Centers in spotlight as Grizzlies visit Suns (Jan 30, 2017)
Two of the most productive centers in the Western Conference -- one selected to the All-Star team, the other not -- go head-to-head Monday night for the first time in nearly two full years when the Memphis Grizzlies visit the Phoenix Suns.
The game will feature a matchup of veterans Marc Gasol of the Grizzlies and Tyson Chandler of the Suns, a pair of big men who went head-to-head in the 2012 London Olympics gold medal game but not once in NBA competition since Chandler joined the Suns at the start of the 2015-16 season.
The Grizzlies (28-21) and Suns (15-32) have yet to meet this season, but they should get to know each other quite well over the next 30 days, during which their entire three-game season series will be contested.
The club split a four-game series last season, which each winning once on the opponent's floor. Chandler missed the first of the four matchups with a strained hamstring, before Gasol had to sit out the final three games with a broken foot.
Gasol last week was named to his third All-Star Game mostly on the strength of his scoring. He ranks second among centers at a career-best 20.8 points per game.
That average has gone up significantly in Gasol's last seven games, during which he's averaged 29.1 points.
Despite their big man's scoring spree, the Grizzlies have alternated losses and wins in their last six games. They opened a nine-day, six-game trip with a loss at Portland and win at Utah.
Gasol had 18 points in Saturday's win at Utah, during which Memphis featured a balanced attack that included a 28-point performance by Zach Randolph and a 23-pointer by Mike Conley.
"We really did a good job of moving the basketball tonight and really playing off one another, especially, when one guy has it going," Conley explained to reporters afterward. "Z-Bo had so many opportunities down low early, we just kept trying to exploit that as long as we could. Then when they took that away, we went to Marc. Then when they took that away, we went to me."
Gasol had 22 points the last time he faced the Suns, but that was 13 months ago. The Grizzlies won that game 95-93 while Chandler nursed his ailing hamstring.
The Suns enter Monday's game on a three-game losing streak. They are coming off a home-and-home sweep at the hands of Denver, which put up 127 and 123 points in those wins.
"We can score all the points in the world," Suns guard Devin Booker noted to reporters after the game. "But at the end of the day, it starts on the defensive end."
Chandler, a 2013 All-Star, made a bid for a second trip this season based mostly on his rebounding. Earlier this month, he broke the Phoenix franchise record with seven consecutive games with 15 or more rebounds.
His current average (12.2) is his highest in 10 years and is well above the full-season record for a 16th-year NBA player. That mark is held by Moses Malone at 10.0 per game.
Chandler might have been beaten out by Gasol for a reserve spot on the All-Star team, but he was the one who left London with a gold medal in 2012 when Team USA beat Gasol's Spain team 107-100 in the finals.
Chandler contributed two points and one rebound to the win. Gasol had 17 points in 17 minutes for the Spaniards, who took the silver.
