Memphis Blue Bears

The Bench!!

grizzliesfan828 — Sat, 06 Mar 2010 19:57:51 +0000

Hey Grizz fans. Sorry about the absence. There has been a lot going on the last few weeks. But I’m back. Now what has happened since I’ve been gone? The Grizzlies have lost a few games….and won a few games….we’ve sent two players to the D League…Thabeet and Hudson. And we’ve acquired Brewer in a trade and then turned around and lost him in the first game he played with the Grizz. Now when I was watching that on tv my jaw hit the floor…I couldn’t say anything except…..”Are you serious?” I think that right there proved just how bad our luck can be at times. Memphis still have their sites on the playoffs though. They sit 4 games out of the 8th and final spot in the West, behind a very strong Portland. Don’t get me wrong, the Grizzlies are still winning games. But we haven’t been able to put together a streak the way we were doing earlier in the season but we are winning. We win one, then lose one then win one, etc. Now we have won 2 games in a row so we may be able to put together a run in the stretch run. But I’m ecstatic. Wanna know why? Because the bench has finally answered my prayers. They’re playing better. They’re playing with heart. They are finally carrying their weight. Allowing the startes to get much needed rest during games. The Grizz have been messing with the bench for awhile now and finally chose the bench stars. Hudson and Thabeet are out. Marcus Williams, Sam Young, Darrell Arthur, and Hamed Haddadi are in. These guys have started getting more minutes as Hollins and the team have shown confidence in them. And they haven’t disappointed. Defense, scoring, rebounding, these guys have been doing it all. With the bench playing so well it almost seems as if a 4, 5, 6, or even 7 game win streak is inevitable. But I’m going to do my best and keep a level head….its going to be hard too though because this is the key I’ve been harping on for months. Bench play….being able to maintain control of the game while the starters were out. With the starters being able to rest I’m expecting their play to mimic their play of a couple of months ago. But even if we go on a win streak we need some help from Portland. We need them to lose some games….but not only that we need the Grizz to go back to their roots. Making FedExForum a tough place to play and winning home games. Believe it or not we’ve been winning more games on the road lately than at home. But we get to face San Antonio tonight at home. A team that we are more than capable of beating. I’m excited about this stretch run Grizz fans. Are you?

Turbulent Tuesday 2/9/10

grizzliesfan828 — Tue, 09 Feb 2010 17:01:51 +0000

Hey Grizz fans here are some rumors to chew on this week:

With a little less than 2 weeks to go until the trade deadline the Grizz are still looking at potential trades. General Manager Chris Wallace is still seeking reinforcements for the team. The bench is still a weak point on the team. Wallace stated that the Grizz are going to remain aggressive in trying to find someone to help them because even though he feels like the team can beat anyone on any given night it would be good to have reinforcements for the stretch run. Wallace refused to say who the Grizz are targeting but its rumored that former University of Memphis player Chris Douglas Roberts has popped up in trade discussions. He isn’t doing well in New Jersey and is frustrated with losing so he has been relegated to the bench and has fallen out of favor with the Nets. He can score and is aggressive on defense which is something the Grizz need coming off the bench. Scoring and defense. The goal of the Grizz is to augment what they already have. They have alot of cap room to work with. $3.2 million of space. Will Douglas, who played here in college come back to Memphis to play as a pro? Its possible but only time will tell……

Quick Grizz Facts

grizzliesfan828 — Tue, 09 Feb 2010 11:00:31 +0000

Memphis has dropped 3 straight games for the first time since beginning the season at 1-8…..

With the loss to Minnesota the Grizz have dropped 5 of their last 6 games…..

Memphis had won 15 of their last 19 games to take the 7th seed in the West. Now they’re 2.5 games out of the 8th seed in the West…..

Things don’t look any better as the Grizz have to face Atlanta tonight. A very physical team. Its going to be a tough game for the Grizz. The last time these two teams met Atlanta beat the Grizz 110-97

Grizz can’t seem to score near the end of games. Then again the Grizz seem to be lacking in scoring in general lately. The game against Minnesota was the first game out of their last 8 regulation games where the Grizz scored 100 or more points.

The Grizz finally broke their shooting slump. They shot below 44% from the field in 4 straight games. A season high. They shot 52% against Minnesota which was a better overall percentage than the Timberwolves…..but the Wolves shot better when it counted….in the 2nd half…..they managed to scorch the nets with 70% second half shooting…..

The bench is hurting the team. They can’t seem to score and their defense is like Swiss Cheese, forcing the starters to play extended minutes. This is taking a toll on the starters as they are starting to look worn out and at times it looks as though they are playing with no motivation. But Hollins won’t pull the starters right away because the bench isn’t going to play any better……whether they’re fresh or not…..so its a lose lose situation. Hopefully help is on the way…..

Moody Mondays: Losing Games We Should Win

grizzliesfan828 — Tue, 09 Feb 2010 00:25:27 +0000

Right now the Grizzlies are sitting at the 11th spot on the Western Conference. Yes you read that correctly 11th. How is this possible? Just last week the Grizzlies were sitting at the 7th spot in the West…..Well the Grizz have dropped 3 in a row and 4 of their last 5 games. Now it is true that the Grizz have had a tough stretch of back to back games but I mean come on. Losing to the Timberwolves? With the loss to the Timberwolves the Grizz are 1-11 in the second game of back to backs. I can understand it when you lose to Cleaveland after playing the Lakers and beating them the night before. It was a high octane hard fought game so I can understand the team looking tired and being a little off in Cleavland. Ok then you get a days rest and have to face the Rockets. But the Rockets totally outplayed the Grizz in the second half blowing open a game that had been close. Then after that game the Grizz had to go to Minnesota where they were once again outplayed in the second half. Particularly the 4th quarter. Now I know this is the NBA so every team has a “shot” at beating you but I mean come on. The Timberwolves are 13-38……they have the worst record in the West. And its not like the Timberwolves outplayed us the entire game……no the Grizz let them back in the game by fading in the second half. Mainly defensively. This is the one thing that drives me crazy about this team. We are a good team. We do have the talent to beat just about anyone in the league. But we fade in the second half. We blow leads. We stop hitting shots. We start getting lazy in defense. Its frustrating and disheartening at the same time. And this problem hasn’t started just this year. This has been a problem almost every year. I don’t care who coaches this team it is almost as if we’re cursed to fade in the second half….particularly the 4th quarter. I guess its fatigue. We expend all of our energy in the first half and don’t have anything left in the second half. So with the 2nd half fade the Timberwolves….a team with the worst record in the West…..managed to shoot 70% in the second half. Al Jefferson helped push the Timberwolves past the Grizz by scoring 12 straight when the Grizz held a 7 point lead early in the 4th….It seems like when we blow leads it always boils down to one person on the other team just taking over….and it isn’t always the star of the team that takes over….the Grizz managed to score 135 points the last time these teams met……but barely got over 100 this time. ….With a 70% shooting percentage there seemed to be a lack of effort at times….But its hard for Hollins to bench the starters cause our bench has left a lot to be desired. Nonetheless if the players are showing lack of effort or are gasping for air then bench them. Get them a break. And if the bench players play the same way then bench them. Threaten them with a trade. Find some way to get them motivated and pick up the slack. There’s nothing more frustrating as a fan than watching your team blow leads consistently…..and watching the other team score on your team fairly easily…..especially when that team is Minnesota. But its just as bad when its another team don’t get me wrong but its a little more understandable when its Kobe or Lebron scoring on your team with ease….Because they score on any and everyone….But Minnesota? Who do they consistently score on? Nobody! But enough about Minnesota. Lets not forget about our game against New Orleans. A team that was short handed. They were missing Chris Paul and James Posey. The two players that took over the game in the previous meeting between these two team but yet we manage to blow a 21 point lead in the second half and ended up losing. Thats pretty frustrating as a fan as well so I can only imagine how the players felt. The starters can’t do it all tho. The Grizz need help on the bench and fast. Do we still have a shot at making the playoffs? Of course we do but we have to win games and whats one of the keys to winning? Closing, closing, closing…..finishing the game strong. Playing strong on defense. Lets say we do make the playoffs. If we don’t correct our second half issues then we might as well go ahead and get out the brooms because whoever we play is going to take the series in 4. But if we can close games then I expect us to get be competitive and get our first playoff win this year. But of course its one step at a time. First we have to turn this slump around and start winning. Then maybe we can talk playoffs again…..if not then we’re going to be saying the cliche saying…….There’s always next year……

Moody Monday: Blowing leads after halftime

grizzliesfan828 — Tue, 02 Feb 2010 02:21:18 +0000

Hello everyone. Sorry I haven’t posted in awhile but I’ve been extremely busy and the winter snow storm that brought ice and snow to the Memphis area made me even busier. Nonetheless I’m back with a moody monday after watching the Grizzlies squanderd a 21 point lead in the second half to a team that was missing the two key players that gave us a hard time the last time we faced them…..Chris Paul and James Posey. What happened? Is this just a young team taking it easy on the second half? Was it lack of motivation? I wonder. That loss gave the Hornets a huge half game advantage over the Grizzlies so as the standings sit right now the Grizzlies are out of the playoffs. On a night where the win should have been ours easily and on a night where we should’ve regained a little bit of an advantage over the Hornets in the standings after losing to another division rival the Spurs. So the Grizzlies drop two big games in a row. Even bigger because they were both against division rivals. The Spurs loss I can accept. They’re a veteran team and the Grizzlies just could never really get started in that game. Their offense was a little lacking. But come on, blowing a perfect opportunity against the Hornets missing two key players? Unacceptable. It wasn’t like it was a close game. No, we had a double point advantage for most of the game…..then we do something that has plagued us for years. We blow the lead. We start seeing the signs towards the end of the 3rd quarter. We get away from what works. We get away from our gameplan…..We start slowing the game down and missing shots. Its almost as if its destined to happen. I’ve seen it happen in other games but its something about the Hornets. Do they have voodoo on us or something? Its very disheartening to watch the same thing happen against the same team twice! So our 11 game home winning streak has ended. And we are now in the 9th spot in the western conference. But we are still on the heat of the playoff race and its rumored that the Hornets might be without Chris Paul for at least a month……so I’m definitely expecting them to lose some games because I’m not really expecting too many teams to blow a 21 point lead in the second half. So as long as Coach Hollins can keep the team motivated and teach them the keys to closing a game then we should be able to continue on this roll that we are on and take back at least the number 8 spot…..but of course I have to believe that the Grizz are secretly focusing at the number 4 spot….its so close but yet so far away…….I’m still baffled tho. Are the Grizz getting tired in the 4th quarter? If a player is tired or is making bad decisions then he needs to pull them off the court. Send a message to them that if you’re going to get away from the gameplan then you’re going to sit…plain and simple…..he was willing to bench All Start Allen Iverson and not even bat an eye so keep the same strict mentality with this team. If he does that then I really feel like the Grizzlies will try just that much harder to keep up the pace and execute the gameplan that allowed them to build up a lead against whoever they’re playing. Now I know sometimes things can be out of the control of the Grizzlies….such as a superstar taking over the game and getting all of the calls etc. But no such thing happened against the Hornets….If the Grizzlies can close out every game that they play then they will beat even more teams. If the Grizz can close out game then we should go ahead and print up some playoff tickets, because thats whats holding us back…..

Turbulent Tuesday: 1/26/10

grizzliesfan828 — Wed, 27 Jan 2010 05:21:19 +0000

Alright Grizz fans, here are a couple of rumors to chew on….

The Grizzlies and Jazz are discussing a trade which involves Jazz forward Ronnie Brewer. The Grizzlies are still trying to improve the bench through free agency. Can you blame them? Thats one thing I have been trying to figure out for awhile now. The Grizz have such a promising team but the bench seems to be lagging behind. They can’t score it seems. The Grizz are hoping Brewer will fill that void. The Grizz are dealing future first round draft picks for Brewer. They refuse to deal first round picks from this years draft and it is unknown if any Grizz players are involved in the trade…..

The Grizz are also showing interest in Miami’s Dorell Wright but details are scarce right now……

Do any of you remember Von Wafer? The Grizz pursued the guard back in December but passed on signing him when he failed his physical. Right now Wafer is rehabilitating a back injury and the Grizz still have an eye on him as confirmed by Grizzlies GM Chris Wallace……

Believe it or not Grizz fans Rudy Gay is on the trading block. The Grizz are worried about losing Gay to Free Agency in the summer so they are shopping him around. One interesting trade rumor reported by ESPN has Gay going to Detroit for Tayshaun Prince. Memphis believes they are one defensive “presence” away from being a playoff team and Prince fits the bill. Not only would he add defensive presence to the team but he would also add playoff experience. Nonetheless I feel as though we have a playoff team right now…..even if we are a little lacking on defense at times. The Grizz have proved that they can play a tough, physical defense when they want to. The key is getting it out of them ALL the time. Not sometimes. Don’t get me wrong I understand things from the Grizzlies point of view. They don’t want to lose Gay for nothing……and Gay would benefit the Pistons. A young guy that could be a potential leader….he would fit in because the Pistons, like the Grizzlies, are in the rebuilding stages……hopefully Gay will remain a Grizzl…..

Moody Monday: Running Away From Trouble

grizzliesfan828 — Wed, 27 Jan 2010 04:27:17 +0000

I love the NCAA. The games are so full of passion and heart. The players are playing on pride….not money. The NCAA fans are also so full of passion and energy. The college game atmosphere is breathtaking. But there are things that I don’t like about college sports. The main thing I don’t like is the BCS system in football. Another thing that I don’t like is this new trend of coaches running away from trouble……I am going to talk about the latter. I am a strong believer in doing the time when you’ve done the crime but one thing I really don’t understand is forcing schools to do the time…..in the past….or in other words taking away wins or championships from the past. Another thing I don’t understand is when the Coach is able to walk away free. No punishment. Yeah maybe a few wins from the past will be omitted but nothing that is harsh in my opinion. So I guess I have a few questions. The first being what good does it do to take away championships or wins from the past? I mean you take away the wins from the “record books” but it’s not like you can take away the experiences and memories of the players, coaches, fans, etc. You can’t literally take away something that has happened so why not just focus on the future? Make it so that when a school gets in trouble they are restricted from being in a NCAA Tournament or Bowl game for 2 years or 4 years etc. And make them pay a hefty fine. Now I know the NCAA already does this but it seems to be the exception….instead the common punishment is to take away the past. Which as I already stated really doesn’t do anything in my opinion because even though the record is erased from the books everyone will always remember the game and how they felt during the game and the celebrations they had after the game etc. I mean don’t get me wrong. It does dishearten a school and its alumni to take away the ability to call your school “official” national champions of one year or to take away your “official” school best in wins for a season or whatever other achievements the school may have accomplished that season. Now if the NCAA had a Men in Black memory wiping type of device then I would understand the erasing of the past punishment. If the NCAA had such a device I would wear Ray Ban sunglasses to all college sporting events and while watching all college games on TV but that’s another story……the point is they don’t have such a device. So in my opinion affecting the future hurts way more than affecting the past. If we catch a spouse or loved one in an act of wrongdoing that directly affects us we don’t tell them to forget the great memories that were shared in the past. Instead we focus on the future. We tell them to forget a future or we forgive them and give them a future or we give them a future with “terms” such as a tighter leash etc. So why can’t the NCAA take the same approach. The reason why I’m stuck on that is because if you focus on the future then you have the possibility to punish the coach in a way that will hurt him more. Instead of taking away wins in the past, take away wins from the future season or seasons. Force a team to start 0-5 or 0-10 without having played a game in the season. And ban them from NCAA tournaments for a couple of years as well if the offense is serious enough. That will cause schools to keep a tighter leash on their staff and people associated with the school. Another question I have is why the school and coach can’t split the punishment. In other words if the NCAA says that the school can’t go to a tournament for the next 4 years or if they have to start 0-6 for the next 4 years then why not do this……if the coach stays at the school for the entire time then the coach and school will both suffer somewhat….but if the coach takes another job at another school it isn’t fair that the school suffers while the coach starts over so why not force the coach and school to split the punishment 50/50? So if the coach leaves right away the school should only have to serve half the punishment. So if a school is banned from tournaments for 4 years and the coach leaves right away then he should take 2 years of restrictions with him wherever he goes and the school only has to do 2 years of restrictions…….everything should be split 50/50. But what if the coach goes pro? Then the school restrictions are cut in half and the coach’s restrictions are waiting on him….which means if he ever comes back to the NCAA then his 2 year restrictions or whatever will still be in effect for whatever school he goes to. If they have something like that in place then I feel as though schools will be less willing to hire coaches under review or coaches who have just been punished by the NCAA. Why should coaches be able to run away from problems? If a player is punished by the NCAA it follows them wherever they go. Heck if a player transfers to another school after committing to one school he has to sit out a year before being eligible to play. So why not have something similar for coaches who are in trouble. If they get in trouble then they can’t leave for the pros or another school for a year. What will that do you ask? It will force coaches to keep tighter leashes on their players. And it will force coaches that know of wrongdoing to do something about it…..and it will prevent the up and coming trend of running away from trouble……

Prediction Thursday: 1/21

grizzliesfan828 — Sat, 23 Jan 2010 02:53:56 +0000

Defense seems to be the theme of the week as the Grizzlies have to face some really good defensive teams next week. 3 of the 4 teams rank in the top 11 in defense and the 4th team proved that they can almost shut down the Grizzlies for short periods of time. So the Grizzlies are going to have find different ways to score. The bench is going to have to step up too because the starters need their rest without worrying about the game getting out of hand. The Grizzlies face the Magic, Pistons, Spurs, and Hornets next week. Below are my breakdowns of the games.

Orlando Magic
27-15
9th in Offense
10th in Defense
This is going to be a game that will come down to a battle of big men. Dwight Howard and Zach Randolph are both big men that are averaging double doubles in rebounds and points. Marc Gasol is just under a double double average. Rebounds are very important for both teams because it allows them to run the fast break. The talk of Orlando has been the so called slump of superstar Vince Carter. Carter is only shooting 38% from the field right now but he’s still averaging around 17 points a game. So he can still be a weapon on offense and give the Magic some added scoring but at the same time you can force him to take some bad shots which will help keep the Grizzlies in this game especially if their able to win the battle of the boards. Its good to go inside but the Grizzlies may have to change their game plan slightly and take midrange shots because Howard is a beast inside when it comes to blocks. He’s averaging 2.4 blocks a game. Jameer Nelson is averaging almost 5 assists a game so he can distribute the ball with ease and he does a good job of leading Dwight Howard inside and finding him when he has prime position for the inside shot. Because of this Howard has the highest field goal percentage on the team with 60%. The Grizzlies can’t shut down Howard but they can force him to make mistakes as he’s averaging 3.4 turnovers a game. J.J. Redick cannot be left open in 3 point land or he will knock down the shot. So the number one key for the Grizzlies in this game will be rebounding. They can’t run the Magic out of the building because they score a lot of points too. Zach Randolph is going to have to do what he does best which is grabbing rebounds and score points. The Grizzlies are going to need everyone to contribute in this game. Even the bench…….that’s where the ball has been dropped. For some reason the bench cannot score points so Hollins usually has to end up putting Mayo or Gay back in the game. The bench has to step up because the Magic bench has some people that can put up points in a hurry. So the main keys to this game are rebounding and bench scoring and ball distribution. Don’t try to isolate too much. If the Grizzlies can do well on those keys they have a real shot at beating the Magic. I expect this game to go down to the wire. As long as the Grizzlies don’t go through a shooting slump in the 4th quarter we should be able to stay within striking distance. Nonetheless in the end I expect experience to win out so I predict the Magic will win by 4.

Detroit Pistons
15-26
Offensive Rank: 29th
Defensive Rank: 11th
The good news…..the Pistons are ranked 29th in offensive scoring in the league. The bad news…..They are ranked 11th in the league in points allowed. They will slow the game down. Even so the Pistons have a disappointing record of 15-26, so it’s a very winnable game for the Grizzlies. The Pistons have slight momentum though. They have just come off a big win against Boston. One of the top teams in the East and one of only 6 teams that have a winning record in the East….Why can’t the Grizzlies be in the East? Memphis is located more to the east than the west. Nonetheless I’m getting sidetracked. The good thing is that the Grizzlies have proven that they can adjust their tempo when needed. They aren’t the team of seasons past where they had to score more than 90 points to even have a shot at winning….Rodney Stuckey is leading the Pistons in scoring with about 19 points a game. Ben Wallace is averaging 9.5 rebounds a game. The two main people to watch in this game: Hamilton and Stuckey. I’m really not expecting a lot out of the other Piston players. Since this is going to be a slower paced game the starters should be able to log more playing time in this game because as I have already stated I’m less than impressed with the scoring of the bench. Believe it or not though I think the Grizzlies will take this game easily. So I say the Grizzlies win by 8.

San Antonio Spurs
25-16
Offensive Rank: 11th
Defensive Rank: 6th
These two teams just met in January 16th and the Grizzlies won 92-86. The Spurs are another defensive minded team but unlike the Pistons these guys can actually put up some points. They have some 3 point weapons in Parker and Ginobili and Bonner. Parker is a pro at running this defense and averages 5.5 assists per game. Once again it comes down to a battle of big men as Tim Duncan is averaging a double double this season as well with 10.4 rebounds a game and almost 20 points a game. But as the Grizzlies just proved they can beat this team when held below 100. The Grizzlies actually had to come from behind in the previous meeting between these two teams. The Grizzlies have an amazing record at the FedExForum so they should be able to pull this game out. As long as they don’t let the Spurs bench get going early. The Grizzlies are capable of making runs to come from behind but its better if they can stay ahead of the Spurs in this game because coming from behind does take a toll on you and once you start acting tired and slacking on defense Parker will start lighting you up outside while Duncan lights you up inside. I give the Grizzlies the edge in this one because they are at home. I say Grizzlies by 5

New Orleans Hornets
22-19
Offensive Rank: 19th
Defensive Rank: 20th
With a defensive and offensive rank in the bottom half of the league the Hornets is a team that you can’t sleep on. These two teams just met on January 20th and the Grizzlies lost this game 111-113. For a team that ranks 19th in offense the Hornets looked pretty good keeping up with the Grizzlies in scoring, and hanging around which is what any team wants to do…..stay in striking distance. The Hornets got out to a quick start outscoring the Grizzlies in the 1st and 2nd quarter but the Grizzlies came out ready to play on the 3rd scoring 14 unanswered points. But unfortunately the Hornets countered with their own run led by tough defense. The Grizzlies couldn’t make anything and the Hornets ended the 3rd on a 10-4 run. In the 4th it was the Chris Paul show. After a slow start Paul came alive in the 4th finishing the game with 21 points and 13 assists. Peja also had a big 4th finishing the game with 18 points. The stars stepped up big with Gay hitting a 3 to tie the game but former Grizzly James Posey hit what turned out to be the game winning shot. This was a good fast paced game and I’m expecting more of the same at FedExForum. The Grizzlies didn’t have that extra push to get one more stop. I expect them to get that push at FedExForum. Once again the Grizzlies have to make sure they don’t go on another shooting slump late in the game. And play Chris Paul the same way….Paul was not a factor in this game until the 4th so the Grizzlies have to find a way to slow him down. Don’t let him get hot in the closing minutes because he will kill you which is what he proved in the last game but nonetheless the Grizzlies have a few stars of their own. Randolph, Gay, and Mayo all hit big shots in the closing minutes of the game. The Grizzlies should’ve won the last game. They won’t make the same mistake twice against the Hornets. I say Grizzlies win by 1

Hollins Proves Me Wrong

grizzliesfan828 — Thu, 21 Jan 2010 05:31:37 +0000

18-42
0-4
13-26
Overall: 31-72

Look at that record and tell me…..would you hire that coach? Would you trust this coach to lead your young team and help turn them around? Honestly I wouldn’t but the Grizzlies did. The above record is the record Lionel Hollins posted after 3seasons with the Grizzlies. The first record of 18-42 was the record Hollins held as the interim coach of the then Vancouver Grizzlies after Coach Brian Hill was fired. Then Sidney Lowe was brought in and after he failed miserably at trying to make the Grizzlies a contender the Grizzlies brought in Hubie Brown. Brown turned the team around and led them to their first playoff run in team history. But suddenly Brown resigned from the Grizzlies citing health reasons. So Hollins was once again brought in as the interim coach and he coached for 4 games in which he went 0-4….Mike Fratello was hired…..then fired…..then Marc Iavaroni was brought in….and he was fired. So Johnny Davis became the interim head coach…..and you know the saying the third time’s a charm? That saying proved to be true for Hollins because he was brought in to coach the Grizzlies for a third time but this time it was as the permanent head coach. No more interim terms for him. He ended his third season coaching the Grizzlies with a record of 13-26. But the Grizzlies showed promise those last few games. Nonetheless this guy had a losing record. He had 3 separate occasions to coach the Grizzlies and all 3 times he didn’t do too well. So I’ll admit. I was shocked and outraged when I found out that the Grizzlies were bringing him back again for a 4th season. I wanted us to get a big name coach. Larry Brown or Jeff Van Gundy or anyone in their league, because in my opinion Hollins wasn’t in the same league as these guys. I really couldn’t understand what the heck the Grizzlies management saw in this guy. So I honestly looked at it as a move to cut more costs. You’ll have to pay big name coaches big time money which is something Heisley probably didn’t want to do as he was already losing money with lackluster attendance etc. So at first I was thinking this season would be more of the same. A terrible Grizzlies season and then in the off season Hollins would get the axe. But then there was a glimmer of hope. Allen Iverson was coming to Memphis so I thought that maybe just maybe we could make it back to the playoffs. But after Iverson returned from his injury the trouble started. He was coming off the bench and Hollins wouldn’t talk to him. Hollins was quoted as saying they had nothing to talk about. As you all know Iverson ended up packing up his bags and moving to Atlanta after only 3 games. After that happened I disliked Hollins even more because he had a “what I say goes” attitude and didn’t seem to care that he had single handily caused Iverson to leave Memphis before he even played a game here. Nonetheless I still cheered for the Grizzlies of course. Went to games etc but Hollins had rubbed me the wrong way……then it slowly started to happen. The Grizzlies offense picked up…..and so did their defense. The Grizzlies started the season at 6-10. After that they started picking up wins in bunches. 3 wins here, 3 wins there. Some of the notable teams that they beat were Cleveland, Dallas, Miami, Denver, and Washington just to name a few. The players were playing like they were motivated. Zach Randolph is averaging 11.5 rebounds and 20.7 points per game. Marc Gasol is averaging 9.6 rebounds and 14.8 points per game. Randolph has been the surprise of the year. No one expected him to play his heart out here in Memphis. Critics said that it wouldn’t happen. That his ego would clash with other players and his attitude wasn’t good etc. But Zach has proved his critics wrong just like the rest of the Grizzlies. The Grizzlies have picked up a very physical style of play. And they don’t have to run-n-gun anymore. They can actually run a half court set when needed. The identity of this team has changed. The identity of a team falls back on one person ultimately……the coach. So even though I hate to admit it I was wrong about Hollins. He knew what he was doing. Grizzlies management apparently saw the fact that Hollins had untapped potential. Am I ready to jump on the Hollins bandwagon yet? Not quite. But I definitely like the direction he is leading this team. He has been able to keep all the egos in check and motivate his players. He had a little help motivating the team thanks to Iverson but I’m going to leave the topic of Iverson alone…..for now. Nonetheless the Hollins proved why he’s the one coaching instead of me. Grizzlies management proved why they’re running the team and I’m not. Even though they have made some questionable decisions the last few years but that’s another topic I won’t touch on just yet. Under Hollins the Grizzlies offense is ranked 4th in the league averaging 104 points per game. Their defense is ranked a passable 26th in the league but I honestly think that those numbers will improve because as I said earlier, the Grizzlies are a very physical team right now and they are getting better with their help defense. So I give Hollins his props. Even though I wasn’t a big fan of him in the beginning he is slowly changing how I perceive him. The Grizzlies current record is 22-19. They were on a 4 game winning streak before losing a heartbreaker to New Orleans tonight. But it was a good game because the Grizzlies were down but went on a 27-8 run in the third quarter. The old Grizzlies would’ve lost hope and confidence but the new Grizzlies fought to the end. I’m looking forward to seeing what Hollins will do as the season goes on. Will he break the playoff losing streak of 12 and lead the Grizzlies to their first playoff win? It’s possible for the December coach of the month. I am looking forward to the rest of this season and all I have to say in closing is don’t make the mistake I made which is assuming win/loss records tell the whole story. Coaches can improve over time so give them a chance……

Grizzliesfan828

Memphis Blue Bears

grizzliesfan828 — Thu, 21 Jan 2010 04:03:24 +0000

Hello everyone and welcome to Memphis Blue Bears. An up and coming blog about the Memphis Grizzlies. My name is Jamar AKA grizzliesfan828. I will be your writer. I look forward to bringing you all the news and happenings of the Grizzlies as well as my opinion on different things. I would like to thank Bryan Douglass for bringing me in and giving me a chance to write about one of my passions. I would also like to give a shout out to my parents, younger brother and sister, girlfriend, and cousin for their continued support and faith in me as I tried to figure out how I would approach this blog. Alright now on to business, I have a format that I’m going to try. I’m curious whether or not you….the readers will enjoy this format or not. Now I am very opinionated on things so I know that we will not always agree on things that I say. Which is good, a friendly debate never hurt anyone. Notice I said FRIENDLY so no foul language or insults please. I will show common courtesy to everyone. Now its time for me to reveal my format…..

Mondays = Moody Mondays. Monday is a day that is universally disliked. It’s the start to a long work week and people tend to be a little moody on this day so I decided to have a Moody Monday blog. This blog will focus on one thing that drives me crazy with the Grizzlies or with sports in general. Is there something that drives you crazy in sports? Email it to me and I may feature your email in an upcoming blog, along with my opinion and whether I agree or disagree with you. My email address is: grizzliesfan828@gmail.com

Tuesdays = Turbulent Tuesdays. Tuesday is better than Monday but it’s still early in the week so I decided to have a Turbulent Tuesday blog. Basically this blog will focus on Rumors concerning the Grizzlies. Trade rumors, signing rumors, etc.

Wednesday = Wednesday is just a normal blog day. It’s halfway through the week so things are starting to look up on Wednesday.

Thursday = Thursday. Not quite Friday but close enough. So I decided to have a Prediction Thursday blog. I will do a quick breakdown of all the upcoming game for the following week. And I will try to give an objective opinion on whether or not I honestly think the Grizzlies can win those games or not

Friday = Recap Fridays. Friday is a day that is universally liked. It’s the end of a long work week and the beginning of the weekend. So I thought this would be the best day to have a Recap Friday blog where I touch on the big sports news stories of the week and give my opinion. Sort of a food for thought type of thing.

So that’s the format that I am going to try. I think its pretty good but you….the readers will determine what stays and what goes. Comments, ratings, emails etc will all factor into what the final format will be.

In closing I look forward to writing for Memphis Blue Bears. With the Grizzlies on the rise this should be a fun and exciting year!

Grizzliesfan828