The evolution of the Memphis Grizzlies franchise since its infant days in Vancouver is really something to marvel at when you consider where they are as of today. They are currently on their 7th head coach in their franchise’s history with Lionel Hollins and are out of the first round for just the second time in their 18-year history. If you parlay that with the fact that Memphis traded their top scorer, Rudy Gay, at the end of January for Ed
It’s no fun to talk about the struggled of the hurting, reeling, futile Chicago Bulls. They shot roughly 25 percent and scored 65 points without three leading players (if you include Derrick Rose). It almost seems like the Heat feel bad for the Bulls. A more interesting story is of a long-overlooked franchise seizing its window of opportunity to advance further than it ever has before: the hard-nosed Memphis Grizzlies. With Russell Westbrook out for Oklahoma City, Memphis knows it can move on
And just like that, the second round is upon us. If that felt a little abrupt, don’t worry: it was. Somehow the first series to be set is the last to get underway, which I’m sure Gregg Popovich and the Spurs won’t mind. Mark Jackson and the Warriors probably won’t mind too much either, with Andrew Bogut and Steph Curry’s ankle troubles. For more on the Warriors and Spurs, check out Jan Hubbard’s latest column. The other series that starts tomorrow
There have been exactly a dozen NBA trades made this season, from small to significant. Some teams wanted to clear up money, some teams wanted to continue rebuilding, while others took bold steps in ensuring present and future success on the court. But in our society of instant gratification and unceasing competition, we almost have an unquenchable thirst for deciding winners and losers. [Read more…]
If you are a lottery team heading towards nowhere in particular as the season winds down, what do you do when your best player is due back from an injury? Do you play him in a bunch of meaningless games and risk further injury, or do you play him in hopes of finding chemistry development for next season? That is the question a number of teams are currently dealing with, including the Cleveland Cavaliers, Minnesota Timberwolves and – to an extent –
Trading a star core player from a contending team is not usually a popular move with a team’s fan base, but we’ve seen two such moves this season improve a pair of Western Conference contenders. The Oklahoma City Thunder have actually benefited from dealing James Harden to Houston, and the Memphis Grizzlies are 16-6 since trading forward Rudy Gay to Toronto in a three-team, six-player deal on Jan. 30, the latest victory coming on Marc Gasol’s tip-in at the end of
Dwight Howard sure did open up a can of worms when he called out his former teammates in a recent interview with Kristine Leahy, saying he led a group of guys that no one else wanted on their team. Didn’t Howard say he has learned his lesson when it comes to discussing matters of this nature with the media? It’s well known around the league that the big man simply wants to be liked by everyone. Newsflash: no one is going to
