http://www.grizzliesonline.com Blogs by Memphis Grizzlies players, insiders and select fans. en ltorrell@grizzlies.com Copyright 2009 2009-07-15T13:38:19+00:00 http://www.grizzliesonline.com/index.php?/tumbleson/comments/grizz_advance_to_2-0_with_win_over_knicks/ http://www.grizzliesonline.com/index.php?/site/grizz_advance_to_2-0_with_win_over_knicks/ The Grizzlies rallied in the 4th Quarter against the Knicks in Summer League action on Tuesday for a 90-86 win. Marcus Williams led the Grizz with 16 points. Watch video feature. View photos | Boxscore | Highlights | Summer 2009-07-15T13:38:19+00:00 http://www.grizzliesonline.com/index.php?/tumbleson/comments/joerger_checks_in_from_summer_league/ http://www.grizzliesonline.com/index.php?/site/joerger_checks_in_from_summer_league/ Can you give an overview of what you think of the Grizzlies Summer League team so far? Athletically we’re pretty good.  Our emphasis is team defense and integrating our system of play.  It is a year long learning curve for the younger guys.  They’ve picked it up well and are improving. Even though he didn’t put up huge numbers, Grizzlies top draft choice Hasheem Thabeet played to rave reviews after his Summer League contest.  What kind of an impact does he make on the floor that doesn’t show up in the box score? You’re not going to be able to quantify how he played because of his influence in changing shots and altering the other team’s offense.  On offense he really got to the rim in pick-and-rolls.  He sucked the defense in many times that allowed Marcus Williams to find shooters.  It is something that we hope to see a lot out of him when the regular season roles around.  Right now he is getting better every day. Speaking of Marcus Williams, his 17 assists against Oklahoma City were impressive.  Do you expect him to be able to maintain that same level of play the rest of Summer League? Marcus was tremendous.  He did it in 29 minutes, because we only play 40 minute games in Summer League, which makes it even that much more impressive.  If guys keep cutting hard and look to catch and shoot I think he’ll continue to have success this week.  He did a good job of starting the break and we’ll look for more of that from him this week.  Can you give a brief outlook on today’s game with the Knicks? They are going to put us in a lot of pick-and-rolls, so pick-and-roll coverage will be key.  We will have to keep the basketball out of the paint.  When you play them you have to keep your discipline offensively.  They want you to get in that style where you fire up the first open shot.  We will need to focus on rebounding the basketball off of long shots and not settling for jump shots, which is what they want us to do. After a handful of practices and games, what do you think the most important thing will be that the Grizzlies rookies bring to the team? The combination that they provide with athleticism and defensive minded toughness will be huge for us this season.  They are not one and done college players. They are mature men.  That combination can really add to our depth. Outside of the Grizzlies, which player or players have impressed you the most this week? Obvisouly Blake Griffin.  He has small forward skills in a power forward’s body.  There are guys that are tweeners, but he is not too small and he has skills that are more towards the guard side of things.  We will get a good look at him on Thursday. Summer 2009-07-14T19:24:43+00:00 http://www.grizzliesonline.com/index.php?/tumbleson/comments/grizzlies_roar_over_thunder/ http://www.grizzliesonline.com/index.php?/site/grizzlies_roar_over_thunder/ The Memphis Grizzlies (1-0) led from coast-to-coast in their 86-57 victory over the Oklahoma City Thunder (0-1) Sunday evening in both teams’ debut at the 2009 NBA Summer League presented by EA Sports from the Cox Pavilion in Las Vegas. The 29-point win is the largest margin of victory for a team thus far through 11 games of action. Read the full recap. View photos. Box Score | Play-by-Play | Summer League Standings. Go back to Grizzlies Summer League Section index page | Follow all Summer League action at nba.com/summerleague Summer 2009-07-13T13:48:02+00:00 http://www.grizzliesonline.com/index.php?/tumbleson/comments/coaches_corner_with_david_joeger/ http://www.grizzliesonline.com/index.php?/site/coaches_corner_with_david_joeger/ With a handful of practices after a few days in Las Vegas, what are your thought’s on the Grizzlies Summer League team thus far? Any time you bring a new group of people together there will be adjustments. They have to get used to each other and our system. We really want to use this opportunity to integrate our principles of play as much as possible to our draft picks and our roster guys. At this point we’ve had three practices. Two yesterday and one today so far. Its be a little sloppy at times, but we’ve seen definite improvement, and every Summer League I’ve ever been a part of has had that though. We showed marked improvement this morning. We’ve been very organized and guys have played hard. Hopefully it will be more aesthetically pleasing to the eye after we get a game or two under our belts. What are you hoping to achieve during Summer League? There are three things that we try to accomplish here. First we want our guys to get used to our system. We want them to get a better understanding of the schemes offensively, defensively and in transition both ways. Second, we want them to develop as individuals within the framework of the team. Summer League gives players a chance to run through the drills that we will put them through once training camp comes around, so now they won’t be seeing these drills for the first time. Third it gives us a chance to show well as a team and build momentum going into next season. We feel that with our main club we will be better next year, and there is a good feeling around the team that we will be able to create momentum here and take it into training camp. How has Hasheem Thabeet performed in his first glimpse of real NBA action? It is fun to see Thabeet play in five-on-five situations. His forte is affecting the game on the defensive end, and we’ve really been able to see that this week. He’s been great. He is also showing a nice ability to catch and finish around the rim. He’s showing an ability to be effective with post-ups duck-ins that will definitely help him. Do you expect Darrell Arthur to be the leader of this Summer League team since he has had so much experience from the 2008-09 regular season? Darrell has done a great job in practice so far. He has been very aware on the drills and is leading by example. He is not a verbal guy, but is leading through his effort and his body language. He has had three really good practices. This is an opportunity to play through him a little more. Summer League will give Arthur a chance to develop his game in the low post. How has the Grizzlies other returning roster member, Hamed Haddadi, performing in practice? Hamed matches up with Hasheem every minute of every practice. As a player, he tends to look better during games, so we are looking forward to the game part with him. He has international experience and got some good experience with the D-League this year, so we are looking forward to continue his improvement. What players do you think can benefit the most from Summer League? The draft picks can benefit the most from being here. They are getting an understanding of the transition from the college game to the pro game. Do you think any of the veteran free-agents on the team have a chance of sticking with the Grizzlies or any other team in the league this year? Marcus Williams is going to get a look having the NBA experience. Daniel Ewing and Donta Smith have NBA experience, so those guys are trying to make a roster. They are trying to make our roster or another. Summer 2009-07-11T22:13:38+00:00 http://www.grizzliesonline.com/index.php/avis/comments/free_agent_signings_and_an_upcoming_summer_hiatus/ http://www.grizzliesonline.com/index.php?/site/free_agent_signings_and_an_upcoming_summer_hiatus/ Free agent signings haven’t officially happened but a lot of player movement has occurred in principle over the past week. It’s time to recap. Zach Randolph (Clippers) traded to the Grizzlies for Quentin Richardson The Grizzlies get their upgrade at power forward with a dominant low-post scorer and rebounder. The Clippers make room in their frontcourt for Blake Griffin. As long as Randolph can stay healthy (and out of trouble), it should be a win-win. Richard Jefferson to the Spurs for expiring contracts The Spurs are right back in contention in the Western Conference. They now have an athletic wingman to give Manu Ginobili some help on both the offensive and defensive end. Jefferson also gives the Spurs insurance in case Manu gets hurt again. Ron Artest to the Lakers; Trevor Ariza to the Rockets I don’t understand why the Lakers wouldn’t try to keep their title roster completely intact. Sometimes I think GMs can outsmart themselves and this might be the case for LA. Ariza was the perfect compliment to Kobe, Gasol and Odom. He hit open shots, played tough defense, made hustle plays and didn’t ask for a lot of shots. Will Artest fill that role the same way? The slight upgrade he might give them in scoring isn’t worth the potential headaches he might cause. And why is Ariza going to the Rockets? With Yao potentially out next year, I see the Rockets as a bunch of scrappy role players overachieving by making the playoffs and then flaming out in round 1. How exciting! Charlie Villanueva and Ben Gordon to the Pistons If Rip Hamilton couldn’t coexist with Allen Iverson, how exactly is he going to get along with Gordon? I’d unload Rip right now if I could. I don’t think the Pistons roster is that bad. A starting lineup of Stuckey, Gordon, Prince and Villanueva is respectable, but if they can’t unload Hamilton for a center, watch out, you might have Kwame Brown getting big minutes. Scary! Rasheed Wallace to the Celtics I don’t like the Celtics or Rasheed. This works out perfectly for me! Hedo Turkoglu to the Raptors 30-year old Hedo Turkoglu is worth $10 million a year and up-and-coming Trevor Ariza is only worth $7 million a year? I don’t get it. I can’t wait for Toronto to have buyer’s remorse with Turkoglu in two seasons. I’ll have to catch back up with any other free agent signings and summer league action when I return to blogging the first week of August. I’ll be out of the country the next 2-3 weeks. 2009-07-07T23:47:28+00:00 http://www.grizzliesonline.com/index.php?/tumbleson/comments/vegas_grizzlies_vegas/ http://www.grizzliesonline.com/index.php?/site/vegas_grizzlies_vegas/ A lot of people visit Las Vegas for a variety of different reasons. Some travel to “Sin City” to gamble away their riches. Most tourists flock to Nevada for expensive entertainment and extravagant dinner shows. Diehard basketball fans crusade to the desert for the annual NBA Summer League.  For Grizzlies Head Coach Lionel Hollins though, the Memphis Grizzlies are going there for one reason: to develop the futures of the franchise. “The aim of the NBA Summer League is to get the rookies acclimated to the way NBA games are played, the way they’re officiated and to go against veteran guys,” Hollins said. “As a rookie, you have no idea how difficult it is to play in the NBA. This gives them experience to go up against guys like that and also their peers who were also highly drafted.” For the first time since moving to Memphis nine years ago, rookies will not train in Bluff City, but instead practice in Las Vegas. With the success the Grizzlies had in the 2009 NBA Draft acquiring No. 2 overall draft pick Hasheem Thabeet of Connecticut, 27th overall pick DeMarre Carroll of Missouri and 36th overall pick Sam Young of Pittsburgh, Coach Hollins is excited about the prospect of the Grizzlies’ rookies getting their feet wet. “This is their first opportunity since being drafted to be in a team setting and learn what we’re doing,” Hollins said. “We’re (the coaching staff) going to see where they are in terms of being able to pick up schemes, learn plays and learn what their real skill level is. I just want our young guys to play.” With the Grizzlies having three quality picks that seek to get a lot of playing time come this fall, the franchise is the only team out of the league’s 21-team field who will have all Top-3 draft picks see the court in the desert. Furthermore, according to Hollins, some of the active roster is traveling to Vegas to train with the rookies for the first time ever. “We’re going to have Rudy (Gay), O.J. (Mayo) and a couple of other players on our roster that are going to work out with the team,” Hollins said. “We have a high school in Las Vegas where we can practice all day long for as long as we want.” With the Grizzlies leaving Wednesday morning for three days of practice, the rookies as well as the rest of the team have a tough schedule ahead of them.  The team begins its 2009 NBA Summer League campaign on Sunday, July 12 vs. No. 3 overall pick James Harden and the Oklahoma City Thunder. Following the Grizzlies’ opener the team will square off against No. 8 overall pick Jordan Hill and the New York Knicks on Tuesday, July 14. On Thursday, July 16, NBA fans will be treated to an ultra-rare summer league matchup between the top two picks in this year’s draft. Thabeet, nicknamed the “Tanzanian Terror,” and the Grizzlies will do battle against fellow big man and No. 1 overall pick Blake Griffin and the Los Angeles Clippers. The game marks the first time since the Grizzlies began taking part in the NBA Summer League in Las Vegas where the team was a part of a No. 1 vs. No. 2 NBA Summer League battle. Memphis concludes its five-game summer series with games against Phoenix on Saturday, July 18, and San Antonio on Sunday, July 19. The finale against the Spurs will see Young take on former Pittsburgh teammate DeJuan Blair in a matchup of former First-Team All-BIG EAST performers. With three days of practice and five games on the desert horizon, Hollins is taking a wait-and-see approach. “It’ll be interesting to see how they adapt to it,” Hollins said. “When we get to the regular season, they’re going to need to adapt more so, coming off the bench and not even starting.” With that said, the Grizzlies are openly optimistic about the chemistry of the team improving dramatically while taking a trip out west. “It’s a great chance to improve camaraderie and also get them acclimated with the new guys coming in,” Hollins said. “It’s always a good sign when the players want to be a part of whatever it takes to help you get better and be more successful more quickly.” Summer 2009-07-07T22:17:08+00:00 http://www.grizzliesonline.com/index.php/avis/comments/letting_the_dust_settle_on_the_2009_nba_draft/ http://www.grizzliesonline.com/index.php?/site/letting_the_dust_settle_on_the_2009_nba_draft/ The NBA Draft is like a wild-west shootout. It takes a little while for the dust to settle and figure our which teams are still standing and which teams went the way of Buford “Mad Dog” Tannen. To see how the professional NBA scribes viewed the Grizzlies draft, Chris Herrington summed up the reaction already. I spent way too much time reading trade rumors over the last month. I feel so stupid for getting sucked into these trade articles every year near the trade deadline and near the draft. I probably could’ve learned a foreign language or built a house over the last month if I focused on that half as much as I spent reading Chad Ford and Hoops Hype.  Without further ado, here’s my 2009 NBA Draft thoughts: A lot of people assumed Ricky Rubio was the consensus number 2 pick and had a significant amount of trade value. When the Grizzlies passed on him, it wasn’t that shocking. However, when Rubio fell to 5, it showed that there weren’t many teams out that they wanted him. Four teams were okay passing him up, and other teams didn’t offer much for him. Given Rubio’s complaints after the draft, it’s clear that he and his agent did the opposite of selling him to teams over the past month. Whoops. Anyone that defends Minnesota taking two point guards with their two lottery picks should be committed. I understand Minnesota’s rationale to get two top 6 picks, but didn’t Rubio and Stephen Curry seem like the perfect backcourt? You have the slick passer and the sharpshooter. I was already putting Minnesota on my “teams to watch next year.” When’s the last time that was said? And then, they go and draft Jonny Flynn. The highest of comedies ensued at the draft party I was at. When Ty Lawson was taken with their 3rd first-round pick, I was laughing hysterically until the trade with Denver was announced. The Spurs somehow lucked into DeJuan Blair. Even if he does have ACL problems, they really only need him to be a significant contributor over the course of the next two seasons, which seems pretty reasonable. I’m scared of a Duncan, Blair, Jefferson, Ginobili and Parker lineup. I was glad to see Oklahoma City take James Harden. I’m just not that impressed with him and wouldn’t be surprised if Thabo Sefolosha played more minutes next season. My boy (used loosely) Tyreke Evans went to the Kings. Between him and Kevin Martin, there won’t be many shots left to go around. Get ready to start rebounding Jason Thompson. Earl Clark is going to be the surprise of the first round if Steve Nash truly maximizes the potential of his teammates. Austin Daye will be a bust. I don’t trust any “power” forward that weighs less than Calista Flockhart. And, last by not least, what I think of the Grizzlies draft. I understand the idea behind drafting Thabeet. The Grizzlies need an interior presence on the defensive end. Thabeet isn’t the compliment to Marc Gasol, but having Gasol will give the Grizzlies an added luxury of not putting too much pressure on the #2 draft pick right away. If Thabeet develops like you hope that he does, Marc Gasol could be used as a very valuable trade piece down the line. (It pains me to talk about Gasol and trade for the obvious reasons and also because Marc is probably my favorite Grizzly). I don’t know too much about DeMarre Carroll other than he took out my beloved Tigers in the NCAA tournament. Carroll will most likely be the 3rd string PF this year, but he provides insurance in case Hak doesn’t come back. Sam Young was on my sleeper list so I was glad to nab him. He should be ready to contribute immediately. Lastly, Darko was sent to the NY Knicks for Quentin Richardson. The Darko era was a short one, but provided many humorous moments (the shirt rip being at the top). Alas, the Darko-Marko time together will be remembered as a duo that was broken up before its time. Here’s how I see the Grizzlies depth chart for next season. C – Gasol/Thabeet/Haddadi PF – Arthur/Warrick/Carroll SF – Gay/Young/Carroll SG – Mayo/Richardson/Young PG – Conley/Jaric/Mayo Free agency could shake things up a bit and I could see the Grizzlies trying to upgrade the backup point guard position and either address the PF situation by resigning Hakim or going after someone else. Our bench is a vast improvement already over last year’s squad. I see Carroll and Young as high-energy guys that can come in and disrupt opponents. Regardless of whether Gasol or Thabeet starts, whichever comes off the bench should be the best bench Center in the league. And Q-Rich gives the bench a legitimate scorer and three-point shooter. (Sorry Greg Buckner).       Draft, Grizzlies, NBA 2009-06-27T22:24:13+00:00 http://www.grizzliesonline.com/index.php?/tumbleson/comments/grizzlies_select_hasheed_thabeet_with_no._2_pick_in_2009_nba_draft/ http://www.grizzliesonline.com/index.php?/site/grizzlies_select_hasheed_thabeet_with_no._2_pick_in_2009_nba_draft/ Post-Draft interview with Hasheem Thabeet “We are very excited about the draft,” Wallace said. “Hasheem Thabeet is the best defensive center this franchise has had since its inception. We felt that a player of his size and defensive capability doesn’t come waltzing down Beale Street every year to play for us. We had to take him. Read comments from Hasheem Thabeet. “We are very excited about the arrival of these three players and feel they are going to make a big impact on our defense, toughness and athleticism as well as bolster our bench.” View photos of Hasheem Thabeet. Thabeet, the 2008-09 Big East Co-Player of the Year along with Pittsburgh’s DeJuan Blair, led Connecticut in rebounding (10.9), blocked shots (4.2, second in the nation) and field goal percentage (.643) in guiding the Huskies to their first Final Four appearance since 2004. A finalist this season for the Oscar Robertson and Naismith National Player of the Year Awards, he also captured the Big East Defensive Player of the Year Award for the second-straight season, making him the first player to win the award in consecutive years since UConn’s Emeka Okafor (2003, 2004), who was chosen second overall by the Charlotte Bobcats in the 2004 NBA Draft. The 7-3, 263-pound defensive anchor leaves Connecticut ranked second on the all-time Big East blocks list (243) behind Patrick Ewing and holds the conference’s single-season record for swats in league games (94 in 2007-08), besting the old record (93) previously held by Georgetown’s Alonzo Mourning. Read comments from Coach Hollins. | Read comments from Chris Wallace. Draft 2009-06-26T06:15:47+00:00 http://www.grizzliesonline.com/index.php?/tumbleson/comments/media_interview_with_michael_heisley/ http://www.grizzliesonline.com/index.php?/site/media_interview_with_michael_heisley/ Grizzlies Majority Owner Michael Heisley spoke with media following the final Grizzlies Draft Workout on June 24. Here’s what he had to say: What are your thoughts on the Draft at this point “My thoughts are that we have a lot of work left to do. We have a lot of people on the telephone, and people keep asking me who we’re going to draft.  We have some people we like, but the point is we continue to talk to people because we don’t know what the deal is going to be when we finally make the pick.  I’d like to tell you who that will be, but I’m not sure who it’s going to be.” How wild has it been over the last 48 hours? “You saw today, somebody traded the No. 5 pick, Washington did, and a lot of other trades are going on.  I think a lot of people are trying to position themselves and a lot trying to get down into cap room. A lot of teams are looking into next year’s free-agency.  There’s a lot of maneuvering going around. A lot of people never understood that what one team is looking to do with their team, another team is looking to do something else.  All of that plays into it.  This is the absolutely, far and away the most active time in the NBA for trading and everything else.  I’m not going to sit down and tell you who we’re going to draft because I really, honestly don’t know who we’re going to pick.  If you had asked me last year whether we would have picked O.J. Mayo at this point, he wasn’t even on our radar screen.  We were trying to get Beasley, and we didn’t get Beasley, we ended up getting O.J. Mayo.  And we are very happy with that trade and I’m Minnesota is as well because Love is a tremendous player there also.” How in any way did yesterday’s trade affect you with what you’re trying to do? “I mean I don’t know.  It really depends on what Minnesota and those other teams are trying to do. We’re still at the No. 2 pick.  I can tell you we talked to L.A. (Clippers) starting right after the Lottery.  They’re not moving Griffin, which was pretty obvious right from day one.  They brought their fans in and everything else.  So that took him off the table.  So we’re the No.1 slot because there’s a lot of debate on who is the No. 2 player and what you can do with him. So there’s a lot of movement with people talking.” “There’s a lot of interest.  As I told people a year ago, when we started this process, we’re going to get better. We have two first round picks this year we have two first round picks next year.  We have a lot of people wanting to do trades.  We’re starting to build a team with some very good players on it.  We will get a very, very good player out of this draft and that will make our team that much better.  We will make a bigger jump this year than we did last year.” What about all the things from the Rubio camp about not taking him and him apparently not wanting to play here? “Look, if I want to pick Ricky Rubio, that hasn’t changed my mind this much.  The closest thing it came to doing was making me pick Rubio, not the other way around.   2009-06-24T22:10:02+00:00 http://www.grizzliesonline.com/index.php?/tumbleson/comments/one_last_look/ http://www.grizzliesonline.com/index.php?/site/one_last_look/ Wednesday marked the end of the long and arduous pre-draft saga for the Grizzlies.  The players in town to make their final cases in front of Grizz brass, including owner Michael Heisley, were Syracuse’s Eric Devendorf, Kentucky’s Jodie Meeks, Gonzaga’s Jeremy Pargo and local product Tayloe Taylor out of Livingstone (N.C.). Like the players in town for Tuesday’s workout, these players are also teetering towards the edge of the second round.  Kentucky’s Jodie Meeks stands the best chance out of the group to have his name called in tomorrow night’s draft.  On the eve of the draft, he knows the process is now out of his hands. “Tomorrow I’m just going to go home and not worry about anything,” said Meeks.  “There’s nothing more I can do now so I’ll let the chips fall where they will.” Meeks’ agenda during pre-draft workouts is to show teams that he is much more than just a scorer. “I’ve tried to focus on everything I know I can do,” Meeks said.  “I can defend, rebound and show leadership.  Everybody knows I can shoot and score, but there are other aspects of my game.” Meeks is one of many underclassmen entering the draft and like all the others his decision to leave Kentucky wasn’t easy. “I gave it a lot of thought over the weekend before the deadline,” he said.  “I sat down with my family and Coach [John] Calipari told me to make the best decision for me and my family.  It was a tough decision but I feel like this is my best opportunity.” Michael Heisley stopped by and spoke about tomorrow night and says the organization is still unsure who they will be taking at No. 2. “I not going to sit down and tell you who we’re going to pick because I honestly don’t know,” said Heisley.  “We have some people we like, but we don’t what the deal will be when we finally get ready to make the pick.” Trade talks are heating up around the NBA, and Minnesota now holds two top ten picks at No. 5 and No. 6, so things might get interesting over the next 24 hours. “This is far and away the most active time in the NBA for trading and everything else,” Heisley said.  “You saw today that [Washington] traded the No. 5 pick [to Minnesota].  Teams are trying to position themselves and get under cap room.” Draft 2009-06-24T21:48:49+00:00