SB Nation - Marcus Williams

Spurs International Roundup: Finding James Gist. Hah, I did it.

Wayne Vore (ATS) — Tue, 08 Dec 2009 21:47:13 -0000

James Gist is on the radar. He has signed with the Russian team Lokomotiv Kuban after rehabbing an unspecified injury. Unfortunately, he didn't play for them today and they dropped to 0-3 in the EuroChallenge.

Tiago Splitter

Caja Laboral

ACB (Spanish League): 7-3

EuroLeague: 4-2

Age: 24

Height: 7' 0"

Weight: 240

1st round, 28th pick, 2007

Caja Laboral improved to 4-2 with a solid 67-60 win over Lottomatica Roma. Tiago was again very good with 15 points, 8 rebounds, and 3 assists in 28 minutes. 5-10 from the field and 5-6 from the line.

They have a big road game against Maccabi Electra who leads the group. Caja will advance to the next round regardless, but this game will be a good indicator of whether or not they are still a top-tier EuroLeague squad.

In Spanish league play, they continued their way of easing past bottom feeders. This time it was a 78-68 win over Estudiantes. The entered the fourth up only 4. Tigger led his team in scoring and rebounding with 16 and 8. 5-10 from the field and 6-6 from the ilne. He also corked a couple shots.

This Saturday they face a solid DKV Joventut team on the road. For those of you who want to watch, it will be streamed here at 1:00 Spurs time.

Highlights of the win over Estudiantes

The ball fake at 1:14 is fantastic.

Tiago can hang on the rim with the best of them.

Nando De Colo

Power Electric Valencia

ACB (Spanish League): 8-3

EuroCup : 3-0

Age: 22

Height: 6' 5"

Weight: 185

2nd round, 53rd pick, 2009

Valencia got their second win in as many games in EuroCup last Tuesday with a great 78-77 win over the French squad Le Mans. SpurNando only had 12 points, but he shot efficiently-ish and only had 2 turnovers in 22 minutes.

Valencia completed a sweep of the first round of group play today with a 67-59 win over BC Triumph of the Russian League. Again, Nando didn't have big numbers. Only 13 points and 6 rebounds, but he limited his turnovers to two in 22 minutes. He also was clutch with 8 of his points coming in the fourth quarter of a wild game. Valencia, playing on the road, jumped out to a 46-22 halftime lead thanks to a 29-9 second quarter. However, BC Triumph entered the fourth only down 4 on the heels of a 24-4 third quarter. 4. Yes, 4. Valencia scored 4 points in the quarter. Nando was 4-7 from the field, 3-3 from the line, and 2-3 from distance.

In Spanish League play, Valencia got handed their third loss by an undefeated Real Madrid 77-66. Nando had a great stat line in the loss. 19 points and 3 assists (only 2 turnovers). He was 6-9 from the field, 5-5 from the line, and 2-3 from 3-point.

Highlights of the loss to Real Madrid.

You HAVE to see the Nando pass at the 30 second mark. Pure Ginobili.

James Gist

Lokomotiv Kuban

Russian League: 4-2

EuroChallenge: 0-3

Age: 23

Height: 6' 9"

Weight: 220

2nd round, 57th pick, 2008

I feel so complete now. It's crazy.

Here is the press release from the Lokomotiv Kuban site. As I said earlier, he didn't play today in the EuroChallenge loss to Gravelines-Dunkerque. G-D is where Austin Toro Russell Carter, the guy who went to the bench when Malik was assigned, played last year.

Robertas Javtokas

BC Khimki

Russian League: 5-1

EuroLeague: 4-2

Age: 29

Height: 6' 10"

Weight: 240

2nd round, 56th pick, 2001

In EuroLeague play, Khimki dropped a roadie to Real Madrid 70-59. The loss dropped them to 4-2, but they are in no danger of not advancing to the round of 16. Robertas was a beast, going for 17 and 9.

The Russian League was on hiatus this week to play a round in the VTB. This week they play the undefeated CSKA Moscow team.

Jack McClinton

Aliaga Petkim

Turkish League: 3-5

Age: 23

Height: 6' 2"

Weight: 185

2nd round, 51st pick, 2009

Aliaga dropped a tight one 77-75 to Bornova Belediye. Jack Mac wasn't shy about shooting in this one as he hoisted 17 shots in his 26 minutes. Unfortunately, he wasn't making much. 0-8 from two point range and 3-9 from long range. That's 3-17 total. Yuck! Teammate Quinton Hosley had 23 and 16. Albert Brown had 29 and 12 for the winners.

Asvel Basket

Tony's Team

French League: 3-7

EuroLeague: 2-4

Asvel picked up their second EuroLeague win with a 77-67 win over Zalgiris Kaunas. Rawle Marshall had 20 points and 5 boards for Asvel. They just recently signed him. Dainius Salenga had 25 for Zalgiris.

In league play, they eeked out a 77-76 win over Chalon. Drew Neitzel plays for Chalon and had 23.

TJ Parker is now playing for Asvel.

Eric Dawson

Mitsubishi Diamond Dolphins

JBL (Japanese League): 2-16

Age: 24?

Height: 6' 9"

Weight: 235

Austin Toros 2007-2009

Mitsubishi has a two week break. Well, the whole Japanese league does.

Marcus Williams

Zheijang Wanma

CBA (Chinese League): 0-0

Age: 23

Height: 6' 7"

Weight: 210

Austin Toros 2007-2009

Marcus signed with Zheijang Wanma Cyclones. You can read the news here. It makes it sound like he is still trying out. So who knows. The schedule hasn't been posted yet, so I don't know when they started the season.

Spurs International Roundup

Wayne Vore (ATS) — Tue, 01 Dec 2009 13:00:13 -0000

EuroCup got started for Power Electric Valencia, Caja Laboral squared off with CSKA Moscow in the EuroLeague, and I found Marcus Williams.

Tiago Splitter

Caja Laboral

ACB (Spanish League): 7-3

EuroLeague: 3-2

Age: 24

Height: 7' 0"

Weight: 240

1st round, 28th pick, 2007

Caja Laboral had a tough week as they dropped both their games.

In EuroLeague play, they hosted CSKA Moscow and Caja dropped a tough one to CSKA Moscow 71-67. Caja had a two point lead going into the fourth thanks to some great defense. They held CSKA Moscow to 8 points in the third. However, they couldn't hang on as they only mustered 14 points in the fourth.

Tiago again struggled from the field with 3 of 10 shooting. But he, again, stuffed the stat sheet with 8 rebounds and 5 assists. I'm really starting to have concerns about his viability to really fit in with the Spurs. He was 4 for 4 from the line. Trajan Langdon, yeah that guy from Duke way back, had 13 points and 6 boards. Sasha Kaun, I just like saying it, had 14 and 8. Ramunas Siskauskas had 24 and 4.

They play Lottomatica Roma this week who walloped them the first time.

In the league play, Caja lost to Suzuki Manresa yesterday 73-70. Sergiy Gladyr -- yes, I spelled it right -- got hot in the third and starting raining 3's as Manresa built a 12 point lead heading into the 4th. Caja had a couple possessions late where they had an opportunity to take the lead but couldn't convert.

Again, Tiago was solid. 14 points on 6-7 shooting, 8 rebounds, and 4 assists.

Next week they face 4-6 Estudiantes.

Highlights of the loss to Manresa

Nando De Colo

Power Electric Valencia

ACB (Spanish League): 8-2

EuroCup : 10-0

Age: 22

Height: 6' 5"

Weight: 185

2nd round, 53rd pick, 2009

Valencia got their EuroCup off to a good start with a 75-68 road win over Hemofarm Stada of the Adriatic League. They got off to a slow start and fell behind 36-27 at the half. A big third quarter pushed them into the lead and they were able to maintain it in the fourth.

SpurNando racked up 20 points in this one. 6-9 from 2-point, 1-5 from 3-point, and 5-5 from the line. Toss in 3 boards and 2 assists (and 4 turnovers) and Nando had a productive 27 minutes.

In Spanish League play, Valencia went on the road and got a 79-73 win at Xacobao Blu:Sens -- can you believe I have to type that crap? I'm not sure what was up with Nando. He only 16 minutes and had 5 points. Maybe it was his 3 turnovers that got him benched.

Highlights of the win over Xacobeo

James Gist

????

Age: 23

Height: 6' 9"

Weight: 220

2nd round, 57th pick, 2008

Nothing to see here. Move along.

Robertas Javtokas

BC Khimki

Russian League: 5-1

EuroLeague: 4-1

Age: 29

Height: 6' 10"

Weight: 240

2nd round, 56th pick, 2001

In EuroLeague play, BC Khimki walloped Asseco Prokom 89-77 to stay at the top of their group. Robertas only had 1 point and 4 boards. Former Spurs Ketih Langford poured in 20 with 5 boards and 9 assists. Former Bearkat, and probably a fave of bones, David Logan plays for Prokom. As does Qyntel Woods and Pape Sow.

BC Khimki improved to 5-1 in the Russian League with a win 77-71 over Unics Kazan. Robertas, #15 in the box score, had modest numbers 9 points and 6 boards. But he only played 14 minutes. Keith Langford, #5 in the box score, had 10 and 4. Unics Kazan was led by Marko Popovic, no relation, with 27. This comes on the heels of his EuroCup game where he put up 36 on 9-14 from distance when his team really took it to Cola Turka.

Khimki has a pair of very tough games next week. In EuroLeague play, they square off against 4-1 Real Madrid. In league play, they get the undefeated CSKA Moscow team.

Jack McClinton

Aliaga Petkim

Turkish League: 3-3

Age: 23

Height: 6' 2"

Weight: 185

2nd round, 51st pick, 2009

Aliaga got crushed 100-74 by Turkish power Efes Pilsen. Jack had 17 points on 6-16 shooting that included 1-7 from 3-point. Hosley had 15, 10, and 5. Efes was lead by Charles Smith with 22. Tiago's former teammate Igor Rakocevic had 15. Bostjan Nachbar had 12 and Preston Shumpert had 9.

Asvel Basket

Tony's Team

French League: 2-7

EuroLeague: 1-4

Amazingly, Tony's team picked up their first EuroLeague win with a 71-68 victory over Cibona. They rallied from 15 down at the start of the 4th quarter.

In league play, they got whipped by league leader Le Mans 80-68. The loss drops the defending champs to 2-7. They need help.

Eric Dawson

Mitsubishi Diamond Dolphins

JBL (Japanese League): 2-16

Age: 24?

Height: 6' 9"

Weight: 235

Austin Toros 2007-2009

Mitsubishi finally picked up another win. Woo hoo. It was a 76-68 victory over Hokkaido. Eric came off the bench and scored 5 points in 5 minutes. They dropped the second game in the series 76-69. Eric again came off the bench and had 19 and 5 in 16 minutes.

Marcus Williams

?????

CBA (Chinese League): 0-0

Age: 23

Height: 6' 7"

Weight: 210

Austin Toros 2007-2009

Somewhere in China. It looks to me like the season hasn't started yet.

Last Night in the D-League, Where Potential Meets Blowouts

Jon L — Sat, 28 Nov 2009 14:00:26 -0000

John Bryant had a nice D-League debut for the BayHawks (via www.slamonline.com)

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I never did get Futurecast up and running last night, but I was able to follow along reasonably well for most of the games. There were definitely some flat teams, as five of the six opening night contests were decided by double digits. Yikes. Regardless, I'm definitely excited that the D-League season is back on and that we have stuff to watch and talk about now. So let's get to it.

Erie BayHawks 85, Fort Wayne Mad Ants 77

I called made this game the main course in my Thanksgiving semi-related preview (I hope everyone had a good Thanksgiving, by the way), and I guess the fact that this was the closest score justifies that. The game wasn't even really that close, though, as Erie had a 49-34 lead at halftime. John Bryant had a fantastic game for Erie, with 16 points on 7-12 shooting, 14 rebounds, three blocks, three assists and two steals. He had five fouls, which is something to work on, but that's a pretty great debut. Jackie Manuel played pretty much out of his mind, with 18 points on nine shots, nine rebounds and four steals. He had six turnovers and five fouls, and most of his production came in the first half, but otherwise it's something to build on.

For the Mad Ants, I'm really, really confused. Ron Howard, Brandon Cotton and Sean Sonderleiter led the team in field goal attempts, which is mind-boggling with guys like Rob Kurz and Ryan Ayers on the roster. Kurz didn't attempt a single field goal! And this is a guy who started in the NBA! Howard is a good defender, but he should never take 16 shots in a game, and he showed why by making just five of them. He got to the free throw line and made eight of his nine shots there, but otherwise I can't imagine this is the offense Joey Meyer envisioned. I should say that Sonderleiter played pretty well, improving his rebounding in the second half and finishing with 21 points (on 11 shots) and 10 boards, and was able to draw some fouls himself. Jeff Potter has been writing that Sonderleiter has been putting in work this offseason and looking pretty good in camp, and the results are there. I still think this team missed Chris Hunter, though, not just in taking some rebounds away from Bryant but in taking shots away from Howard as well.

Hit the jump for the rest of the night's games.

Sioux Falls Skyforce 112, Maine Red Claws 95

Reggie Williams is going to be a fantastic scorer in the D-League. I know I've said it before, but he made me say it again by scoring 29 points on 13 shots to go with four rebounds and four assists. He's not particularly athletic but he's crazily efficient and does a good job of getting to the free-throw line. Keith Brumbaugh and Joe Krabbenhoft each had pretty good games, Brumbaugh scoring 18 points and grabbing eight rebounds and Krabbenhoft picking up nine points, eight rebounds, three assists and two steals. Those rebounds were key for each of them as starting center Greg Stiemsma had a pretty terrible game.

NBA assignee Bill Walker played, well, like an NBA assignee should with25 points on 18 shots and 11 rebounds. He also led his team with five turnovers, though, and that likely made the difference in the game. The Red Claws weren't out-rebounded by a large margin, they did a decent job of distributing the ball (15 assists on 34 field goals, which isn't spectacular but is okay) and they shot just two fewer free throws than their opponents, but they turned the ball over 19 times to the Skyforce's 12. Billy Thomas had his three-pointer going, making three of four shots from behind the arc and finishing with 18 points overall. Stanley Thomas and Abdulai Jalloh each had 17 points, on 11 and 10 shots respectively. And before you ask, I know almost nothing about Jalloh. It looks like he played at St. Joseph's where he did pretty well (even being the team's second-best rebounder at 6'1"), then he transferred to James Madison and was terrible.

Austin Toros 93, Rio Grande Valley Vipers 82

This was sort of the opposite of the Erie-Fort Wayne game in that it was closer than a double-digit win would indicate. The Vipers actually outscored the Toros in the second quarter and were down by just one at the half, but Alonzo Gee finished with 24 points on 15 shots and Dwayne Jones had 11 points and 12 rebounds, nine of which came on the offensive end. Curtis Jerrells was a perfect 12-12 from the free throw line, but he shot just 3-11 from the field and finished with just three assists in 40 minutes to go along with six turnovers. Wherefore art thou, Marcus Williams? Jerrells, and by extension the Toros, are going to have to figure this out, because even though they won the signs weren't entirely positive, and that starts with the ball distribution. Seven assists on 32 made field goals is pretty terrible. The team also made just one three-pointer out of nine attempts and was out-rebounded 39-48.

Rio Grande Valley really could've had this one. Why didn't they? For starters, Joey Dorsey struggled on the offensive end, shooting 3-9, and he also had a hard time handling Jones on the glass early on. Kurt Looby came in during the first half and fared better, and ended up with six rebounds in 18 and a half minutes. Dorsey's board work improved, and he ultimately grabbed 15 rebounds (eight offensive), but that was one early struggle for the Vipers. Another was three-point shooting. I will probably mention this a little too often early on this season, but new coach Chris Finch has said that he prefers an up-tempo, three-point-heavy offense, but the Vipers shot just 3-14 from behind the arc last night. Antonio Anderson led all scorers with 28 points on 19 shots, which is nice, particularly from a guy known more for his defense, but he was 1-5 on threes and turned the ball over six times. This team might need to trade for some outside shooting, because from what I've seen in this game and in the preseason, it's just not there in-house.

Utah Flash 100, Tulsa 66ers 85

Dontell Jefferson shook off some early struggles (he started the game with a missed three and a pair of turnovers) to finish with 18 points on 11 shots and five rebounds, though he also had just two assists. Backups Orien Greene and Jason Richards helped out in that department, with Greene picking up five assists to go with 17 points on nine shots, eight rebounds and three steals. If he can bring that kind of production off the bench on a consistent basis then the Flash should be set in the backcourt, for as long as Jefferson is around anyway. Richards added three assists in 13 and a half minutes. Luke Nevill and Carlos Wheeler weren't particularly efficient offensively, with Wheeler needing eight shots to get 10 points and Nevill scoring 11 points on 12 shots, but they did pretty well with the other stuff. Wheeler grabbed 10 boards and had two blocks while Nevill added nine and four, respectively. Bennet Davis added nine rebounds in 26 minutes off the bench. Garrett Siler got a DNP for some reason.

Tulsa has a decent starting point guard, Mustafa Shakur, they just need a backup. Eight of the team's ten assists came from Shakur, and Larry Owens was the only other player with any (two, if my math is correct). NBA assignee Byron Mullens struggled with his shot early one, and he finished with 14 points on 17 shots, five fouls and four turnovers (though he added 10 rebounds). Keith Clark played pretty well, with 14 points on eight shots, seven rebounds and four steals. Latavious Williams played a little under 11 minutes off the bench, and while he didn't put up a single shot attempt he still had three rebounds and a block, which is decent production, particularly since he also didn't turn the ball over or commit a single foul. It's always good to temper expectations, anyway.

Albuquerque Thunderbirds 102, Bakersfield Jam 81

So this game was as ugly as I feared it would be, although it didn't really get that way until the second half. The good news for the Thunderbirds is that Carlos Powell is good and on their team, as he finished with 20 points on 13 shots, nine rebounds, five assists and only one foul in 37 minutes. The other good news is that their centers are pretty good rebounders, as Kevin Pittsnogle, Erek Hansen and Chad Toppert combined for 18 boards. The bad news is that their centers aren't what you'd call "good" offensively. Pittsnogle was particularly bad, shooting 0-10, and five of those shots were three-pointers. He's played well in the past, but at this point he's been away from the game for so long that it will take some time for him to get his game back. Hansen shot 2-8 and Toppert was 2-7, so the alternatives weren't much better. (Okay, Toppert is actually a guard and not a center. This is why I shouldn't write these things at 2 am.) Yaroslav Korolev proved me wrong for at least one game, finishing with 15 points on seven shots, five rebounds, two steals and only one turnover. Good game outta him.

For the Jam, yikes. Where to start. First of all, it's never a good thing to have a better three-point percentage (.435) than overall shooting percentage (.319). Robert Swift had a decent rebounding outing, with 11 boards, but he was pretty much a non-entity offensively with four points on 1-5 shooting. He also picked up five fouls and turned the ball over four times in 30 minutes. This is another team without a point guard, and they mustered just eight assists on 22 made field goals. Justin Hawkins shot just 3-14, though he made up for it somewhat with eight rebounds and 9-10 shooting from the free-throw line. And all isn't entirely bleak, as Reece Gaines and Jared Newson did fairly well offensively, with 19 points on nine shots for the former and 18 points on nine shots and four rebounds for the latter. Still, these are your starting guards and they best they can give you is a pair of assists from Gaines? And the backup PG Lance Hurdle gives you a zero in that department? Yikes.

Iowa Energy 106, Springfield Armor 73

Ahhh, it's good to have pro basketball back in Springfield, Massachusetts. The boxscore/play-by-play for this game was acting up all night, and as of my writing this the stats are still stuck in the second quarter. I'll update it whenever the D-League fixes their site.

I did it. I found Marcus Williams.

Wayne Vore (ATS) — Sat, 28 Nov 2009 05:17:00 -0000

He was at the Toros game tonight. He's getting on a plane and heading to China tomorrow to play over in the Chinese League.

One down, one to go. I've got my eyes on James Gist now.

Brain Drain: Milwaukee Bucks beat the Grizzlies 103-98

djturtleface — Sun, 22 Nov 2009 03:54:41 -0000

More photos » by Nikki Boertman - AP

Browse more photos »

I only have two problems with the Memphis Grizzlies right now. Coincidentally, the Grizzlies would be a much better basketball team if they corrected two problems.

Mike Conley is a problem. He is not very good. Marcus Williams plays bad defense, and he looks like vintage Eric Snow when you compare him to Mike Conley. The Grizzlies routinely get shredded by jumpshooters because Conley's poor defense leaves his teammates constantly cheating to compensate. On offense he alternates between brain dead over-penetration and timidly pulling himself out so the others need to play four on five. Four on five is usually the better scenario.

Coach Lionel Hollins is a problem. In a very winnable game he pulled Williams, who was having a better game overall than Conley, with only a few minutes left. Conley promptly missed, turned over, and then turned over, while Brandon Jennings closed the game against him on the other end of the floor. As possessions become more valuable, Hollins' offense degenerates into more and more bad isolations.

This loss is on Coach Hollins. He better not call out anyone else but himself. Milwaukee Bucks coach Scott Skiles handled him. The Bucks adapted to the conditions, while the Grizzlies stagnated and then started playing street ball under a complete lack and failure of leadership.

The standard recap coming over the jump, congratulate Brew Hoop on being willing to pay an actual NBA head coach. And be sure to drop a "Fire Hollins" below.

Rockness Monster: Rudy Gay, Marc Gasol, and Zach Randolph all had a very good night. The front court has molded together nicely and is starting to play respectable defense. They work together on offense in sets, as they all seem to trust each other. Rudy, in particular, is beginning to look like a franchise player. He put up another double-double tonight with 10 boards, and hit the clutch plays.

U-Turn: Sam Young brought unexpected fire off the bench tonight, but Hasheem Thabeet has to be the U-Turn. He played around a dozen nice minutes last night; tonight, even against a talent-short Bucks front, Hasheem got the dreaded DNP-CD award. Whats the deal Hollins? Didn't want to put your #2 pick against Jennings?

Bitter Limon: Charlie Bell shot 5-10 from the corner three. All his threes were corner threes. None were covered. O.J. Mayo shot 0-6 from three. I think all were covered. Sounds to me like someone's skills are being used perfectly, and someone else isn't being used quite right. Hollins, care to elaborate?

Sleeping With the Enemy: If Coach Hollins's favored son Mike Conley, as of his tenure as interim coach at the end of last season, didn't get one more season to prove himself, then Brandon Jennings might not be in this section. He is in this section, because he dropped 26, sealing the second half with ice cold free throws and shots. Luke Ridinour also looked good against our abysmal perimeter defense. So did Charlie Bell, and Roko Ukic, and...

Deny Thy Name: Grizzlies vs. 76ers Preview

djturtleface — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 21:29:53 -0000

"Sharks vs. Jets was another basketball game involving confused identities."

The Memphis Grizzlies have now won two games straight. The Memphis Grizzlies have now, honestly, looked really solid in two blowout wins. The Memphis Grizzlies seem to be finding an identity, even if it's not the fast-break like Coach Hollins promised. In short the Memphis Grizzlies haven't looked much like the Memphis Grizzlies that we've known and hated.

The Philadelphia 76ers looked so promising last season. They looked like a team that perfectly understood its strengths and weaknesses, playing well within them. The 76ers were hawkish on defense, ran the break, and generally frustrated their opponents with endless energy. This season the 76ers have played it cautious, and are nothing like the 76ers that ran their way into some relevancy in the East last season.

Head on over to Liberty Ballers for Philly knowledge, and get over the jump for more preview and discussion.

Tomorrow the Memphis Grizzlies travel to Philly to see if they can build on their success, while the 76ers are looking to pull together under their new system and identity. If Elton Brand or Thaddeus Young can bring any consistent production to this squad, they're still dangerous.

Louis Williams is another important piece, particularly in his ability to play the role of a traditional point. When William has 6 assists or more, the Sixers are undefeated. This has something to do with pacing, more breaks typically mean more assists since Williams is more of a half-court scorer than floor general, but also speaks something to the need for more facilitation than Andre Iguodala can provide.

The Grizzlies will probably need to look to someone to pick up either O.J.'s or Rudy Gay's slack, because one of the two will be blanketed by Iggy in the game. I'm sure they'll still get something, but Iguodala is a killer on that end of the floor. Look for the other to score well against the mish-mash of 76ers at swingman, like slumping Thaddeus Young, Willie Green, or Jason Kapono. And I don't see Brand or the skeleton of the player once known as Samuel Dalembert limiting Marc Gasol or Zach Randolph.

Hopefully we'll see Tinsley get a little more time this game, but I'd look for Mike Conley to either step-up or find himself on the bench early and often so Marcus Williams can get more run. Conley needs to be in a sink-or-swim dilemma at some point so the Grizzlies know what they have at the position. Better sooner than never; there is no point in prolonging the uncertainty.

I actually like the Grizzlies again in this game. It should be tough to pick up a win on the road, but Philly might be the only crowd worse than Memphis, and the Grizzlies will have a day of rest under their belts. A blowout probably isn't in the cards, but Memphis definitely has a chance to earn themselves a little bit of a name in this one.

Walking Backwards: Grizzlies beat Wolves 97-87

djturtleface — Sun, 15 Nov 2009 04:28:21 -0000

by Nikki Boertman - AP

about 1 month ago: Minnesota Timberwolves forward Corey Brewer, left, defends Memphis Grizzlies forward DeMarre Carroll, right, in the first half of an NBA basketball game Saturday, Nov. 14, 2009, in Memphis, Tenn. (AP Photo/Nikki Boertman)

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Tonight the Grizzlies beat the Minnesota Timberwolves at home in a bit of an ugly game, but a win is a win. The two young, losing teams were tied at half, but a respectable 3rd quarter put the game out of reach for the Timberwolves, who were consistently down by about ten points.

Marc Gasol played his heart out and grabbed some major stats on the game, but Sam Young was the game-changer. When Young was off, he was a ball-dominator who suppressed his teammates efforts. When Young was on, he broke upon the game with his aggressiveness.

The starters were effective, but played best in the lineup of Marcus Williams, Sam Young, Rudy Gay, DeMarre Carroll, and Marc Gasol. Rudy distributed a little bit tonight, getting 6 assists, albeit at the cost of 4 turnovers. O.J. Mayo played fine but did nothing memorable. Zach Randolph was in Isiah Thomas-mode tonight, starting out 0-7 from the field.

Rockness Monster: Gasol was 8-8 from the floor, the Grizzlies were +19 while he was on the court, he had 16 rebounds, and played great defense. Yes, he fouled out, but all that tells me is that he played hard on defense. And he dropped a three-pointer in the downtime after a foul call. Did I hear him shout, "Good."? Maybe.

Bitter Limon: Zach Randolph did very little playing against a frontcourt rotation of Ryan Hollins, Nathan Jawai, Oleksiy Pecherov, and Brian Cardinal, as in the Brian Cardinal of "The Brian Cardinal Contract" fame. He looked out of sync and was settling for the Zach Randolph turnaround way too often.

U-Turn: After a few really ugly outings games DeMarre and Sam Young finally put up a nice game. DeMarre still settles for jumpers too often, which should almost never happen, and Sam Young still thinks he's a star scorer. But tonight Carroll killed everyone on defense to make up for his shot selection, and Sam Young impacted the course of the game like a true blue sixth man.

Sleeping With the Enemy: Corey Brewer is starting to come into his own, which is a nice story after all he's been through. Dude moves like a snake and is a joy to watch, but he's got to control himself at times. After starting 6-7 by taking all the right shots, namely finishing and wide, wide open jumpers, he finished 7-19 and wasted too many Wolves possessions. Flynn didn't impress me; Gomes looked just acceptable, despite finishing with a nice line. Otherwise a completely uninteresting team without Love and Jefferson.

Turnover at the Top

Jon L — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 15:00:44 -0000

Chris Hunter is one of only a few of last season's D-League leaders coming back to the league.

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I've made a few oblique references this offseason to all of the D-League three-point shooters who will be playing overseas this year, and it's true that there will be some unfamiliar faces jacking up perimeter shots next month. But it's actually even more remarkable than I thought. Heres is the list of last year's D-League award winners:

MVP - Courtney Sims
Defensive POY - Brent Petway
Impact POY - Eddie Gill
Rookie of the Year - Othyus Jeffers
Coach of the Year - Quin Snyder
Sportsmanship Award - Will Conroy

Notice anything? With the exception of perhaps Sims, all of the players listed above are playing overseas (and RU's Coach of the Year pick, Bryan Gates, is in the NBA now). True, one of them could come back midseason (and be in the running for the Impact award), but those are still some relatively big names missing. It gets even more drastic than that. Here are the All D-League teams:

First: Blake Ahearn, Will Conroy, Erik Daniels, Courtney Sims, Marcus Williams

I expect Williams to join back up with the Toros, and we're still waiting to see what Sims will do, but Ahearn, Conroy and Daniels are all overseas now.

Second: Derrick Byars, Josh Davis, Chris Hunter, Trey Johnson, James White

Hunter's back in Fort Wayne, but Byars - gone; Davis - gone; Johnson - gone; White - gone.

Third: Lance Allred, Ronald Dupree, Eddie Gill, Dontell Jefferson, Cartier Martin

Jefferson is back with Utah but I would expect a call-up for him at some point this season (the defense is too good). Otherwise, they're all in Europe and elsewhere. And while I won't bother listing all of the honorable mentions, by my count less than half of them are with the D-League again this year.

So what's the point of this? Change, and lots of it. Sure it will be disappointing not to see these talented players, but I prefer to see it as a crisi-tunity. With training camps underway and the regular season starting in just two weeks, a lot of players will have a chance to make their mark on the D-League. Some of them we can probably guess - expect Marcus Williams to tear it up again until he gets called up, Garrett Siler should be one of the best big men in the league and Carlos Powell and Anthony Tolliver should both fill up the box scores. But just as likely is that we can't predict right now who's going to make those 2009-2010 All-D-League teams. It could be someone like Amara Sy, who started his career off promisingly in Europe; or Reggie Williams, who was a smart, crafty scorer in college; heck, it could even be Yaroslav Korolev (it probably won't be Yaroslav Korolev).

All this turnover at the top of the league, talent-wise, is both likely a little daunting for the league and a pretty exciting development for D-League watchers. Teams are busy right now sorting out who can play and who can't, then it will be our turn.

To Be Determined: Grizzlies Blown Out by Rockets

djturtleface — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 04:15:46 -0000

by Pat Sullivan - AP

about 1 month ago: Memphis Grizzlies' Marc Gasol (35), from Spain, is surrounded by Houston Rockets' Chuck Hayes, center, Shane Battier (31) and Luis Scola, left, during the first quarter of an NBA basketball game Wednesday, Nov. 11, 2009 in Houston. (AP Photo/Pat Sullivan)

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If you wonder why there isn't a score up, it's actually because, as I write, there are like three minutes left in the game. The Houston Rockets dominated the Memphis Grizzlies tonight. Crushed. Destroyed. Obliterated. They literally took the soul from this young team and spat in it's face.

As to quote the always Grizzlies knowledgeable @HPbasketball:

The Grizzlies are going to drop to 1-8; getting beat by a team who's #1 option was the Lakers' #5 option.

The missing truth here is that the Grizzlies didn't just get beat. The Rockets just absolutely trampled all over their battered corpse. Check out The Dream Shake to hear more about what it feels like to win; check over the jump for some recap and the like.

Rockness Monster: Hasheem Thabeet, for not showing up. Seriously, the Grizzlies played this bad. Even for the guys with decent lines, they played terrible -- terrible. This might have been one of the worst efforts I've ever seen from a professional basketball team.

U-Turn: Well since the Grizzlies looked absolutely pathetic last night and they looked absolutely pathetic tonight too, I think I'm going to have to award this one to Marc Gasol. Despite facing a lineup that at times had nobody bigger than 6' 8" tall, Gasol managed to go 1-7, almost foul out, and be so useless that Steven Hunter was a pleasant surprise. In case you've never heard of Steven Hunter, you probably still already know that's a bad thing.

Bitter Lemon: Was there anything that wasn't a bitter lemon this game? How about nominating Marcus Williams for making the worst damn decisions of any backup point guard ever. Backup point guards are supposed to protect the ball and get the hell out of the way. Marcus Williams is doing his best "Stevie Franchise" impression. Even Steve Francis shouldn't be doing an Stevie Franchise impression at this point.

Oh, and the rest of the bench can't score and dribbles around like they're still in college. DeMarre Carroll is great for energy; shooting isn't energy, so stop doing that. I don't think Sam Young even knows he's a professional yet.

Sleeping With the Enemy: Don't feel like talking about this madness.

Historical Inferiority: Trail Blazers beat Grizzlies 93-79

djturtleface — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 04:11:38 -0000

by Alan Spearman - AP

about 1 month ago: Memphis Grizzlies head athletic trainer Drew Graham attends to Memphis Grizzlies center Hasheem Thabeet during the first quarter of an NBA basketball game against the Portland Trail Blazers on Tuesday, Nov. 10, 2009, in Memphis, Tenn. Thabeet was taken out of the game with a fractured jaw. (AP Photo/Alan Spearman)

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If I wanted to tell you something positive, I would tell you that the Grizzlies finally held a team under 100 points. That's progress, right? Right...

Wrong. The Portland Trail Blazers handled the Grizzlies in the second half, slowing down the pace to traditional Oregonian and having their way with the Grizz in half-court sets. If you'd recall I wondered if this would actually benefit the Grizzlies -- it didn't.

Recap and awards over the jump, and be sure to check Blazersedge for some great perspective.

O.J. Mayo had a decent game, but in many ways the Grizzlies have traded one Iverson for another. It's becoming clearer and clearer that O.J. doesn't have an ounce of Richard Hamilton in him. He needs the ball -- constantly. Marc Gasol put up some nice numbers, but those stats were hollow since his opponent Greg Oden changed the game in his face.

While the Grizzlies were constantly in it, a third quarter drought left them hopelessly chasing for the rest of the game. Portland's defense wasn't fantastic, but it was great at making the Grizzlies beat themselves. They encouraged isolation, let Zach get away from the basket so he wouldn't hit the boards, and had Brandon Roy blanketing Rudy Gay so he barely even touched the ball to enter rhythm.

"The Mega-Bruiser Jawbreaker. A nominee for Zach Randolph's new nickname."

Rockness Monster- Zach Randolph's head broke Hasheem Thabeet's jaw early in the game. Since this means more Hadaddi and less Thabeet, and since nobody else played particularly well, I'm dropping the crown right on Zach's thick skull.

U-Turn- Rudy Gay has killed it so far this season, but looked unimpressive in the half-court sets. He struggled to get open and shot poorly when he was free. Gay had one nice dunk, but more than nullified that highlight with terrible free throw shooting. On the positive side, however, he did make some nice plays to get to the line and appeared to play better defense in the boxscore, though it had more to do with terrible shooting by Travis Outlaw.

Bitter Lemon- Marcus Williams is out of control; not in a good way either. He gambles constantly on defense even though I've never seen him swipe a steal. On offense he seems to think his name is Tony Parker, which it isn't. For marketing himself as a pass-first guy, Williams sure takes a bunch of near-impossible floaters.

Sleeping With the Enemy- Greg Oden changed this game. If Win Shares were a stat awarded, not a metric, then he would have earned one tonight. But I don't want to talk about Greg because he's boring. LaMarcus Aldridge went absolutely nutso against Z-bo tonight. Randolph was making an effort on defense and Aldridge was still dropping crazy jumpers right on the famous jaw-breaking cranium.