The biggest surprise team in a positive way so far this year has been the 13-7 Grizzlies who are doing just as well under Mike Fratello as they did under Hubie Brown. After slowly but surely building up the team for years, Jerry West did away with Jason Williams, Stromile Swift and Bonzi Wells. There was some question as to whether Damon Stoudamire and Bobby Jackson would respond to the team mentality; at this point their record speaks for itself. Memphis is leading the league in Defense, allowing an impressive 84.9 PPG; that's a good 5 points less than either Detroit or San Antonio allows. Of the bottom 10 teams in the league in scoring, only Memphis and Minnesota are outscoring their opponent. Eddie Jones and Stoudamire have brought defensive instincts while Bonzi Wells and Jason Williams were almost all offense. Paul Gasol was suffering from Yao Ming syndrome last year in that his game was all finesse and wouldn't attack the hoop enough. This year Gasol is a dunking machine and has better asserted himself as the team leader. The Grizzlies have all of their concerns on the offensive side. While Gasol is the best player on Memphis, he still occasionally has games where he just disappears. He needs to demand the ball more often; it's hard to believe he still hasn't had a 40-pt game in his career. Although the Grizzlies frequently get to the foul line, they shoot the second lowest percentage in the League (67.8%). Their offense is at times lethargic and has as hard a time scoring as their opponent. One of Memphis' biggest problems isn't in their control. While Minnesota leads their division at 12-6, Memphis is 13-7 and is 3rd in their division. San Antonio and Dallas will be impossible to shake, so the best they can hope for is 5th place. But it could also be a blessing in disguise. The lack of home court advantage will be tough, but as of today they'd be playing the Timberwolves in the playoffs. That is a very winnable team for Memphis. The Grizzlies do have the best defense in the NBA but once in awhile they need to contribute in the Points column. They only average 13.4 turnovers and do all the little things a veteran team should do, but they still need to perform better offensively. If they happen to play the Suns in the first round instead of Minnesota, it's a quick loss. |
