Memphis Grizzlies Will Be A Tough Out In April, Again
Stop me if you’ve heard this before: the Memphis Grizzlies are a team that no one wants to face come playoff time. Behind their stout defense and methodical pace, “Grind City” will be looking to spoil contenders’ dreams.
When David Fizdale was hired as the Memphis Grizzlies’ new head coach, there was a lot of talk around the association of him modernizing the famed Grit ‘N’ Grind scheme.
In some ways, Fizdale has done that by encouraging Marc Gasol to shoot 3-pointers and also moving Zach Randolph to a super-sub role from the starting lineup.
But in many other ways, Fizdale has worked with the personnel given to him, as any good coach does. It’s another year of opposing teams waking up sore the next morning after banging bodies with Gasol, JaMychal Green and Randolph the night before.
Currently, the Grizzlies are fourth in the league in Defensive Rating (105.7), according to Basketball Reference, and 28th out of 30 teams in pace. Against most teams, they’ve been able to impose their will and force opponents to play at their tempo.
The Grizzlies lead the league by more than 3 percentage points in post-up possessions and it’s because of their two wide-bodied big men who bump and bully for the full 48 minutes.
According to NBA Stats, Gasol leads the league in post-up possessions per game, while Randolph is fifth despite playing 24 minutes per game. Gasol is especially effective at establishing deep position so that most times he need only catch, turn and shoot.
Years of playing together have developed a lethal high-low chemistry between Gasol and Randolph, each of whom knows where the other likes the ball.
Gasol is on pace to play more than 75 games after missing 30 last year and was just selected to his third All-Star Game.
The Grizzlies have been a top-five defensive team when he’s healthy for long stretches in his tenure and it’s because he’s so sound in rotations and is so effective using his size as a deterrent for would-be rim attackers.
In addition to Gasol, Mike Conley is having a fantastic year for the Grizzlies. One of the Western Conference All-Star snubs, Conley is averaging career-highs in points (18.7) and PER (21.4).
Health has been a concern for Conley and the Grizzlies at large the past few seasons, as he’s missed 12 games this year already and has played 75 or more games only three times in his nine-year career.
His effect has been undeniable this year, as the Grizzlies are plus-3.2 with him on the floor, as opposed to minus-1.7 with him off the court, good for the second-highest net difference on the team (behind ageless wonder Vince Carter), according to NBA Stats.
He’s especially fond of the off-hand floater in the lane, a low-percentage shot for most guards. However, he may be the best at it in the league now, taking the title away from Tony Parker. It’s a nifty shot that makes the analytics department squirm, but fits his game and slithery style.
The Grizzlies are 29-21 as of Tuesday, tied with Oklahoma City for sixth in the Western Conference, with the season series tied at 1-1.
In trying to forecast the Grizzlies’ playoff opponent (barring injury or massive shakeups to the standings), the Grizzlies are 4-1 against the Rockets and Warriors this season, with the one loss coming at the hands of Houston on Jan. 21.
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With four dates looming against the Spurs ahead of them and a couple more games against Houston and Golden State, it will be interesting to see if the Grizzlies can keep up their success against the West’s elite.
All of this success has come largely without the services of Memphis’ big free agency accquisition, Chandler Parsons. Parsons was supposed to be the missing piece to the Grizzlies’ puzzle, a secondary playmaker and knockdown shooter to lighten the load on Conley and Gasol.
However, Parsons has been limited all year thanks to surgery on a torn meniscus in March, playing in only 21 games and being kept on a minutes restriction hovering around 20 minutes per night.
The fortune of a team can change overnight, as Chris Paul‘s broken hand and Blake Griffin‘s lingering quadricep injury pushed Portland to the second round of the playoffs last year and vastly accelerated their long-term plan.
All Memphis needs is a couple of breaks to go their way in April to play into May and make noise in the Western Conference. The Grizzlies don’t beat themselves and their style lends itself to playoff basketball.
This may be the year when Memphis breaks through the pack to advance to the Western Conference Finals, where anything can happen.
