4 takeaways from Grizzlies, Trail Blazers back-to-back
The Grizzlies went winless in their back-to-back with the Portland Trail Blazers in a doozie of a weekend. What can be taken away from it?
The Memphis Grizzlies and Portland Trail Blazers had the home-and-home back-to-back this past weekend. The result was the same for the Grizzlies in both contests, but it was a tale of 2 games.
Friday night was a blowout loss that lacked any sort of punch. Saturday night was more competitive, but they couldn’t seal the deal in regulation and overtime — surrendering an 18-point lead in the 4th quarter.
You can’t make any definitive statements over 2 games — nonetheless, these two games. However, elements that will linger as trends through the rest of the season stand out.
1) The differences in competitiveness
The result was the same, but the Grizzlies came out with a different level of intensity in the Saturday game.
An effort Taylor Jenkins described as “embarrassing,” the Grizzlies lacked any sort of punch in Friday night’s outing. The Blazers punished them inside the paint — demolishing them with their points in the paint, as well as in the rebound category. The ball didn’t have any sort of zip either, as the team didn’t share the ball well — 15 assists against 21 turnovers.
They lacked fire — a “clock in, clock out” kind of game.
However, despite the loss, you could sense a shift in energy and focus in the next game. They were more crisp in their movements. There was more togetherness on both ends of the floor, though their turnover volume maintained. They just seemed more locked in during Saturday’s night, but they just ran out of steam at the end.
More often than not, because of their injury situation, they may be at a talent deficit each night. However, the difference in effort cannot be as severe at it was Friday night — as well as the Brooklyn game last Monday (chance for redemption tonight!). Even with fans watching ping pong balls, the effort displayed on Friday night is agonizing to watch.
Effort like Saturday night’s outing — and in other past performances we’ve seen (Milwaukee win, Clippers and Timberwolves losses for example) — is repeatable and could lead to wins here and there to close the year. More importantly, it sets a good foundation to close the season strong into a big offseason.
2) Reverse standings watch
From an offseason standpoint, it was a huge weekend for the lottery odds, as the Portland Trail Blazers had 4-game separation between the Grizzlies for the 5th spot in the “reverse standings” — aka the lottery rankings.
With last weekend’s losses, the Grizzlies are now 2 games within the Blazers for the 5th-best lottery odds for the top pick. So now, the 5th spot is something to at least monitor through the end of the season.
Will the Grizzlies get there? TBD.
Jaren Jackson Jr. won’t entirely be shut down, though seeing him miss games at a time are more likely — especially with the 65-game requirement for awards looming for him. Desmond Bane could be back before the end of the season, and maybe it holds true for Brandon Clarke and Marcus Smart as well. The Grizzlies should — and will — be cautious about their returns and minutes. Their cameos could be a good ramp-up for the 2024-25 season.
Nonetheless, the Grizzlies will act with best interests of the 2024-25 season. I know “lottery balls” will be a big talking point the final 6 weeks of the season, and will be amplified with March Madness. As long as the competitiveness remains, I’m sure everyone will be content with just letting the ping pong balls fall where they may.
(And that’s my stance: Just be competitive through the rest of the season, and let the lottery balls decide the pick’s fate.)
3) The Grizzlies are missing its table-setters
The Grizzlies’ active roster is so unbalanced with their main guards and bigs out of the fold.
Players are playing out of their natural positions and roles.
In the process, the offense will be going through the mud, as unnatural “lead guards” are running the system. It makes sense with no “table-setters” in the offense. That’s why it looks like the ball may seem stuck, and the actions seem to be going nowhere several times.
Friday night, they had 15 assists against 21 turnovers. Saturday night, they finished with 21 assists and 22 turnovers — and only 4 of the 10 guys that played tallied multiple assists.
Jordan Goodwin was the only point guard available. Though he did better in Saturday’s game (8 assists), he’s more of a defensive-minded point guard rather than an organizer. While people complain about Luke Kennard shooting just twice in 27 minutes Saturday night, I’m not as bothered, since he made reads to set up his younger teammates — dropping 5 assists.
It’s a product of the situation right now. Hopefully, Scotty Pippen Jr. is back from injury soon to orchestrate the offense. Same goes for Rose. You know things will sort itself out better with Bane back on the floor.
4) Growth through the growing pains
The main theme to take over the weekend is that growing pains are a part of this process, and it will aid in its growth.
Just as easily as GG Jackson hits a dazzling dribble move to charge towards the rim, he may struggle with crowds and lose the ball on a turnover.
Vince Williams Jr. has been awesome as his role becomes more and more enhanced — maintaining offensive efficiency, while still defending at a stellar level. However, he’s adjusting with the defensive pressure and coverages he’s seeing.
Santi Aldama and Lamar Stevens are shouldering more “big” responsibilities, especially with manning the middle on the glass. Though it’s a committee effort, it starts with them at the 5.
Jake LaRavia is looking to build a rhythm with consistency playing time. The outside shooting — his foundational skill for future success — is still more of a theory right now, but he showed a strong ability to get to the free throw line.
Over these next 6 weeks, there will be growing pains. Some nights, it’ll click, and others it won’t.
That’s the big theme of the weekend.
However, when it isn’t clicking, they need to rely on consistent effort, as they can hang their hat there no matter who’s running the floor that night. And their response Saturday night is a good indicator that the effort will persistent to close the season.
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