Grit & Grind Era Over In Memphis

Overtime Heroics Editorial

2172 days ago

We start off the Western Conference with the Memphis Grizzlies. The Grit & Grind era of Mike Conley, Marc Gasol, Zach Randolph, and Tony Allen has ended in Memphis. They were a tough team, who would make you earn every victory. They have an interesting set of Forwards going into this season, which has them hard to judge, but I do have them coming in last in the Western Conference.

https://www.nba.com/article/2019/06/01/report-ja-morant-have-minor-knee-procedure

Grit & Grind Transition

The Grizzlies turn to two Jackson’s as last year’s Jaren Jackson is coming off a strong rookie campaign. 13.8 PPG and 4.7 Rebounds in only 26.1 MPG. He’s a great athlete and looks to improve on those numbers. Josh Jackson is in a separate situation as he was up and down off and on the court for the Phoenix Suns. It has been reported that he will start the season in the G-League and I really think that will depend on what they do with Andre Igoudala.

The guard transition comes in the trade to Utah of Mike Conley and using the #2 pick on Ja Morant. Morant became a fan favorite by dominating in college at Murray State. He averaged a double double going for 24.5 PPG, 10 assists and also grabbing 5.7 boards. His transition to the NBA will probably take some time as his jump shot has been questioned, but I believe he will have a lot of flashes of greatness in his rookie season. Brandon Clarke the 21st pick in the draft was also brought in by a trade with OKC.

Veterans up front

The Grizz have committed to Center Jonas Valanciunas. To the tune of 3 year $45 million. After that there’s a lot of questions on the route of what the plan is. We’ve mentioned the two Jackson’s and there’s doubt on if Andre Igoudala will show up. Solomon Hill, Jae Crowder and Miles Plumlee are both on expiring contracts. Kyle Anderson is in the 2nd year of his 4 year $37.2 million deal. He is more of a Grit & Grind type of player, so it will be interesting to see how he is used.

Tyus Jones could be used as a transitional starter for Ja Morant, unless he can shine from the start.

Grizzly Outlook

The Grizzlies have 4 expiring contracts and the possibility of 2 first round picks in 2020-2021 season. This season looks like a transitional year, but they could surprise me and try to compete for a playoff spot, but I see them moving towards the future.

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