The Friday Three: Memphis Grizzlies Resolutions
Just a few areas of growth
Happy New Year to you and yours. 2022 was one full of change for your truly - stepping down from Grizzly Bear Blues, starting some new writing journeys and the big move to Locked On Grizzlies - and I am so thankful that folks still follow my Memphis Grizzlies #content. To all who subscribe, free or paid, thank you. I look forward to a 2023 of continued writing and talking about the team that keeps me connected to a city I still view as my second home in Memphis.
The Memphis Grizzlies picked up a much-needed road victory over a wounded Toronto Raptors squad Thursday evening…but a win is a win at this stage of the game. Memphis was 1-4 in their last 5 heading in to the Raptors game, so the health of the opponent was irrelevant. It was good to see the Grizzlies smiling again after a week or so of holiday struggles.
But the team would be making a major mistake if they simply ignored the reasons the team was having issues. There are areas for growth for Memphis entering not only 2023, but a pretty fun back-to-back at home in FedExForum against the New Orleans Pelicans and Sacramento Kings this weekend. Whether it’s the Ja Morant - Zion Williamson match-up or the showdown with one of the NBA’s best stories so far this season (LIGHT THE BEAM EVERY NIGHT EXCEPT WHEN SACRAMENTO PLAYS MEMPHIS), hopefully the city comes out both nights and enjoys some Grizzlies basketball against solid squads.
With the hot start to the new year ahead of the Grizzlies, what better time to ponder some “New Years Resolutions” for Memphis as they look to not just hold serve in the Western Conference, but solidify their place as one of the NBA’s elite teams?
We begin with highlighting a polarizing force for chaos for Memphis.
Feature Dillon Brooks
As the NBA world turns, so do trade rumors. The #1 candidate for such things - whether they are founded or not - for the Memphis Grizzlies will be Danny Green. It’s too easy - not playing currently, $10 million a year deal expiring this summer. Combine that deal with a 1st round pick and depth can be achieved relatively easily (although a trade is almost certainly not happening in general).
Option #2 for such dirt sheet discussions, however, will likely be Dillon Brooks. Dillon’s contract is also expiring, and Brooks’ fit in Memphis has been questioned. He did not receive a contract extension in the “Summer of Extensions” this past offseason, but there’s a good reason for that. The max the Grizzlies could’ve offered Dillon because of his previous contract was 4 years, $61 million. And Brooks likely will make more than that on the open market.
Still, an expiring contract - even on a player as important to winning as Brooks (+12.9 net rating entering the Raptors game, 95th percentile in the entire NBA) - holds value to teams trying to clear cap space, especially bad ones. And possibilities are nearly endless when combining Brooks’ deal with Danny Green and a 1st round pick or two.
Regardless, the Memphis Grizzlies should continue to lean on Dillon Brooks and find ways to make him feel as comfortable as possible night in and night out. That’s not to say Grizzlies Head Coach Taylor Jenkins doesn’t already do this - Brooks continues to be a defensive force while not impeding the Memphis offense as much as his detractors seem to believe. The Grizzlies offense entering the Toronto game was 3.4 points better with DB on the floor. And that, again, doesn’t fully account for what he brings to the defensive side of the floor.
You can’t teach that level of intensity. And throughout the Toronto game, Brooks absorbed physicality and made life difficult for Raptors offensive weapons like Pascal Siakam. His ability to take on numerous scorers of all shapes and sizes not just because of his physical skill, but his mental toughness, is so important to this Grizzlies team. Night in, night out, Brooks is ready, willing, and able to be the villain Memphis needs.
It is why this writer is not convinced he’s not a part of the future of the Memphis Grizzlies - he can be re-signed without Memphis going in to the Luxury Tax, at least for one season before the Desmond Bane eventual large rookie extension kicks in. And Brooks’ +12.9 rating is the best on the Grizzlies team. Better than Ja Morant, or Jaren Jackson Jr., or Desmond Bane. It is Brooks whose defensive impact combined with offensive creativity and confidence (even when perhaps he should be LESS confident) makes Memphis both on and off the floor a tougher outfit.
That needs to be amplified - whether Brooks is traded or not (likely not).
Get Jaren Jackson Jr. dishing
Jaren Jackson Jr. likely will not be named an All-Star this season, for a variety of reasons. A TON of competition. His own absence due to injury. But his defensive exploits are well-known at this stage (a phenomenal 5.8% block percentage, best in the NBA) and have him, as well as Dillon Brooks, getting deserved Defensive Player of the Year nominee recognition.
Something Jaren is doing that is not as discussed as his presence at and around the rim, however, is realizing some of his offensive potential. He is having his best scoring season since his sophomore season in the NBA. Before the Toronto game - one where he scored 15+ points - he was posting 117.8 points per 100 possessions. That’s below average among NBA bigs, but better than what he had been doing in previous seasons. His percentages in terms of shooting accuracy are almost up across the board, and he seems more comfortable using his body to get to the rim. 38% of his attempts come at the tin - his best mark in that area since his rookie season. He will start seeing more of them falling - 57% entering the Toronto game is the worst of his career converting at the rim so far, per Cleaning the Glass.
The shooting is good-to-great, or will get better simply because of variance. But a place he must improve is as a passer. He never would be mistaken for Ja Morant as a creator for others, but even for Jaren he has not been great. A 3.5% assist rate is the lowest of Jaren’s career. When compared to his usage rate, Jaren is in the 1st percentile. That means there aren’t many bigs in the NBA creating less for teammates than Jaren.
Now that’s not what Jaren is paid to be. But we’re talking about resolutions here - areas of growth. And we have seen evidence of Jackson Jr. understanding he can be better in this space. A skip pass on a three pointer by Desmond Bane in the third quarter comes to mind in particular - Jaren reads the defense, sees the opportunity in a missed rotation to swing to the corner for a Bane shot attempt instead of a Dillon Brooks one, and the rest is academic…or at least will be once the Grizzlies sharpshooter gets his legs under him.
Jaren has it in him. Just bring it out more consistently. Evolve the game. It’s there. Take it.
Keep your smile, and dance your dance
More and more the Memphis Grizzlies are the hunted, not the hunter. They no longer surprise opponents. Their games are circled on schedules. Teams WANT to beat Ja Morant and the Memphis Grizzlies, not just because they’re the next opponent. But because they talk. They dance. They have a swagger.
The Grizzlies cannot afford to lose that.
For a variety of reasons (injury, first and foremost), the Memphis Grizzlies have had issues getting themselves together on the road in particular. You lose the comfort of home, but with so many key players in and out of the lineup you also lose continuity. That matters for a team built on chemistry (or “vibes”) like the Grizzlies are. And when there is adversity, as Dillon Brooks pointed out recently., at times Memphis seems ill-prepared to respond.
That is very unlike these Memphis Grizzlies. You know Dillon Brooks - again, for better or worse, will not freeze. But if others do? You lose the mental edge, and once that’s gone against comparably talented teams you have lost. With the parity that exists in the Western Conference, that simply cannot happen.
The Toronto game was a good step in the right direction, and increased minutes for the entire roster as it was designed to be used in rotations will help this cause. But for the Grizzlies to truly be a title contender, they have to combat the effects of their swagger. It’s what makes them what they are - the exception to the rebuilding rule.
It also makes you enemies. Ones that want to see you fall. But all they need to rise above it is there with them in that Grizzlies locker room.
Keep that belief. And keep dancing. The smiles will potentially last through the spring and in to the summer of 2023 if they do.