 and 20 respectively. It is so nice to have 2 players that you can expect to score 20 or more points every night. What was missing tonight was the supporting cast. We must have at least 1 but really 2 or 3 more players to score in double figures every night along with the 40+ points from Gay and Mayo. Darko has been playing well over the last week or so but tonight was only 2-7 with 6 points and Marc was 1-3 with 2 points. We need more than 8 points from out 2 seven footers. They did have 17 rebounds and 4 blocked shots which is a positive.

As a fan of the Grizzlies, I can see hope for the future in tonight's loss. The Hornets are leading our division and our young team took them down to the final 3 minutes of the game before it was decided. It would have been easy for them to have gotten discouraged after scoring 11 points in the first quarter and given up, but they fought back and had a chance to win the game tonight.

I expect a great effort on Friday night against Charlotte will result in win number 10 on the season.

Toy Drive

2008-12-15T22:02:00.000-06:00

My father and I went to the Grizzlies toy drive tonight. There was a nice crowd of fans there having an enjoyable time. It was a fun opportunity to see the players up close and getting a chance to talk to them. I noticed that Antoine Walker wasn't there tonight and wonder if that is because his contract is being bought out and hasn't been announced yet. I spoke to nearly every player and they were very friendly except for the new player Darius Miles. My father won a door prize which turned out to be a pair of club level tickets for the upcoming game against the Lakers. We are looking forward very much to the Gasol brothers matching up against each other.