Grizzlies remain scrappy non-factor
The Memphis Grizzlies are not going to make any noise in the NBA’s Western Conference playoffs. Memphis continues to make the postseason with one of the toughest teams in the league, but it is not enough to make any real progress in the spring.
The Grizzlies are 41-32 and sitting in the fifth seed of the West, currently slated to play the Los Angeles Clippers in the first round. Los Angeles has more talent with the likes of Blake Griffin, Chris Paul and DeAndre Jordan on the roster. However, the Clippers have shown they will fold like a cheap suit in the rain when the playoffs come around, so Memphis getting out of the first round is a possibility.
However, going any further than that is a pipe dream. The Grizzlies would be facing the Golden State Warriors in the second round, a team that is challenging the 1995-96 Chicago Bulls’ all-time mark for a regular season record of 72-10. Golden State would absolutely hammer the Grizzlies, likely in four games but at the most, five.
Memphis is an excellent defensive team but without center Marc Gasol, the interior has been compromised. Zach Randolph remains one of the better two-way players in the game, but he is aging and not enough to put up a decent fight against one of the top contenders.
The other problem is the overall plight of the offense. Memphis is averaging 99.2 points per game, with the only teams notching lower totals in the conference being the Utah Jazz and Los Angeles Lakers. Memphis is without its top scorer in Gasol for the rest of the season, and is relying on the trio of Mike Conley Jr. (15.3 points per game), Lance Stephenson (15.2) and Randolph (14.9). It won’t be enough come May, but it has gotten the Grizzlies into the dance once more.
The Grizzlies, while they are a team with a very limited ceiling, should be celebrated. Memphis is one of the few teams left in the NBA that plays real defense and actually cares throughout the grind of an 82-game regular season. The Grizzlies give an honest effort for their fans and because of that, have taken a team missing its more important piece and lacking some others into the postseason for another shot at the belt.
The spring won’t end up the way folks in Memphis want. The Grizzlies will be a footnote in the 2015-16 NBA campaign when all is set and done. Still, there is something to be proud of for a team that refuses to quit.
