SB Nation - Marc Gasol

The bad losses start adding up... (Nuggets/Grizzlies recap)

Andrew Feinstein — Mon, 21 Dec 2009 00:11:41 -0000

The Nuggets are off to one of their best starts in NBA franchise history. But you wouldn't know it by watching their last two games...

All of the NBA's elite teams would be in serious trouble if their top players/alpha dogs went down due to injury. If the Lakers lost Kobe Bryant, they'd be finished. The Spurs sans Tim Duncan? Season over. The Cavaliers minus LeBron? Roll out the white flags. The Mavericks Dirk-less? Ditto.

But while I'd include our Nuggets among the NBA's elite, one thing seems to separate us from the rest of the pack: without one of our top four or five players in the game, the Nuggets stink. Ever since the Nuggets finished a respectable 5-2 out of the gate sans J.R. Smith (arguably the Nuggets fourth or fifth-best player), they can't win a game when one of their top-five guys goes down. Especially one of their two defensive stalwarts, Kenyon Martin and Chauncey Billups. And today's matinee loss at Memphis (even though the Nuggets had a full day of rest prior) was further proof of this.

In three games without K-Mart and now two games without Billups, the Nuggets are 0-5. Comparatively, the Lakers were 8-3 when their second-best player, Pau Gasol, opened the season in a suit and loafers. The Spurs managed to go 2-2 without the services of star guard Tony Parker. While Rashard Lewis served a drug suspension, the Magic finished 7-3. Since Greg Oden went down with a season-ending injury, the Blazers have hung in at 3-4. And minus Josh Howard, the Mavericks are 13-6 on the season. Even the Jazz managed to play .500 basketball in the two games Deron Williams, their best player, missed.

And yet the Nuggets can't seem to reel off victories unless all five star players - Carmelo Anthony, Billups, J.R., K-Mart and Nene - are on the floor. If the Nuggets couldn't beat the hapless Pistons, Bobcats and (admittedly improved) Grizzlies while missing one of their top-five guys, I cringe to think what happens when the Nuggets face a real NBA team without one of their best players on the floor.

Let's call the Nuggets inability to put a game together without both Billups and K-Mart in the game "Problem #1." And we'll call their woeful rebounding and porous interior defense "Problem #2." The Grizzlies put in 27 second-chance points and grabbed 18 more rebounds than the Nuggets today. Last time I checked, that's not Chauncey's department in the first place.

The two problems point to one glaring need: the Nuggets need an extra big man. Marc Gasol may not be walking through the door in a Nuggets uniform anytime soon, but any competent big will do at this point. Perhaps we should convert my summer wish list for a big man into a Christmas wish list...

Stiffs of the Game

-J.R. Smith, Ty Lawson and Kenyon Martin: J.R. built off his great game at New Orleans by shooting 12 shots and making just two of them. He also had three careless turnovers and no assists. Meanwhile, Lawson rewarded Nuggets head coach George Karl for anointing him as starting point guard by dishing out just two assists and missing all three of his shot attempts. And K-Mart was assigned to guard Zach Randolph who...

Non-Stiff of the Game

-Zach Randolph: ...lit up K-Mart and the Nuggets for 32 points and a stunningly high 24 rebounds (nine offensive). Z-Bo was so dominant over K-Mart that K-Mart's +/- at game's end was -20. Ewww. Last time I checked, Randolph is out of shape and can't jump. So how the @#$% did he grab 24 rebounds? (In fairness to K-Mart, a current NBA assistant coach once told me that no one is smarter at using his body to score and grab caroms than Randolph.)

Opposition's Recap: Straight Outta Vancouver

Photo courtesy of AP Photos: Nikki Boertman

Doing Dirt: Grizzlies Hammer Pacers 107-94

djturtleface — Sat, 19 Dec 2009 18:45:30 -0000

More photos » by Joe Murphy - NBAE/Getty Images

1 day ago: MEMPHIS, TN - DECEMBER 18: Rudy Gay #22 of the Memphis Grizzlies dunks past Troy Murphy #3 of the Indiana Pacers on December 18, 2009 at FedExForum in Memphis, Tennessee. (Photo by Joe Murphy/NBAE via Getty Images)

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Well I picked the winner in this one, and it's good to see the Grizzlies managing to definitively beat the teams that they should beat.

The Pacers, short breakout star Danny Granger, struggled on offense despite pushing the tempo for the bulk of the night. They only shot around 40% from the field, which is especially poor given the Grizzlies inability to hold much of anybody below 50%.

Instead of listing all the guys who played well for the Memphis Grizzlies, I suppose it would just be easier to list off the starting lineup: Mike Conley, O.J. Mayo, Rudy Gay, Zach Randolph, and Marc Gasol. All of them got busy last night.

And Z-Bo got especially busy, dropping 26 points with 16 boards, 3 assists, and 3 blocks. The dude has been playing inspired ball for Memphis.

A little bit worrisome, however, is that even with extended minutes the bench only managed to score a measly 7 points. They didn't shoot much, with only 11 field goals attempted, but that's probably warranted since they only made 3 shots in the entire game.

Next game, against the Denver Nuggets, is going to be tougher than this one. And judging by both team's play lately, it looks like it will be a shootout between the starters.

Five Game Cycles: New Year Early

djturtleface — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 17:31:35 -0000

More photos » by John Amis - AP

The Grizzlies got off to a bad start to this five game cycle, getting blown out and dunked on regularly against the Hawks last night. (AP Photo/John Amis)

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The Grizzlies had a tough set of five games, which is how Coach Hollins has told the young team to see their schedule, over the past two weeks. With Dallas, Cleveland, and then Oklahoma City at home, Memphis saw some serious superstar scoring.

They then took it onto the road against Miami, and then came back home against the Celtics. For those of you that don't really follow the rest of the league, that's five teams currently in the playoffs with a combined 82-41. For those of that don't really follow mathematics, that means they win twice as often as they lose.

And yet the Grizzlies came away from this five 3-2, which is one win better than Coach Lionel Hollins wants to average on the season, and two wins better than I predicted in the last edition of 'Five Game Cycles'

Get over the jump to see how the Grizzlies made dreams come true and also what to expect from this five game cycle.

The Breakdown- (3-2): Talk about some kind of goodness. The Memphis Grizzlies just lit it up on offense, just torching some big time defensive squads. The Grizzlies averaged a nice 105 points per game.

Yes, that number is somewhat high because the Grizzlies battled, and beat, the Cavaliers in overtime, though they probably also would have dropped a few more buckets had they needed to play the starters longer during a blowout against the Mavericks. And against Miami the Grizzlies offense barely even had to play to score 118, all they needed was to put the ball in Rudy Gay's hands -- he scored a career high 41 points.

The two losses came against Boston and Oklahoma City. The Grizzlies looked flustered by a very motivated, and increasingly talented, Oklahoma City Thunder. But when Boston came to town they worked out Boston's defense, getting up and down the court, shooting 50%, and scoring 105. It was too bad Boston had even less trouble on offense.

What Feels Good- Big wins against big teams always feel good for the Grizzlies. But this five game cycle was special because it also included two blowouts against playoff teams, not to mention the young Grizzlies leaving their hearts on the court in losses against the Celtics and the Thunder.

Rudy Gay continues to prove that he can contribute in more ways than highlight reel dunks. Rudy is racking up steals and rebounds like never before, and is sharing the ball better than ever also. Most importantly though, in my opinion at least, that extra muscle is helping. Rudy is now averaging a career-high number of free throw attempts per game -- if only he could start making some.

You've also got to like seeing Marc Gasol coming out of his relative slump, Mike Conley has been scoring much better at times, Jamaal Tinsley has made some serious intangible contributions, Sam Young and Hasheem Thabeet are both playing better, and O.J. Mayo is getting some consistency on his stroke.

Tell Me What Hurts- We're going to harp on this all season, I think, because the Grizzlies defense is just downright poor at times. It's definitely improving, but I also have a feeling that no amount of cohesion and growth under Coach Hollins is going to get rid of this problem.

I mean Zach Randolph, Mike Conley, and O.J. Mayo all have significant shortcomings as defenders. Zach just isn't that great and, more importantly, isn't respected by the other team. No matter how many hands he puts in their face, other power forwards just shoot right over him with confidence because they have no fear. Mike is too small and isn't strong enough, and O.J. Mayo arguably is as well.

Also there has to be some serious concern over the minutes these starters are playing, especially Rudy, who is around 40 minutes per game and still doesn't really have a sub. If Von Wafer is signed, he will slide to backup shooting guard and Sam Young will be at the forward spot, but our sub teams definitely need at least one starter on the floor with them at all times.

Into the Horizon- Here's a big prediction: the Grizzlies are going to lose to the Atlanta Hawks 110-97. Joe Johnson will handle the much, much smaller O.J. Mayo. And Rudy Gay will roll his ankle, which is more than a little bit worrisome without much depth on the bench.

But the next four are Indiana, Denver, Golden State, and then Dallas again. Indiana has some serious problems without Danny Granger, and T.J. Ford is one of the few good matchups for Mike Conley. Denver will be somewhere between tough and impossible, especially if Rudy Gay is laying on the sick bed all game. Golden State should be a win, but even in their dilapidated state, that franchise is always dangerous. And Dallas certainly isn't planning on crapping out against against Memphis, especially not at home.

So I'll give us a number that will make Coach Hollins nice and happy. The Grizzlies should come out of this stretch 2-3, and this next couple weeks is definitely going to test their staying power. The national media is starting to give respect -- the Grizzlies are 16th in ESPN's newest power rankings -- and this week, especially possibly dealing with Rudy's injury, is going to go a long way towards proving they deserve to be there.

Game 21: Oklahoma City at Memphis

Zorgon — Fri, 11 Dec 2009 20:49:46 -0000

More photos » by Lance Murphey - AP

Ryan Bowen gawked at the fact that the Thunder lost against the Grizzlies in the Pre-Season. Kyle Weaver was concerned too, but at least he tried to do something about it.

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This also counts as an open thread, so feel free to post your thoughts during the game here.

Time: 7:00 PM Central Standard Time

Place: The Fedex Library, Memphis, Tennessee

TV: Fox Sports Oklahoma, Fox Sports Tennessee

Radio: WWLS The Sports Animal (98.1)

Enemy Blog(s): 3 Shades of Blue, Straight Outta Vancouver

Backstory: Just another game, or just another surprise?

Okay, so there's not a whole lot to marvel over or write about when concerning the Memphis Grizzlies.But, contrary to popular belief, they are doing relatively well. Sure, they're only on pace to win 30 some games, but they've won their last 3 games against Minnesota, Dallas, and Cleveland. And the team is showing no signs of slowing down. The starting lineup has had the talent there, but they haven't yet had the teamwork in place in order to win. Until now, at least. With a lean, mean mix of veterans and young'uns in their starting lineup that Garry St. Jean could only dream of, this team is poised and in position to upset the Thunder tonight.

Meanwhile, the Thunder got their anger out when they played the lowly and depleted Warriors, and they're well rested going into tonight's game. They straight up dominated the Grizzlies last season, and history would say that the Thunder could easily be the team to end the Grizzlies win streak.

Below: Matchups, Prediction

Matchups:

Center: Nenad Krstic vs. Marc Gasol

Pau Gasol lite may not be as good as his brother, but he's definitely much better inside than Nenad Krstic. Expect limited minutes and less than 10 points for Krstic, while the majority of the game is spent with battles between Gasol, Collison, and Thomas, with Gasol winning most of them.

Power Forward: Jeff Green vs. Zach Randolph

The story of Jeff Green's season has been his struggles against bigger power forwards, but luckily for Jeff, Zach Randolph is much of a defender. Expect both of these guys to score bucket after bucket upon each other, and for each of them to get their fair share of rebounds.

Small Forward: Kevin Durant vs. Rudy Gay

Rudy Gay is quite the dunker, but history says that Kevin Durant will win this matchup every time.

Shooting Guard: Thabo Sefolosha vs. O.J. Mayo

O.J. Mayo is a solid overall shooting guard, and history has dictated that he usually performs above-average against the Thunder. But with Thabo Sefolosha guarding him now, who knows what will happen?

Point Guard: Russell Westbrook vs. Mike Conley

Mike Conley is a solid point guard, but not the best player on the Grizzlies by any stretch of the imagination. He'll provide scoring for them in the pinch, but Westbrook will have a better game.

Battle of the Benches:

For how good their starting lineup is, the Grizzlies bench is extremely thin. A lot of guys will play, and one will occasionally step up and be an X-Factor, but in general, they're all pretty ineffective. The only real notables are this years 2nd Pick in Hasheem Thabeet, and former Pacers PG Jamaal Tinsley. In any case, our bench has this thing covered.

Coaching and Intangibles:

The Grizzlies are at home, but that doesn't make that much of a difference, as it's a pretty quiet arena, and it's where we got our much-heralded 2nd win last year. Both teams are well rested, so all in all, it makes a pretty even intangibles matchup on the floor tonight.

Bottom Line:

I know things have been going well for the Grizzlies lately, but I'm still not convinced. This is a team we beat 3 times last year, and a team without any bench help. They could win, but they'd need everything to go right with all of their starters, and they'd need to put up a good defensive effort. That being said, this team can be dangerous, and they will be able to compete. But, in the end, I'll just chalk this one up as another Thunder win.

Prediction: Thunder 103, Grizzlies 97

Let's rock the library!

How do you think the game will go? Vote in the Poll!

And, again, feel free to drop any comments you might have during, before, or after the game below. I might be by during the game to drop my thoughts as well. Go Thunder!

Poll

Who's going to win tonight?

My Back Is A Wall: Grizzlies Thrill Big Crowd, Beat the Cavaliers

djturtleface — Wed, 09 Dec 2009 04:25:45 -0000

More photos » by Lance Murphey - AP

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The Memphis Grizzlies blew up in the second half, just outright hustling to this win against the Cavaliers. The bench might not have done much, but the entire starting lineup put in an incredible night's work.

O.J. Mayo kept the Grizzlies in it through the first half, Rudy Gay closed it out on both ends in the second half, but Zach Randolph was a fixture throughout. Randolph led the Grizzlies with 32 points, O.J. Mayo had 28 while dropping a mini-triple double with 5 boards and 5 dimes, too. Rudy Gay scored 21, but his biggest contributions were the 4 steals.

After a terrible 2nd quarter, the Grizzlies equalized it in the 3rd quarter with fantastic ball-denial defense. They duked it out in the 4th, tying the game up with a Rudy Gay drive right past LeBron James. In overtime O.J. Mayo hit a huge three pointer on a set play, and then Mike Conley sealed the win with a nice layup drive on another great, intuitive play-call by Lionel Hollins.

The Grizzlies got the win despite a huge night from LeBron, who scored 43 points and tallied 13 rebounds and 6 assists, and nice contributions from both Shaquille O'Neal and Mo Williams. The rest of the Cavaliers were quiet, though LeBron was

I'm going to get in an update on this later tonight, so be sure to get over the jump for the opinion section in a hot minute.

I grew up around Cleveland hating the Cavaliers and getting hated on constantly for being a Grizzlies fan, so I'm just soaking it all in right now. To see this young team that I backed hard all summer, despite some moves most pundits called questionable, fight for this win in front of a near capacity crowd just could not have felt better.

I'm just trying to put myself in the shoes of O.J. Mayo, who gets clutch-nasty all game, is willing to drop back and trust his teammates in the second half, and then comes on for a post-game interview responding, "Yes sir, Coach McHale." Wow, I had to slap myself to check if his attitude was for real.

Talk about a team that's actually working hard to get away from their dunk-silly, Allen Iverson signing, ball-hogging recent pass. Jamaal Tinsley, who's trying to play for redemption, looked happy to be on the bench, coaching his teammates into the right defensive scheme. This is a guy who the Pacers just paid millions and millions to get the hell out of the clubhouse.

Did I see Zach Randolph missing some wide open shooters? Yes. But I saw him make some smart exit passes out of the post as well, including an under-handed gem that got Hasheem Thabeet room for a nice flourish. Did Rudy Gay takes some selfish looking shots? Yes. But he took a hell of a lot less of them then LeBron.

This game might not have meant that much to the Cavaliers, and I'm not sure if it meant that much to the Grizzlies either. Why? Because it's becoming increasingly clear that the Grizzlies players already are trusting each other and playing hard for the win.

But to move back to myself, as well as every other Grizzlies fan I can hear the voice of around the world wide web, it meant a lot to us. Why? Because the Memphis Grizzlies are finally starting to prove to everyone else that they're coming together as a basketball team that demands respect.

You're Twenty Deep: Analyzing Marcus Williams

djturtleface — Sun, 06 Dec 2009 21:15:25 -0000

More photos » by Sam Forencich - NBAE/Getty Images

Lets take a look at the new kids on the block.

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So the next game against Cleveland might be on NBATV, but its like 25 days away, so I got to thinking that maybe now would be a good time to fit in some of that analysis everybody likes so much.

I came up with this nice little gimmick. Let's check in with all the Grizzlies new players this season, I'm talking about the ones that managed to stay in Memphis for more than three games, and see how they're adjusting.

The order is going to be Marcus Williams, DeMarre Carroll, Sam Young, Hasheem Thabeet, and Zach Randolph. I think this is probably in order of preseason buzz. Maybe I'll include Marc Gasol too, since he's basically a brand new freaking person after losing 150 lbs., mostly hair, in the offseason.

Anyhow, without further ado, here's how Marcus "Who's Laptop" Williams has performed this year -- advanced stats included!

Marcus, you're not Kenny Rogers, you can't gamble every possession.

I'm not sure I've ever seen Marcus Williams pickpocket another point at the top of the key. That means he's probably close to 0 out of 1189, because the dude has no concept of defense. If he was balling in Rucker, alright maybe, but this is the NBA Slick Willy, you got to respect the handles.

Outside of that little frustration -- and by little frustration, I mean frustration big enough to get banished to riding the thinnest pine in the Association -- Williams has done his part. He has proved that he can pass when he's looking to pass, and he has proved he can score when he's looking to score.

Problem here is that you can always tell what he wants to do. It's so obvious. Maybe it's something about how he dribbles or something, but I can tell if he's looking to get his own shot or pass basically every time he touches the ball. I'm pretty sure the defense can tell too, and predictability isn't quite as desirable as consistency, which is another trait that Williams doesn't have.

According to 82games.com, 35% of Marcus Williams's shots come with the 0-10 seconds off the shot clock. On these quick shots he is shooting a blistering 39.3% effective field goal percentage. That's terrible, and while I'm not ready to do background research, I'm going to say that forcing low-percentage shots early in the clock isn't a desirable quality in a point guard.

And yet somehow Marcus Williams is managing to make his Grizzlies teammates one hell of a lot better. Again from 82games.com, all but two of the top ten (top ten not in terms of performance, but minutes played) 5-man units that include Marcus Williams have positive plus-minuses.

Again it doesn't make much sense how Marcus Williams could possibly help the team this much, because when you look at the Grizzlies's offensive, defensive efficiency splits with Marcus Williams on and off the court, they're not exactly fantastic. When Williams is in the Grizzlies score almost 7 points less per 100 possessions, which is a huge difference, though they do make up for that by giving up about 2 point less per 100 possessions.

Why? Probably because the Grizzlies shoot 2% worse with Marcus Williams in despite having far more assists, but mostly because they average a staggering -4 in turnover differential per 48 minutes. Basically, with Marcus Williams in instead of Mike Conley and, to a lesser extent Jamaal Tinsley, the Grizzlies turn the ball over 2 times extra and get 2 less turnovers. So much for all that gambling.

So somehow in 20 games Marcus Williams has managed to play pretty horribly by nearly every personal metric, yet the units he has played in appear to be winners. Does it make any sense? No, it doesn't.

But neither does trying to steal the ball at half-court every play, does it?

Mavericks Vs Grizzlies:Game 20 Preview

Phillip Baggett — Fri, 04 Dec 2009 20:57:14 -0000

Mavericks vs Grizzlies preview

Mavericks vs Grizzlies coverage

Straight Outta Vancouver

The Match-ups:

Point Guard

Jason Kidd: Someone needs to go investigate Kidd's home and make sure he is not holding Dr. Emmitt Brown and his time traveling Delorean captive, because he is playing more like the 1997 version of himself.

vs.

Mike Conley: His points are down and his turnovers are up, a deadly combination not only for his career but his team as well, but then again when you have to play with the likes of O.J. Mayo, and Zach Randolph (two of the largest ball hogs in the league) what do you expect. Mike would be a solid point guard on just about any other team in the league, except the Nets of course.

Edge: Mavericks

Shooting Guard

Rodrigue Beaubois: Another game, another start, another 9 minutes of court time. When will we see more of Roddy B and less of the man with the tiniest arms in the league?

vs.

O.J. Mayo: Tons of talent, but no brains. If he would ever learn how to be a team player he could be deadly, but until then he will be just what he is... the +/- on a crappy team

Edge: Mavericks

Forward

Shawn Marion: The Mavs defense begins and ends with Shawn Marion, he has been the catalyst for this team. When Marion is on the floor the Mavs are +13.5, when he is not on the floor that number goes to +2, not only that but their opponents FG% jumps 5%.

vs.

Rudy Gay: If I could take one player from the Griz and bring him to Dallas it would be Rudy without any second thoughts. Rudy is an explosive player and shoots the ball unbelievable well, coming into tonight he is averaging 21ppg and shooting 50% from the field. Can you imagine a Mavs line up of Kidd, Gay, Marion, Dirk, and Erick Gooden, WOW

Edge: Memphis

Power Forward

Dirk Nowitzki: The Mavs will go just as far as Dirk takes them. Tonight could be a huge night for Dirk with Zach Randolph drawing the defensive assignment.

vs.

Zach Randolph: As great as he is on the offensive end, he is equalling terrible on defense. He will have his hands full tonight trying to guard Dirk Nowitzki.

Edge: Mavericks

Center

~~Drew Gooden Erick Dampier~~ Who knows: In my last preview I said that Drew Gooden deserved the start, but after Damps performance in that game my opinion has changed. Either player is capable of starting, so whomever gives the Mavs the best opportunity should be the one to start on any given night. Tonight I believe Gooden will be that man... but who knows

vs.

Marc Gasol: Is a legitimate 15 and 10 guy, however Marc seems to have some of the same disease that has plagued Tony Romo over the years, you know that thing that causes him to fall apart in clutch time.

Edge: Mavericks

Injuries/Suspensions

Memphis Grizzlies

OUT - Darrell Arthur

Dallas Mavericks

OUT - Josh Howard

Prediction: The Mavs take control early and never look back.

Dallas Mavericks: 114

Memphis Grizzlies: 101

Traveler's Tales: Grizzlies lose to Clippers 98-88

djturtleface — Mon, 30 Nov 2009 01:55:44 -0000

by Gus Ruelas - AP

21 days ago: Memphis Grizzlies guard O.J. Mayo, center, attempts to get by Los Angeles Clippers forward Craig Smith, left, and guard Eric Gordon, right, in the second half of an NBA basketball game, Sunday, Nov. 29, 2009, in Los Angeles. The Clippers won 98-88. (AP Photo/Gus Ruelas)

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If there's something more painful than watching your team put up one of the worst 4th quarters in basketball, it has to be getting on a plane with your team up 16 points, then seeing that they've lost by 10 when you land. I didn't believe it at first; it had to be a mistake by ESPN. But after booting up my League Pass and watching the game, it was clear that I wasn't the only tired traveler.

The Grizzlies just fell apart in the fourth. O.J. Mayo couldn't even come close to guarding his less-heralded arch rival Eric Gordon, and Al Thornton also stepped up to make some big shots. They turned the ball over, couldn't execute anything, and it showed as forced shot after forced shot kept clanking.

Head over to Clips Nation to give them their due, bang your head against a wall, and get some rest, because we go back at it tomorrow against the Utah Jazz. Awards and, as per usual, your insights are over the jump.

Rockness Monster: Is Marc Gasol ever going to give this spot up? The Spaniard is, arguably, outplaying his brother Pau Gasol during his stay in Memphis. I mean, seriously, Zach Randolph wasn't exactly reaping vengeance out there and Marc just carried the post with 26 points, 5 boards, 6 assists, 3 steals, and 3 blocks.

U-Turn: The Grizzlies had an uncharacteristically poor rebounding night tonight, largely due to Z-Bo's inability to make much happen out there. Marc started seeing double-teams from Chris Kaman and Marcus Camby, both defensive stalwarts, and it led to a tough night. The runner-up was Z-Bo dishing 4 assists after recognizing that he probably should avoid shooting -- big ups, big man.

Bitter Limon: Mike Conley is still starting over Jamaal Tinsley, which isn't how things should be. Tinsley deserved and got the lion's share of the minutes, but Lionel Hollins needs to set the ship right before there are any locker room tiffs.

Sleeping With the Enemy: I would rather have Eric Gordon than O.J. Mayo. Really. No, really. In his second or third game back, Gordon looked special. Even Old Man Camby had this to say about kid:

"Eric's a phenomenal player," Camby said. "I think he has the potential to be a special player like the LeBrons, the Kobes and the Carmelos. You'll be mentioning Eric Gordon's name for a long time."

Now that might be taking it a little bit far, but Eric Gordon and Blake Griffin are going to be a terrible two-some in the upcoming years.

Poll

You must choose.

Eric Gordon

58 votes

O.J. Mayo

23 votes

81 votes | Poll has closed

Sometimes the Best Gifts: Memphis beats Portland 106-96

djturtleface — Sat, 28 Nov 2009 06:25:12 -0000

More photos » by Don Ryan - AP

22 days ago: Portland Trail Blazers forward LaMarcus Aldridge, left, looks to pass against Memphis Grizzlies forward Zach Randolph during the first half of their NBA basketball game in Portland, Ore., Friday, Nov. 27, 2009. (AP Photo/Don Ryan)

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Forget the final score, this game was a beat-down led by a 21-0 run by Memphis in the first half. And even after that, the Grizzlies kept rolling to a 31-2 streak. By the time the Blazers had pulled within striking distance even Hasheem Thabeet had managed to score 9 points.

Hop over the jump for a short reaction and a few thoughts; I didn't watch the whole thing, so the real opinion comes tomorrow. That means no awards show tonight, but also be sure to get on over to Blazersedge for what I'm sure will be a rant and rave session.

The Grizzlies were anchored by Marc Gasol and Zach Randolph banging down below. The two combined for 40 points and 24 rebounds, and they did so in a relatively dominant fashion, shooting well and limiting the impact of LaMarcus Aldridge.

O.J. Mayo also showed that long lost spark, taking over ball-handling duties while playing with Mike Conley and distributing 6 assists, while scoring when Jamaal Tinsley played alongside him. He went 9-14 for 19 points, and his jumper was what really opened things up for the Grizzlies.

Speaking of Conley and Tinsley, the point guard battle hardly seems like a battle. The Grizzlies play like a real team with Tinsley in the game. He is the addition that Iverson wasn't for Memphis, sadly he won't sell quite as many tickets even though he's the better player right now.

The Memphis Grizzlies still have a lot to prove before I'll bless this core as a team worth holding together, but in the past few weeks they're starting to look closer than I've seen in a long time.

Lover's Embrace: Memphis Grizzlies Blow Out Kings 116-105

djturtleface — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 03:47:10 -0000

More photos » by Mark Weber - AP

27 days ago: Sacramento Kings' Tyreke Evans, second from right, drives to the basket against Memphis Grizzlies', from left, Marc Gasol, of Spain; Sam Young; and Rudy Gay during the first half of an NBA basketball game game in Memphis, Tenn., Monday, Nov. 23, 2009. (AP Photo/Mark Weber)

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Team cohesiveness hasn't been a strong suit of the Memphis Grizzlies since, well, ever. In the pre-playoff days, it never really seemed like anybody liked Pau. You can't just exclude the franchise player like he's the nerdy European. In the playoff days, people seemed to like Pau even less. Doesn't make sense, but it's true.

And since the post-Pau days, team morale and locker room togetherness has been piss poor. Rudy Gay and O.J. Mayo openly feuded last season, something that received little press but was obviously apparent. Mike Conley couldn't exist with Kyle Lowry platooning, which is of course absurd. Darko ripped his freaking jersey off.

There was no reason to rip a jersey off tonight though. The Grizzlies moved the ball nicely. All the starters found shots. Rudy Gay looked like a franchise player, as he has the past few games. It's not like the Kings are exactly world-beaters, but they beat us last time, and this time we killed it.

When the national media claimed that adding Zach Randolph and Allen Iverson was going to blow up the solid young locker room, it was like, "What solid young locker room?" With Iverson out of the picture, however, a nice little bit of camaraderie is starting to appear.

The terrifying part is that Zach Randolph has been a part of it. Z-Bo has been saying the right things to the press. He has been sharing the ball. He hustles, at least as much as he can hustle. He cleans up Rudy and O.J.'s out-of-control messes. Over the past couple games, Randolph has constantly had his arms around Rudy and Marc's necks, and I don't think he's just tired from all that hustling.

Zach Randolph is acting like a veteran leader for this team, especially for Marc Gasol and Rudy Gay. Is it a surprise that those two are rocking with their backs to the basket? Yes. It is a surprise. I think I know the culprit. And I like it. That doesn't mean I want to see Rudy stop dunking or want Marc Gasol to start shooting that one handed post shot that should never, never freaking ever, go in -- but it is encouraging.

Rockness Monster: Rudy Gay is starting to play more like a franchise player every night. Not a championship team caliber star, mind you, but a franchise player. His game is becoming a lot like Carmelo Anthony's, but more Paul Pierce in terms of contribution. And yes, I think that he could have a very Pierce-like career.

U-Turn: Mike Conley played not so awful tonight. Also Marcus Williams came astonishingly close to a DNP-CD because Jamaal "Ashey Larry" Tinsley just straight rocked the fast break. He doesn't have his sea legs under him on defense yet, but knows how to move the ball up the court.

Bitter Limon: O.J. Mayo is terrible at defense almost all the time. I used to think he was good, but that's just not true. He lined up almost exclusively against Tyreke Evans tonight, and vice versa, and Reke Havok routinely blew past him for an easy bucket or to draw a foul on one of the bigs.

Sleeping With the Enemy: The Kings got a lot of ticky-tack fouls and violations, specifically travels and reach-in calls, early on. The Grizzlies got them too, but not until after it made some sense. Anyways, it clearly got in the Kings players' heads, which in turn diminished their efforts. Omri Casspi continued to look great, so did Tyreke, and Sergio Rodriguez looked decent too. But I didn't see the back-to-wall effort this team was supposed to show.