Memphis Grizzlies

Lionel Hollins wins 56 games, a franchise best, in the regular season: No contract extension Hollins leads the Grizzlies past the Clippers with relative ease, winning the series 4-2 to advance to the Western Conference Semifinals: No contract extension Hollins and the Grizzlies march through the Semis, beating the Thunder 4-1 to advance farther than any team in franchise history, all the way to the Western Conference Finals: No contract extension All of this information is used to precede the question: What is good enough for the new ownership group to extend Hollins' contract? And for that matter, what would be considered a "reasonable" price to this new group to re-sign a coach that has already bested franchise records in both the regular season and playoffs? The most ironic thing about all the Hollins contract hoopla is that the new ownership group was likely thinking that they might not want to spend so much to pay him what he was worth back before the Grizzlies made this playoff run. Instead of renewing Hollins contract towards the end of a phenomenal regular season, the ownership group opted to wait out the rest of the season, including the playoffs. Now, Hollins value is higher than it ever has been. Conrgatulations Robert Pera & Company. The price tag on a slightly used, helluva good coach just went up, and it's your fault that you will have to dole out more money to keep him. Just imagine Lionel Hollins sitting in his office at the Grizzlies complex after a long day's work, kicking his feet up on the desk, bending his arms and placing his hands behind his head, grinning from ear to ear, and saying "how do you like me now?" And who can blame the man? He has earned this contract extension. The ownership group and Coach Hollins WERE on a level playing field when it came to contract negotiations. The word were cannot be stressed enough, as in past tense. Now, Hollins clearly has the leverage at this point. All this leverage was gained the way anybody else gains leverage: They have other options. Coach Hollins is not short of those himself, as he has been linked to several teams that are looking for the next head coach to lead their respective franchises in the right direction. While Hollins might not have been contacted yet by several of the teams with coaching vacancies, that does not mean they won't come calling the second the Grizzlies season is over. Below are the teams that are rumored to have Lionel Hollins at the top of their coaching wish list: Milwaukee Bucks- The Bucks are at the top of the list because this might be the most enticing option for Hollins if he chooses to part ways with the Grizzlies. While other teams on this list might be closer to competing for a championship, NBA insiders have told the Racine Journal-Times out of Milwaukee that the Bucks have several talented young players that intrigue Hollins, particularly budding superstar Larry Sanders. Hollins could be salivating to develop one of the best young defenders in the league. Also, keep in mind Hollins had a brief stint as an assistant in Milwaukee in 2008, and it is not out of the realm of possibility that he built a decent relationship with management there. I don't know how big of a selling point this would be to Hollins, but his son is about to play his senior season on the basketball team at the University of Minnesota. Milwaukee is undoubtedly closer to his son than Memphis. Los Angeles Clippers- Donald Sterling finally canned Vinny Del Negro, and it looks as if Hollins is on the top of the replacement list. The Clippers could be an interesting team for Hollins because they have a strong core, and they might not be too far from making a run to the Western Conference Finals. However, most of the players on that roster would leave Hollins pulling out what little hair he has left. The style of play does not fit Hollins coaching philosophy, and I'm not sure how well he would embrace being a coach in glamorous Los Angeles. Throw in th

Struggling, startling, surprising, sobering, solidifying. Five S-words for game 2 of the Western Conference Finals in which our Memphis Grizzlies were defeated by the San Antonio Spurs. We watched some 53 minute balderdash where both teams struggled in the 1st Q, a 2nd Q where it was startling to see our starters shoot 2/16 and make it to the FT line zero times, a surprising 4th Q that saw the Griz hold the Spurs to 9 points, a sobering overtime that ended with poor, tired shooting and defeat, but perhaps revealed a new game plan and approach that's solidifying who should be playing minutes for the Grizzlies in this series. Both coaches came in with adjustments from the first game, and both teams were doing a good job of making the other stumble out of the gate. In my gamethread blurb I mentioned that I'd be okay with a first quarter resembling something like 16-14, and I guess I need to start making more ambitious demands because that's basically what we got. NBA fans were wowed by a fireworks display of Memphis' 28% shooting and San Antonio's 32%. I kept hearing about how ugly this series would be, but I'm not even sure that those pundits were ready for that first quarter. Dazzling displays of jump shots fwumping off the boards, your garden-variety Tony Allen missed layups, some gorgeous and acrobatic flopping, and Tayshaun Prince racking up a whole single turnover for his lone stat gave the first quarter the look of what some in the gamethread described as a type of high school basketball. Both coaches came in with adjustments from the first game, and both teams were doing a good job of making the other stumble out of the gate. Popovich's and Hollins' metaphorical light saber duel looked more like the scene from Space Balls rather than an epic battle from Star Wars. And to quote Dark Helmet - @#%$, I hate it when I get my Schwartz twisted. a Three Stooges routine reenacted by Allen and Randolph where they missed seven consecutive point blank shots Then the 2nd quarter happened. The Spurs went ahead and looked like they'd just cut our heads off and make this fart of a game end quickly yet painfully. Folks, we just couldn't hit anything. The Griz' 24% FG shooting and a Three Stooges routine reenacted by Allen and Randolph where they missed seven consecutive point blank shots were sandwiched by 61% shooting from the Spurs and a total of eight blocked shots in the quarter. I believe it was around this time that the officiating really started making its presence known. Boo and double boo. I don't mind getting my blood pressure up for sports, but I prefer the cause to be the elite athletes on the court and not some 50 year old sadsacks, but enough with the Tim Duncan jokes (zing!). The whole first half was an elixir of death as far as I'm concerned: The Conley fouls, the lack of effort, Tony Wroten continuing to kinda show why Dooling gets minutes. Whatever adjustment Hollins had made were countered, subcountered and altercountered (I know .. those aren't words) by Popovich in a really fluid way that was making me sick to my stomach. I was also angry. It looked like we were going to be subjected to the exact same farmhouse slop we got in game one. All I wanted was a chance to win, or at the very least not another brutal ass-kicking. The Grizzlies answered the call, thankfully, and coupled that with good ole Lady Percentages coming back into play. After abysmal shooting in the first half the Grizzlies started finding rhythm and began more aggressively seeking the better shots ... well everyone except Tayshaun Prince, but more on that later. The 3rd quarter gave us the flashy Obi Wan & Anakin Skywalker light saber duel with the Grizzlies actually outscoring their entire first half total with 33 points in the period. Tim Duncan's foul trouble gave the Griz a opportunity to mix it up in the paint and grab some second chance points. However, the Spurs matched with another 30 that was spread out by healthy contributio

The Grizzlies outscored the Spurs 21-9 in the 4th quarter last night to send the game into overtime, but they were then outscored 8-4 by the Spurs and it did them in.  The Grizzlies only shot 34% from the floor and it negated the fact that the out-rebounded the Spurs 60-46.  Jerryd Bayless (18 points, 3 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 steals and 1 blocked shot in 34 minutes) and Mike Conley (18 points, 4 rebounds, 4 assists, 2 steals and 1 blocked shot) led the way for the Grizzlies in this game.  Zach Randolph only shot 6 of 18 from the floor, but he still finished up with 15 points, 18 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 steal and 2 blocked shots despite only shooting 6 of 18 from the floor.  Marc Gasol pitched in with 12 points, 14 rebounds, 4 assists and 2 blocked shots in this game despite only shooting 4 of 12 from the floor.  The Grizzlies are now down 2-0 in this series as it shifts to Memphis for Games #3 and #4.

The Grizzlies, Tony Allen and the American Red Cross are teaming up to come to aid of victims in OKC.

The Spurs hung on to win game two in overtime, despite blowing an 18-point third quarter lead, and because of that, they lead this Western Conference Finals Series 2-0. Tim Duncan scored 6 huge points in the overtime to lead the Spurs in the extra period. Let’s take a look at each team and how they look with the rest of the series looming. This article is also seen at RogersSecondTake.webs.com Memphis Memphis now heads home, a place where they are 5-0 during their postseason run. Despite being absolutely hammered in game one, and thoroughly outplayed for the majority of game two, the Grizzlies have reason to be confident heading home. Team leader Zach Randolph, who played horribly in game one, and also had a bad first half in game two, looks like he is starting to get going. He finished the game with 15 points and 18 rebounds, with much of the production coming in the second half. Without Randolph playing at the top of his game, the Grizzlies do not have a chance. He has been the constant for Memphis the past few years in the playoffs and this series can be no different. As Memphis heads back home for game three Saturday, Randolph needs to continue his surge we saw late in the game in game two. Defensive player of the year Marc Gasol is playing well for Memphis, grabbing 14 rebounds last night. When Gasol and Randolph play well together, it is nearly impossible for a team to keep up with them on the boards. Memphis lost last night, and they still outrebounded San Antonio 60-44. That needs to get better for the Spurs or they will struggle to win again in the series. Anytime you get outrebounded by large an amount, you better shoot significantly better than the other team, and yesterday San Antonio did. The group of players that got Memphis back into the game included a pair of super subs, Quincy Pondexter and Jerryd Bayless. Both gave a lot of minutes to the Grizzlies, and both made big plays down the stretch. Bayless, however, made a poor mistake in overtime. He forced a potentially game-tying three pointer with about 12 seconds left. This was a bad mistake, but all in all, the two of these bench players gave great production for Memphis. That needs to stay consistent if they want to hold serve and win their two home games to even up the series. San Antonio For about three quarters last night, the Spurs played as pretty a game as you could play. The ball was constantly moving. Shots were being made, as the Spurs knocked down nine three-pointers. The most amazing part to watch was Tony Parker. Despite shooting poorly, which was hardly noticeable while paying attention to the rest of his game, Parker finished with 18 assists. It was a phenomenal performance, and the key to it was penetration. Parker got into the paint at will. If the defenders came to him, he would dish for a dunk or a three-pointer. If nobody came, he would take the basket himself. That is what set San Antonio apart from Memphis throughout the game. San Antonio got great penetration from their guards, while Memphis did not. San Antonio made 11 field goals in the second quarter, every single one of which came off of an assist. That is a testament to the great ball movement and overall offensive flow by the Spurs. For the game, they finished with 29 assists, while the Grizzlies finished with 19. Though they blew a significant lead, I don’t think it will mentally affect the Spurs. They are too experienced for it to affect them. In fact, it may make them stronger. After blowing the lead, it would have been very tough for an inexperienced team to come back and win in overtime. But the Spurs didn’t blink, and their leader, Tim Duncan made three huge baskets. It was a testament to the experience of the team, and head coach Gregg Popovich, who did not panic after blowing such a huge lead. The Spurs remain, 14 years year after their initial championship, one of the most balanced teams in the league.

box score The Grizzlies saved Saturday. Wait, I’ve used that lead before?… [ Read more ] [ Subscribe to the comments on this story ]

The Grizzlies fought valiantly in Game 2 in San Antonio, but all for naught. They will return to the Grindhouse for Game 3 of the Western Conference Finals with a big goose egg in the win column. (Yes, I threw Western Conference Finals in there because it still feels nice to say the Grizzlies are in the WCF.) There are two positive ways to spin a 2-0 deficit in the series. One, the Grizzlies have been here before. They were down 2-0 to the Clippers and clawed their way back to win the series. My counter point to that would be the Spurs are a much more formidable opponent than the Clips. Secondly, the Grizzlies played much better in Game 2 than in Game 1. Maybe they can head home and say look we found some things that work against the Spurs, and now we just have to take care of business at home. The first thing that sticks out is that the Grizzlies need more from the big three that is Mike Conley, Zach Randolph, and Marc Gasol. Conley finished 6-14 from the field, Randolph 6-18, and Gasol 4-12. Those percentages are not what you would expect from those three. They must be much more efficient going forward in this series for the Grizzlies to have success. Add in the fact that the rim seemingly had Grizzlies repellent on it at certain times tonight and the fact that they took some downright bad shoots at crucial junctures in the game, and that is a recipe for a loss on most nights in the Association, especially in the playoffs. Don't panic yet, Memphis! If anybody can come back from down 2-0 against a savvy veteran Spurs team, it's the Grizzlies. Keep the faith. Grind forth. Time for Game 3. Final - 5.21.2013 1 2 3 4 OT 1 Total Memphis Grizzlies 13 18 33 21 4 89 San Antonio Spurs 15 31 30 9 8 93 Complete Coverage > Loss Haiku time if you feel up to it.

You are jumping in in the middle of a conversation between myself and SpursFanTN of Pounding the Rock. The first half of the conversation is here, and it’s awesome. Kevin Lipe: One of those rituals is false. You guess which one. I have a question for you now. One that you may not want to talk about or answer, but I’m interested to hear a Spurs fan’s take on it. How many years is Tim Duncan going to play? Is there something about Pop’s system that’s enabled him to age more gracefully than most? If so, what is it? SpursFanTN: The million dollar, no, I guess, multimillion dollar question. How long is Timmy going to play? Who knows? Personally, I’m thinking 1–2 years. You’ve had guys that played into their 40s before, Kurt Thomas comes to mind - but not at this level. Steve Nash or Kareem are the most productive old guys that I can think of, although Jason Kidd comes close - until this year. I heard it said one time that some great basketball center, I don’t remember who off the top of my head, could have played into his 40s, and still put up 20 and 10. And that may be true. But there is a lot more required of big men now that the rules for defenders have changed so that checking on the perimeter is limited. Back in the day a defender that was good with his hands and arms could keep most people out of the lane. These days it is not so easy, so you need more mobile big men to rotate over and protect the rim, but not leave too soon leaving their man too wide open. So, what is amazing about Duncan is that he is still mobile enough at 37 to anchor a very strong, even elite, defensive squad. If he loses another half a step? Well, that could drastically change things. I don’t see Tim staying around to play 5 minutes a game on a team whose ceiling might optimistically be the first round of the playoffs. Obviously, Pop protects Tim - and all of his players. Spurs are on the cutting edge of analytics, sports studies, and all of that. They are well aware of fatigue factors. When you look at the Spurs minutes, they are spread out a lot more than a lot of other teams. Plus, even if a guy plays 40 minutes, he doesn’t play 20 and 20. Pop gives guys breaks to have a breather, get the wind back and let the muscles recover, even if it is only a couple of minutes - in addition to timeouts, free throws, and ordinary game breaks. This prevents injuries, and excessive fatigue. Pop doesn’t rush anyone back from injury. In a 3 games in 4 nights or 4 games in 5 nights, or even a back to back, Pop will severely limit minutes in a couple of games and/or not even let Duncan dress for a game. And I’ve gotta think that they’ve got world class trainers, therapists and doctors to keep all of these guys in the best health possible. I heard something the other day, where Pop made a statement like, "Well, it was obvious he wasn’t going to tell me how he was feeling, so I had to pull him." Pop knows his players. And his players are more important to him than winning a particular game. Pop doesn’t do the Tom Thibodeau iron man thing. But he also doesn’t treat his players like children. This is a cooperative effort. And it looks like the magic number Pop is shooting for is around 29–30 minutes per night maximum. Check out this clip of Pop and Tony negotiating minutes. Cracks me up. I love the rapport. So yes, Timmy definitely benefits from Pop’s system, and the corporate knowledge of the Spurs. But besides all of that, we’ve heard rumors and rumblings, hints and speculations about stuff that Duncan is doing on the side. There is his summer basketball thing. Apparently he invites a few NBA big men, like Roy Hibbert, to come and work out with him. There is whatever he did to help his knee which may seems to indicate that he is concentrating on conditioning rather than strength training. He started up a customer car shop. And he is a gamer. Th

I am very proud to be a contributing member of this wonderful site. I have thoroughly enjoyed all of the breakdowns, analysis, suggestions and pleas of other writers and am choosing not to waste space with more of said copy.I instead want to update you fabulous participants of GBB favorite pregame contest, Grind Prophecies. As we have been doing for the past 3-4 months, each game is preceded by a pick-em competitions with the winner getting a stunning prize provide by Grizzly Bear Blues and the SB Nation network.The winner of the current competition wins a Marc Gasol jersey and has included every playoff game to date. Boy, has it been a race. The scores are up to date on the contest's leader board page and the results are in. Leading the pack is a two-way tie between kydash and GritandGrind with 17 points each. However a handful of competitors have reached the double-digit plateau. With 15 points each Ijjung and BluesCityJoe are tied for third (golf scoring) and current holder of Grindiest Prophecier of Them All, Kwhittington, is currently sitting at 14, well within contention. Also don't write off Mulligrizz, AxelRowlings or another previous champion, Chris Faulkner.If you are a Spurs fan who happens to be reading this post, feel free to join us. Sure we will scrutinize you and rain down a barrage of respectful insults, but you are more than welcome to join in on the action. You may even find yourself on the leader board. Good luck to all those participating and go get 'em Grizzlies. Game Score and Winner (correct predictions receive 3 points, if no correct predictions, 1 point awarded to member(s) with closest differential) The Grindmaster (3 points awarded to correct predictions; if Grindmaster title is split between 2 players, 2 points go to each member who predicted either player) Spurs Team 3pt Shooting Percentage (3 points awarded to correct predictions; if no correct answers, 1 point awarded to member(s)who are closest without going over) User's Pick Grind Prophecies Playoffs 2013 Official Rules Grind Prophecies Playoffs Leader Board

You know what happened in Game 1 by now. The Grizzlies came out thinking they’d have a Sunday afternoon to play some basketball and bask in the glow of the Western Conference Finals, and maybe go look at the Alamo and eat some great Tex-Mex food. Instead, they got their heads stomped on. The Spurs beat them by 22 points, made 14 three pointers out of 29 attempts, and held Zach Randolph to 2 points and 7 rebounds on 1–8 shooting[1]. The Grizzlies over-helped, couldn’t stop Tony Parker from creating, couldn’t stop anybody from doing anything, and at the other end, everything (except Quincy Pondexter corner 3’s) came up empty. Game 1 Rewind: 3 Point Defense If the Spurs are going to shoot 48% from three this entire series you can save us all the time and fast forward to the NBA Finals. I’m not really sure what to say about “The Keys to the Game” for Game 2. There’s not a single thing the Grizzlies did any worse than anything else in Game 1, except defending the three pointer incredible poorly. In Game 2 the most important thing the Grizzlies can do is come back out and reassert their nature: tough, tenacious, unafraid, in the zone. They have to regain the composure they’ve shown throughout the playoffs so far, and prove to the world that they’re not rattled, and that they’re not checked out now that they’ve made it to this point of the season. I’m sure the guys on the team know that a lot of people believe in them. Mike Conley is on the cover of Sports Illustrated[2], the guys over at Grantland have probably written more about the Griz than about anyone other than LeBron James, three guys were All-Defense and Marc Gasol is the Defensive Player of the Year. These dudes know who they are and know where they are and know what kinds of things are being said about them. Did they let it get to them a little bit in the long break before Game 1, maybe just a little? So here are the “Keys to the Game” for Game 2. Settle down and play Memphis Grizzlies basketball. Game 1 was not the way this team plays. (Okay, well, maybe we saw some of those problems at other points during the regular season, but not like that.) I’m tired of saying “grind it out” but that’s exactly what the Grizzlies need to do tonight. “We in the mud,” says Z-Bo. Make sure the Spurs stick there tonight. Get Tony Allen to stop helping off his man. One way to do that is to stick him on Tony Parker, a move I would wholeheartedly support. And, you know, while you’re at it, get everybody else to play better defense, too. Establish Z-Bo early. Zach Randolph has to be a factor for the Grizzlies to be a factor. Getting the Marc Gasol/Zach Randolph high-low action working is going to be huge for the Grizzlies, and the Spurs are going to use Tim Duncan and Tiago Splitter to do everything possible to keep it from happening. If Gasol can come out early and his some of his patented elbow “jumpers” (which are really set shots) and spread the post defense out a little bit, that would be huge. The Spurs will adjust, obviously, but starting off on the right foot could be key. Make Tony Parker work for everything. In Game 1, Parker got into the lane and basically did whatever he wanted. If Parker is going to be able to use his abilities to create for himself and the rest of his team without any resistance from the Grizzlies, the Grizzlies are sunk. Parker has to be contained. Either way, it’s going to be a better game than Game 1. The Grizzlies have rebounded from bad losses all year and especially in the postseason. They just forget about it and move on to the next game. With any luck, they won’t forget about Game 1—they’ll still be mad about it and they’ll come out swinging. If there’s an operating principle for the 2012–2013 s