The only player on the Grizzlies with an NBA championship ring is guard Tony Allen, who was a key bench player and defensive stopper for the 2010 champion Celtics.
So when everyone thinks things are going great for the Grizzlies -- and they had been before their dead-on-arrival 88-75 loss at New Orleans on Sunday -- it's Allen that's the voice of reason.
"I don't want to pat ourselves on the back too early," said
Allen prophetically just prior to Sunday's meltdown. "We're still a work in progress. Every game is a day to get better. You can pat us on the back when it's over."
Allen just got back into action on Saturday vs. Utah after missing five games with a mouth laceration. Seven Grizzlies have missed 118 total games, more than last season, yet Memphis has continued to win with different players usually coming through in the clutch.
"I think our training camp was big for us, because Coach (Lionel Hollins) really conditioned guys and we've got a strength and conditioning coach for guys not playing big minutes," Allen said. "Those guys work on their craft each and every day. Those guys come in and work on their days off.
"That's why you shouldn't be surprised when somebody goes down and somebody fills in their role. Those guys are constantly working. That's what makes us the grit-and-grind Grizzlies."
NOTES, QUOTES
-The Grizzlies had an uncharacteristic 21 turnovers leading to 28 Hornets points, an indication of lack of focus that couldn't have been written off to fatigue.
"We played a lot of games in the last two weeks -- this was our fourth in five nights," Griz coach Lionel Hollins said. "But we still have to come out and play.
"Some of the turnovers were careless. However they came, we had them. Our pick-and-roll defense was atrocious. Our defense, period, was atrocious. We just didn't muster up the energy that we needed to come out and play against a hard-working team in a back-to-back at the end of a real tough week."
-Memphis had won four straight times over the Hornets until Sunday's loss.
-Griz center Marc Gasol injured his left knee while making a layup and simultaneously colliding with Hornets forward Xavier Henry, who was providing backside help and was whistled for a foul.
Gasol's knee appeared to collide with Henry and he went down screaming. Gasol went to the huddle, returned to shoot the free throw, missed and the Grizzlies fouled purposely to get Gasol out of the game for the rest of the night with 7:02 left.
Gasol's status for Tuesday's game at Minnesota isn't known.
QUOTE TO NOTE
"You can't beat anybody scoring 75 points." -- Griz coach Lionel Hollins.
