After Friday night's win over a depleted Cleveland team, the Grizzlies came home to prep for a game against the Hornets today/Pelicans later. New Orleans is struggling, but building for the future.
Randolph is still dealing with that sprained ankle, and Arthur has a sore back. Friday night, though, Ed Davis contributed 12 pts and 9 rebs. His energy and production at the start of the third quarter was key in Memphis regaining control of the Cleveland game.a
New Orleans has shown glimmers of hope throughout the season, but there have been glaring mistakes as well. In their last game, 6 March against the Lakers, they gave up a big lead to lose a heart-breaker. Who can forget that inbounds play late in the game, where none of the Hornets were in position to defend their basket? Who else noticed Kobe Bryant sprinting down court with Hornets in futile pursuit? This New Orleans team can and will make mental mistakes that are more damaging than physical ones.
They do have some talent. Overall #1 draft pick Anthony Davis has the pedigree (Kentucky, NCAA champion) to grow into a great post player. Eric Gordon is a legit scorer. Ryan Anderson is a big shooter who stretches defenses. But, the guy I like most on their roster is ex-Memphis player Greivis Vasquez. In fact, he is one of my absolute favorite players in the Association. Austin Rivers (broken hand) and Jason Smith (torn labrum) will miss this contest.
The Venezuelan is bigger than most PGs (6'6"). He plays with enthusiasm, a bit of a chip on his shoulder and great court vision. He won't make a between-a-defender's-legs bounce pass, but he'll get a bunch of assists (averaging 9.4 assists per game). He will never be a Hall-of-Famer, and would need a series of weird mishaps to even be an all-star. But, he can play. I look forward to seeing his match-up with Conley.
New Orleans can score (averaging 95 in their last five games, with 100+ points in the last three games). However, they are prone to "car wreck" games, like their 74-119 loss at Oklahoma City on 27 February.
Even stranger, the Hornets seem to always play well against Memphis. My guess: Memphis 96, New Orleans 90. As always, these guesses aren't for gaming purposes, but to entertain me in my boredom.
After the Game: Memphis 96, New Orleans 85. Memphis had seven players in double figures, led by Conley's 22. He also had 8 assists, but 4 turnovers. Ed Davis had 12 pts, 9 rebs, 5 blocked shots and a great work rate down low. Like the night before in Cleveland, the Grizzlies won the first quarter, got distracted in the second, then came out after halftime to re-assert control.
Also, it's Coach Hollins' 200th win as Grizzlies' head coach. He is the best coach in team history (albeit relatively brief history). It's the 42nd win of the season, one step closer to clinching "top 4" seeding & first round series home court advantage.
The team had 38 FGs, 21 assists and 10 turnovers. New Orleans had 34 field goals, 17 assists and 12 turnovers.
For the Hornets, Anthony Davis had 20 pts, 19 rebs.Vasquez had 12 pts, 8 assists. Ryan Anderson scored 17 off the bench, but he was 1/5 3PT FG/A.
One troubling trend is how the Grizzlies don't mind settling for jump shots. They only had 20 FTA in this game. With this 4-game road trip coming up, they will have to concentrate on getting close to the basket, converting those shots, and getting the home opponents in foul trouble.
Starting 12 March, Memphis gets a pair of back-to-backs. 12 March, the team's at Portland, followed by a 13 March match at Staples Center against the Clippers. If everything is equal, Memphis will probably lose both. The best opportunity on paper is to beat Portland first.
Memphis then has 14 March off, followed by road games 15 March (at Denver) and 15 March (at Utah), both formidable opponents. Denver, especially at home, will embarrass any team. They are cohesive, and play to their home court advantage of high elevation. Their fast-breaking attack is relentless, and they wear out most teams by sheer speed and effort. For this section of games, the best opportunity for Memphis will be the Utah game, but Memphis may be worn out from the previous night. And, Salt Lake City is a fairly high elevation as well (4,226 feet, according to Wikipedia).
Bottom line: if Memphis can finish this road trip 2-2, I'll be ecstatic. I'll always root for my team, but frankly I wouldn't be surprised if they lose all four.
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