Memphis Grizzlies: To-Do List for Next Coach

Can Marc Gasol and the Memphis Grizzlies still be successful without Lionel Hollins around? Photo Credit: Mark Runyon, Basketball Schedule, Flickr.com

Last week, it became official: Lionel Hollins would not be returning as head coach of the Memphis Grizzlies.

For many, this came as a shock. Not only was Hollins the most successful coach in franchise history, he had just finished leading the Grizzlies to their best season ever, as they made it all the way to the Western Conference Finals before falling at the hands of the San Antonio Spurs. In spite of Hollins’ success however, the front office had a different vision of the future than he did, so they decided not to offer him a new deal.

This makes the Grizzlies coaching job one of the hottest positions available in the NBA. After all, who wouldn’t want to inherit a team that won 56 games the previous year and features star players like Mike Conley, Zach Randolph and Marc Gasol? But while the Grizzlies position is quite alluring, not everyone would be able to have the same success that Hollins did with this team. With that in mind, here’s some advice for whoever ends up becoming the next Memphis Grizzlies coach.

First off, don’t mess with the identity of this team. Now, every coach has a different philosophy and it’s quite possible that the next Grizzlies coach will look at things a lot differently than Hollins. That’s understandable and can be expected. But even if the coach wants to run things differently, he can’t forget what kind of team the Grizzlies are. This a gritty, defensive team that wins games through relentless effort and running opponents ragged. And they need to stay that way.

That’s not to say that the next coach can’t add a little more finesse into the equation, but trying to change the DNA of the franchise can have adverse effects. Just look at what happened when Mike Brown tried to install the Princeton offense with the Los Angeles Lakers. Trying to force players into a system that doesn’t work for them is one of the biggest things that causes head coaches to fail in this league. Let the Grizzlies continue to be the defensive juggernaut that they’ve been for years. Beg the front office to re-sign Tony Allen and let him loose on the perimeter just like he’s always done. Fixing some of the Grizzlies’ problem areas is important (like their continued shooting woes), but it can’t come at the expense of the things that make the Grizzlies who they are.

Secondly, player development is essential. With Jerryd Bayless having more success at the 2 than the 1, this team is still woefully in need of a backup point guard. Keyon Dooling was picked the play that role in the playoffs, but he struggled most of the time and it’s in doubt if he’ll even play in the NBA again. With that in mind, the next Grizzlies coach really needs to develop Tony Wroten and put him firmly in place as the team’s second-string point guard. Wroten is a young, raw player, but he has a lot of talent, which came through in short bursts when he actually got to play last season. He never got a real shot in the playoffs, only getting short spurts before being sent back to the bench in favor of Conley or Dooling.

With all the skill Wroten has, he should certainly be able to play 10 to 15 minutes a game in relief of Conley, which would help to solidify the second unit and give the Grizzlies some consistency in an area where they’ve been sorely lacking for too long.

Finally, Ed Davis, the talented big man who was criminally neglected during the playoffs, needs to be given a far greater role. He has more talent than Darrell Arthur and deserves to be the first big man off the bench. Hollins didn’t seem to realize what a good player he had in Davis and the silver lining in Hollins’ departure is that Grizzlies may now get a coach who realizes that a player this good should not be wasting away on the bench.

What Hollins did for the Grizzlies was thoroughly impressive. He took a team that had never won a playoff game before and turned them into one of the stronger teams in the Western Conference. Still, this team is hardly doomed without him. They are one of the most talented squads in the NBA and as long as the next head coach knows what to do wit that talent, there’s no reason to think the Grizzlies can’t be a juggernaut for years to come.