The Grizzlies Have Finally Addressed Their Biggest Flaw
Ja Morant and Memphis shook up the NBA last season, now they’re shaking up their attack. Can the Grizzlies grind teams down from the perimeter
No team captured the NBA’s attention last season quite like the Memphis Grizzlies. Before they were eliminated in the second round by the eventual champions, Memphis finished the regular season second in wins, fourth in offense, and sixth in defense despite having one of the youngest rosters in the league. Behind Ja Morant, a 22-year-old sensation who vaulted himself into MVP consideration with ineffable showmanship, the Grizzlies carried themselves as if in the middle of a dynasty. The confidence was unearned yet, somehow, endearing.
Coming out of their series against the Warriors—in which Morant missed three out of six games—there were plenty of reasons to be optimistic about the Grizzlies’ future. But to take the next step and accentuate their franchise point guard’s uncanny athleticism, vision, and forethought in ways that can propel them to a title, they’d eventually need to establish a more reliable relationship with a serious shortcoming that held them back: the 3-point line.
Evolution is key. So is spacing. Surround Morant with knockdown shooters, widen his driving lanes, and unleash an offensive attack that coerces one impossible choice after another. That’s the idea, eventually. But so far this season, without Jaren Jackson Jr. and Ziaire Williams, Memphis has tried to rekindle the same identity that overwhelmed opponents on the offensive glass and in the open floor last year, while also posing a greater threat from downtown.
Generally, Memphis’s past few weeks have been understandably erratic. A once-rugged defense has become a wafer, allowing 117.9 points per 100 possessions (third-worst in the league).
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Some of this is due to not having JJJ, who finished fifth in the Defensive Player of the Year voting last season. Some of it is because they gave up 261 combined points in two straight games. The Grizzlies are allowing a league-worst 17.6 second-chance points per 100 possessions and the fourth-most 3s.
They also have two rookies in their rotation and a starting power forward who entered this season with 360 minutes of NBA experience under his belt. Right now, they’re undersized and inexperienced. But within their adversity, the Grizzlies have still spent a decent amount of time singeing the eyebrows off opposing defenders.