David Fizdale should be a frontrunner for NBA Coach of the Year

It doesn’t seem to matter who’s plugged into the Memphis Grizzlies’ starting lineup, David Fizdale’s squad keeps on reeling off wins. Is the rookie head coach a frontrunner for NBA Coach of the Year?

David Fizdale’s Memphis Grizzlies team could be good.*

If it stays healthy*

If you didn’t read every preseason scouting report of the Memphis Grizzlies, that sentence sums them all up. Somehow, the Grizzlies weaseled their way into the 2015-16 NBA Playoffs despite dressing 28 players over the course of the season. They were trounced by the San Antonio Spurs in the first round and Dave Joerger—criticized for his reluctancy to play young players and questioned for his commitment to the Beale St. Blue—was given the boot. 

Time to introduce David Fizdale.

On a team notorious for its long-term consistency and experience (hence, the “Core Four” nickname for Mike Conley, Marc Gasol, Tony Allen and Zach Randolph), Fizdale entered with zero head coaching experience.

Dec 3, 2016; Memphis, TN, USA; Memphis Grizzlies head coach David Fizdale talks with Memphis Grizzlies guard Wade Baldwin IV (4) during the first half against the Los Angeles Lakers at FedExForum. Mandatory Credit: Justin Ford-USA TODAY Sports

25 games into the season, Fizdale has blended together the perfect medium of innovation and the old-school Grit ‘n’ Grind style the organization is known for.

The Grizzlies have the best defensive rating—points allowed per 100 possessions—in the NBA. For the time being, the FedEx Forum can still accurately be referred to as “The Grindhouse,” especially after a 110-89 win over the most high-octane offense in basketball, the Golden State Warriors, on Dec. 10. 

David Fizdale has made the Memphis Grizzlies’ second-unit one to fear. He’s filled a syringe full of liquid from the fountain of youth and injected it into Zach Randolph’s tree trunk arms by playing him as a sixth man. Opposing bench units have been bruised and battered by Randolph on the offensive end (22.5 points per 36 minutes) and the glass (13.5 rebounds per 36 minutes, a career-high).

Of course, enter the asterisk from above. Injuries struck Memphis.

The team had been able to manage with Chandler Parsons’ in and (mostly) out of the lineup, but the circumstances changed when $153 million man Mike Conley was given an uncertain timetable to return after a vertebrae injury on Nov. 28.

The Grizzlies’ season seemed to be over.

Rather, the Memphis Grizzlies have six straight after a loss in Toronto on Nov. 30 and sit at 17-8. They’ve blew out the Warriors despite starting two players that night—Andrew Harrison and Troy Williams—who weren’t even considered favorites to make the roster at the beginning of the

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preseason. 

Of the Grizzlies’ 17 wins, 14 have come by six points or less. Fizdale has had to coach through six overtime periods.

Last week, I said that the Grizzlies’ uncanny ability to pull out tight games would have to level out at some point. The next night, Memphis squeezed out a two-point decision against Portland. It’s more than just coincidence now. It’s coaching.

On offense, while not ranking amongst the NBA’s elite, has become far more dynamic. Marc Gasol has become one of the top 3-point shooters in the league and the variety of plays Fizdale can draw up in clutch time has kept opponents on their toes.

With rookie coaches, you can’t predict the unpredictable. Steve Kerr won 73 games as a rookie head coach last year, and there’s no doubt Fizdale has made himself a case to be the second consecutive rookie head coach to claim the award.

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