Official Memphis Grizzlies 2011-2012 Season Thread

[pmatic]

Gah, that Thabeet pick is still haunting the Grizzlies. Had to throw in an additional pick just to get rid of him. Not to mention the pick from the Ronnie Brewer trade.

Juice doesn't have that high of a trade value for the Magic to give up Redick AND Anderson. Nothing excites me about the Bobcats deal and the Nets deal doesn't really help the Grizzlies (besides getting Morrow).

Gasol, Z-Bo, Powe and a true backup center would still be damn good frontline.

 

[bhzmafia14]

Chuck Hayes condition is said to need further investigation. He's my 1st option. I guess after Heisley told OJ he wasn't being traded, he's probably gonna stay at least til' the deadline. Also, too much of a risk if we don't get a good deal for him.
Heisley/Wallace should be keeping a close eye on Hayes. Jf he can't play this season, just re-sign Powe, bring back HH and probably find sign Josh Davis.

Zbo / Powe / Davis

Gasol /  HH 

That's what I see Memphis doing. It could easily be another Center over HH and another PF over Powe though.

I know this is off topic, but I really like the addition of Pargo. I think he's going to make our 2nd unit much better, but I'm not sure what happens to Vasquez. Maybe we play a 3 guard lineup at times with Pargo, OJ and Vasquez? I did see it in the 1st preseason game. Pargo will probably end up being a better defender for Memphis at the PG spot than Conley as well. 

 

[pmatic]

Grizzlies prepare offer sheet for Bobcats' forward, discuss trade with Sixers


The Grizzlies are preparing an offer sheet for Charlotte Bobcats restricted free agent Dante Cunningham, and team officials have held trade discussions with the Philadelphia 76ers as a response to forward Darrell Arthur’s season-ending Achilles injury.

Magnetic resonance imaging performed Monday on Arthur confirmed that he has a torn right Achilles and will miss the entire 2011-12 season. Memphis, shorthanded up front before Arthur’s injury, is in the market for two frontcourt players. Cunningham is viewed as a close replacement for Arthur, and the Griz also have 76ers versatile big man Marresse Speights on their radar, according to sources with knowledge of the Grizzlies’ thinking.

Cunningham, 24, is a 6-8 forward who is not as potent offensively as Arthur, but is considered versatile enough overall to compensate. Cunningham was selected 33rd overall by the Portland Trail Blazers in the 2009 NBA draft. Charlotte would have three days to match if Memphis offers Cunningham a contract.

The Grizzlies’ interest in Speights has to do with his offensive capabilities. Speights, 6-10, was the 16th pick in a the 2008 NBA draft. He averaged eight points and 50-percent shooting in his best seasons with Philadelphia.

Speights is scheduled to earn $2.7 million this season so Philadelphia might require Memphis to send a combination of Xavier Henry and Greivis Vasquez to complete the deal. Speights would then become a restricted free agent next summer.

Arthur was MIA at practice Monday because he had to undergo the MRI. Meanwhile, his teammates couldn’t have been more S-A-D about Arthur being sidelined 6-12 months with the Achilles injury.

“It definitely hurts,

 

[IATT]

^ gotta ask, why are the sixers so willing eager to get rid of speights.. dude was doing work about a year or two ago and then i think he got hurt


i googled it and saw something about there being a contract issue or some mess

 

[pmatic]

I believe his problems are his defense and shooting too much.

Sizing up the Grizzlies' big man pursuit

In today's Commercial Appeal, we take a look at realistic options the Grizzlies are considering as replacements for the injured Darrell Arthur. MRI results Monday confirmed that Arthur will miss the entire season with a torn right Achilles.
(And props to Yahoo! Sports' Adrian Wojnarowski for teaching us that it's OK to say a team is "preparing an offer sheet" when its interested in a restricted free agent.)

The Griz do have a $5 million mid-level exception but don't expect them to be a major player for remaining free agents such as Samuel Dalembert, Kris Humphries, and Andrei Kirilenko. League sources say that those players are asking for long-term deals starting at more than the mid-level. Also, Memphis hasn't pursued Leon Powe, a free agent whom they signed midway through last season.

Memphis doesn't want to take on long-term contracts because its payroll could exceed $60 million next year with just seven players and without Arthur and Mayo under contract.

Another problem is Griz owner Michael Heisley's mandate to not enter the $70 million luxury tax, and with good reason. Luxury-tax payers are penalized in the NBA's revenue-sharing program. It comes down to the franchise receiving a "welfare check" or not. And with limited revenue streams (i.e. ticket sales, media package, etc.) in a small market, the Griz can't afford to maintain this payroll without revenue sharing.

As the Griz scour the league for potential free agents and trades, there is yet another issue. Opposing teams see the Griz as desperate and are asking for a lot in return for serviceable big men not even as talented as Arthur.

Memphis is very interested in Philadelphia's Marresse Speights but the Sixers want two backcourt players (i.e. Xavier Henry and Greivis Vasquez) to complete the deal. It appears that the Griz are trying to trade for a power forward/center without moving O.J. Mayo.

All that said ...my guess is the Griz will have their roster set on or before Friday.

Stay tuned.

Link

Please don't be dumb and pull a short sighted trade.

 

[bhzmafia14]

I don't get why they would want both backcourt players. If that's the case, we should take back Meeks.

This is just like trading our pick for Brewer then letting him go in the off-season.

We are going to trade two players for a guy that won't even be here next season. Watch we get something back like a 2nd round pick instead of a player.  

If Henry is traded, what happens next year if/when OJ leaves? Tony Allen doesn't need to be the only option at SG.

 

[rtdix214]

I hate the clippers look so good thats just one more team with competition

 

[pmatic]

@FlyerGrizBlog Griz confirm Arthur out for year. Will have surgery in the next week.

 

[buc em]

Is the Speights for Greives and Henry deal close to happening? Speights has all the offensive talent in the world, he just shoots like every time he touches the ball and doesn't give enough effort on D.

 

[Mound Raised]

Originally Posted by PMatic

@FlyerGrizBlog Griz confirm Arthur out for year. Will have surgery in the next week.

damn DA

 

[pmatic]

On one hand, Anthony Randolph has all the tools to be a good player. On the other hand, he doesn't know how to play basketball and is a free agent after the season. I'm intrigued though, but it would probably require the Grizzlies to give up Juice.

 

[bhzmafia14]

After looking over Cunningham a little bit, he seems like the kinda guy to replace Arthur with.

Mobile, lateral quickness, quick jumper, decent jumpshot, scrappy and can hustle. He's just very thin, but he's listed at 230 compared to Arthur's 235. That's probably as close to Arthur as we going to get. Best thing is just to hope he can continue to improve his game throughout the season and maybe have just as great of an impact. Sign him, bring back HH and Powe.

I just don't think we can afford to do a 2 for 1 trade right now.

 

[bhzmafia14]

christomasson Chris Tomasson
by FlyerGrizBlog

Reggie Evans looking strongly at Boston Clippers Memphis. Nets & Kings also in mix but Nets might reup Humphries, Kings might reup Dalembert

I'll take Reggie. Hopefully, he will choose Memphis over Boston and LAC.

 

[pmatic]

Memphis Grizzlies make offer to Dante Cunningham

The Grizzlies offered restricted free-agent forward Dante Cunningham a three-year contract today to replace Darrell Arthur, who was lost for the season with a torn right Achilles.
Cunningham, a 6-8 forward, played for the Charlotte Bobcats last season. Because Cunningham is restricted, Charlotte will have three days to match Memphis’ offer. The deal is guaranteed for two years with a team option for the third, according to a source with knowledge of the offer sheet.

Cunningham, 24, is not as potent offensively as Arthur but is considered versatile enough overall to compensate. He has a mid-range jump shot and the athleticism to defend both forward positions. Cunningham was selected 33rd overall by the Portland Trail Blazers in the 2009 NBA draft. He was traded to Charlotte last season.


Link

Kind of surprised the Grizzlies would give Cunningham a three year deal (or two depending on how you look at it). His salary this season will be $2 million and escalates the following season(s). Seems like they overpaid, but I get that the team is desperate.

 

[bhzmafia14]

I hope this doesn't mean no extension for DA. I think the only positive about his injury is that Memphis can probably re-sign DA for alot cheaper. It'll be nice to have both DA and Cunningham for depth next season.
I'm really interested to see how this 2nd unit performs defensively. Pargo, OJ, Sam and Cunningham so far. All of these guys have the ability to play very good defense. Pargo, Sam and Cunningham all have that dog mentality about them and they play hard. I'll be interested to see who Memphis gets to be the 4th big. After watching Speights a little bit tonight, I don't think he fits the team. He just seems lazy and I know thats not what Hollins like. Fesenko may be the better fit.

 

[bhzmafia14]

Somebody brought up a good point on the Grizz boards. 
If Memphis is serious about contending this year and the next 3-4 years, Varejao may be the perfect fit for this team. They mentioned trading OJ and DA for Varejao + Parker. That solidfies the frontcourt (lets say we keep Cunningham as well) for at least 3 more years which is an important piece. Anthony Parker would help us this season if Henry still hasn't showed any improvements. 

I think it makes a lot of sense being that we could possibly lose OJ and Arthur for nothing in the offseason. I would hate to lose both players in that situation, but maybe Memphis could still hold on to DA.

Conley/Pargo/Vasquez

TA/Parker/Henry

Gay/Young

Zbo/Cunningham

Gasol/Varejao

Not a short sighted move, and would benefit for us more now and later.

 

[pmatic]

I doubt Heisley wants to add Varejao's contract to the core four's.

NBA.com preview

Gay faces new challenges as he re-enters Grizzlies' mix

It was silly, really, to even think about it.

Just because the Grizzlies won their first playoff series in franchise without him, didn't mean they were going to unload Rudy Gay.

Did it?

"He's our starting small forward," said coach Lionel Hollins.

End of discussion.

The Grizzlies' small forward helplessly sat on the bench and agonizingly looked on all through the playoff run.

"I won't hide it. It was a tough experience to go through emotionally and professionally," Gay said. "It hurt so, so bad. I've never had that kind of feeling ever before. It was the longest stretch that I've ever been not playing since the start of my basketball career.

"But looking back, now that it's over, it was probably a good thing to have happen. It made me hungrier. I'm kind of glad that it happened now, when I'm still young. Now I can grow from it and get better as a player."

There were times when you could look to the Memphis bench during the shocking upset of the No. 1-seeded Spurs in the first round and see Gay cheering as madly as any other fan inside the "Grind House." His enthusiasm only grew during the epic seven-game battle with the Thunder in the second round. But so did the emptiness inside of him, especially when he began hearing talk that he might have become expendable.

"It's a business, no doubt," Gay said. "On the court, it's all about playing basketball and having fun. But I've always understood that there's a business side too that can be pretty cold. All that I could do in that situation was try to ignore the rumors and the talk that you hear and concentrate on getting healthy and coming back as an even better player than I was before and finding my spot to fit in."

The truth is that Gay's fit should be as comfortable as a custom-tailored suit. Despite their success, there were times during the playoffs when the Grizzlies needed someone to be able to score consistently from behind the 3-point line. His length and athleticism, along with his ability to shoot, make him a perfect complement to the inside games of Zach Randolph and Marc Gasol. What Hollins wants Gay to do now is to be more aggressive and better at defending, rebounding and setting up his teammates to score.

"Those are all things that I've heard in my earlier years in the league and have tried to work on to improve," Gay said. "What I've really been looking forward to is just getting back onto the court."

Things have definitely changed since Gay underwent surgery on his dislocated left shoulder in February. Back then, the Grizzlies were still trying to find their way to becoming a playoff team. Now they are a group that was one win away from reaching the Western Conference finals and now, for the first time ever, will carry the burden of expectations into a season.

"Bring it on," Gay said. "I love that. It's the next step in the process of becoming a contender. We were a game away from making the conference finals. We have the talent. We have the ability. We're young and we're going to get better.

"It's a different kind of situation for us to be in now that teams know we've had some success. People were paying attention to those playoffs. It's not like we're going to sneak up on anybody. But I think this is something that we're ready for. We earned respect around the league with what happened last year. Now we have to maintain it."

Gay has no concerns about meshing his game with the scoring force of Randolph around the basket.

"Z-Bo is going to get his, no matter what," Gay said. "We're both competitors. We'll make each other better."

It was silly, really, to even think about the alternative.
The three-step plan:

1. Continue to pound away at opponents on the inside with the 1-2 low-post punch of Zach Randolph and Marc Gasol. They wore the Spurs out in the playoffs.

2. Build on last season's momentum, get off to a quick start for a change and turn "The Grind House" into a loud, screaming asset.

3. Keep Mike Conley climbing the ladder of improvement that has quietly turned him into one of the league's underrated and overlooked point guards.

Three points:

1. The Grizzlies should become more potent offensively with either the return of Rudy Gay to the lineup or whomever they can reel in with a trade.

2. No matter how many offensive weapons are available, they key is to follow Tony Allen's junkyard dog attitude at the defensive end.

3. Coach Lionel Hollins isn't in the business to make friends or make headlines, but his no-nonsense approach finally has Memphis getting respect.
Link

John Hollinger's player profile of Dante Cunningham:

DANTE CUNNINGHAM, F (FREE AGENT -- RESTRICTED)

 Projection: 12.6 pts, 7.0 reb, 1.0 ast per 40 min; 11.58 PER | Player card

• Mobile, slender, undersized 4 with 17-foot range on jumper. Good hands on D.
• Can play 3 defensively but won't stretch floor. Weak handle. Rarely scores.
• Subpar rebounder for size. Needs to add strength and improve finishing.

Cunningham played far more than expected due to the Blazers' injuries and the Bobcats' rebuilding, starting 18 games in total and playing 1,637 minutes. I'm guessing the minutes will go down as a career high, but Cunningham has a chance to remain a rotation player based on the mobility and jump shooting he showed last season.

Cunningham shot 46.2 percent on long 2s, which may be unsustainable, but he's going to need to keep that percentage fairly high because he doesn't do a whole lot else. He finished 65th out of 70 power forwards in free throw rate, and he made only one 3-pointer all season. Thus, despite shooting so well on long 2s, his True Shooting Percentage was awful. He had a low usage rate too, and was terrible on the boards, ranking 65th among power forwards.

He grades out better defensively. Although he's undersized and lacks strength at the 4, his mobility makes him a very good pick-and-roll defender and he has some toughness, plus fast hands.

Interestingly, the Bobcats played him mostly at the 3, and he had good results there as well. He also played better offensively in Charlotte, even though he's not a threat to make corner 3s or handle the ball, things we normally expect from a small forward. For that reason I still suspect his best long-term position is the 4, but if he can extend his range to the corner 3-pointer he may be able to steal some minutes on the wing as well.

 

[bhzmafia14]

I heard from Tillery that the team plans on keeping Skinner and Davis heading into the season and possibly making a move later in the season.
That's "OK", but I would rather get someone now. I guess the team wants to see what Henry can bring once he returns so they can decide on which pieces they would want to move in the trade (OJ or Henry and Vasquez). I'm assuming 2 of those 3 guys will be traded by the deadline. Of course, OJ/Vasquez will probably get you a better deal. I'm all for it if Henry can show lots of promise once he returns.

Its a solid approach, but just have to hope that Zbo and Marc do not miss any significant time or we could be in big trouble. Cunningham will definitely have to step up in Arthur's absence. I think the team will give Haddadi a cheaper deal and bring him back too. I honestly like him better than Skinner. 

The thing that bothers me the most is that the team knows they have to get off to a good start. I'm tired of the "start off slow and pick it up midseason" approach. 

 

[pmatic]

@WojYahooNBA New Orleans has traded Quincy Pondexter to the Memphis Grizzlies for Greivis Vasquez, a league source tells Y! Sports.
I hate to see Greasy go but if the Grizzlies can turnaround and get a big man then so be it.

 

[bhzmafia14]

GAME DAY!



GRIT N' GRIND

There is Elvis.

Beale Street, blues and barbecue instantly come to mind.

But when thinking of things that are uniquely Memphis, you would have to add the combination of Rudy Gay, Zach Randolph and Marc Gasol to the equation.

As NBA front lines go, the Grizzlies' trio is among the league's few unparalleled forces.

They make up one of the more dominant rebounding units. And not only does their perimeter and post scoring define who the Griz are offensively, it creates the daunting task opponents face routinely.

Defense and depth are required ingredients for the Griz to produce an encore performance from their historic playoff run last season. Ultimately, though, the franchise has banked its future on the shoulders of Gay, Randolph and Gasol.

"They drive the car. They're the engine. I don't think you can oversimplify that," said Griz coach Lionel Hollins, whose team opens the regular season tonight on the road against the San Antonio Spurs.

There's great intrigue about how far the Griz can go in this 66-game regular season by re-inserting Gay's surgically-repaired right shoulder and all-around excellence to Randolph and Gasol's inside prowess.

Mild debate raged on this offseason about whether a healthy Gay would have propelled the Griz past the Oklahoma City Thunder in Game 7 of the Western Conference semifinals. But Griz brass had no qualms about keeping their impressive nucleus intact.

Gay, Randolph and Gasol signed lucrative contracts that last the next four seasons, and with good reason.

Gay was having a career year before a shoulder separation in February ended his season. Randolph is a double-double machine and Gasol's role as a crafty passer and efficient scorer with a career .545 field goal percentage recently earned him a four-year, $58 million deal.

Hollins has salivated over the idea of Gay operating in pick-and-rolls with Randolph. Snapshots of the pair working together in practice have been like poetry in motion.

Gay, who averaged 19.8 points and 6.2 rebounds before going down last season, has the athleticism and all-around talent to make life easier for Randolph and Gasol.

Last Wednesday during a preseason loss at New Orleans, Gay filled the stat sheet with 20 points, five rebounds, three steals, two assists and two blocks. Teams shouldn't be able to pack the paint, crowd Randolph and Gasol, and dare the Grizzlies to make jump shots like Oklahoma City did in the playoffs. Gay can use his length to shoot over any defender or dribble drive to any spot on the floor, which will stretch defenses.

"I'm just trying to be athletic and play to the best of my ability," Gay said. "I'm hungrier than ever."

The dynamic between Randolph and Gasol provides as much symmetry as you will find in basketball. Each player can yield to the other in the post and play on the elbow with deft passing ability. Their overall savvy seems to make up for a lack of athleticism and defensive toughness.

"The team lets us have that role, playing inside-outside," Gasol said, adding that he meshed with Randolph instantly. "We knew how to play. We have the same mentality."

Randolph took exception to Hall-of-Famer Magic Johnson recently touting New York's combination of Carmelo Anthony, Amar'e Stoudemire and Tyson Chandler as the best front line in the NBA.

"We don't always get the respect, but we're tough to deal with," Randolph said. "Rudy is one of the best small forwards in the game hands down after LeBron (James) and 'Melo. Me and Marc take pride in rebounding the ball and scoring in the paint. We play off each other pretty good. Teams aren't going to be able to contain all three of us."

Memphis has led the NBA in points in the paint for the past two seasons. The Griz have also ranked among the top five teams in rebounding during that span.

While the league has clearly shifted toward trying to succeed with dynamic guard play, the Griz proudly subscribe to the adage that bigger is better.

"To go inside and post up is a luxury in this league," Hollins said. "There are not a lot of post-up players. But we can get the ball inside and play inside-out, and get foul shots and offensive rebounds because of it. And then to have a player like Rudy who can post up and come off screens on the perimeter is important. That's who we are. When we have all three of those guys clicking we're pretty good."

-- Ronald Tillery: (901) 529-2353

 

[pmatic]

 

[DsLee]

I'm excited to watch this team this year. I personally love Quincy because he's from my neck of the woods (Central Cali) AND went to UW (Seattle is my second home).
Been pulling for the Grizz for a couple seasons now, and I'm excited to see this team make that next step.

Being a Sonic fan, I'm hoping the Grizz wipe the floor with OKC and the rest of the West.

 

[JustBlaze.]

Grizzlies is my squad to come out the West this year. Looking forward to seeing them build on last year.

 

[pmatic]

at Quincy Pondexter getting yanked after a minute.

This team makes things more difficult than they have to. The Spurs have four bigs on the roster and two of them (Duncan and Blair) have three fouls each. Go inside!

 

[bhzmafia14]

Its like Grizz can come back and take the lead whenever they want to. Just go inside and let everything else work itself out.