Mike Conley: Grizzlies Shouldn’t Worry About Slow Start
Mike Conley is off to a slow start for the Memphis Grizzlies — should they be worried?
The Memphis Grizzlies starting point spot isn’t a job that’s going to be lost by Mike Conley — no matter how bad he’s shot to start this season. Still, it has to be a source of concern for the team. At 4-0 as of Tuesday morning, the team can brush a lot under the rug.
Conley is shooting just 31.6 percent from the field and just 25 percent from the 3-point line in his four games. His averages of 13.3 points, 5.5 assists and 1.3 steals might suffice because of the talent surrounding him, but it’s definitely not the statline they expect to see out of a guy earning $8.7 million this season.
The competition hasn’t been great — yet — but the Grizzlies have found a way to be undefeated despite Conley’s offensive woes. That leads us right into the first reason why the Grizzlies shouldn’t be concerned about Conley’s slow start.
His Defense
The Grizzlies are the No. 1 defense in the league, allowing a minuscule 85 points per game. A big part of that was the 71-69 stinker they won over the Charlotte Hornets, but even so — they’ve shown in the past that when healthy, they’re a force to be reckoned with.
That defense starts out at the perimeter, with Conley and backcourt mate Tony Allen. While Conley isn’t putting up monster numbers, he’s also not allowing much. He’s put up a better efficiency game rating than Jrue Holiday, Kemba Walker and Ricky Rubio in their matchups. Only Donald Sloan put up an efficiency above 11.0 (his was 16).
As long as he’s able to check his man and Marc Gasol and Zach Randolph are dominating the paint, Conley’s poor offensive showing will continue to get pushed under the rug and we can just focus on the positives.
Historically Slow Starter
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For whatever reason, Conley has been a historically slow starter. His averages swell from 11.5 points per game in October games up to 14.8 in April. Interestingly enough, his assists per game do the opposite — going from 6.0 in October down to 5.1 in April.
For what it’s worth, it’s as if Conley tries to get his teammates more involved early in the season, which comes at his own expense. He’s just a 38 percent shooter (25 percent from 3-point line) during October, as compared to 47.7 percent from the field in April (40.3 percent from 3-point line).
Whether it’s the coaching staff burning him out in training camp and preseason (or not doing it enough), is anyone’s guess. The numbers say he’s tired or ineffective — or both.
Wins Are All That Matter
At the end of the day, wins are all that matter. The competition has been a mixed bag of patsies (Indiana, Philadelphia), a talented-but-young club (Minnesota) and an elite defensive team on the road (Charlotte). Nobody is going to complain about being 4-0, but there’s really only one quality win there.
Still, the league is filled with all different kinds of teams and wins look the same in the standings. Conley has started slow, but Gasol has made up for it. That’s what this team has done during their current era — they’ve always played as a team and have picked each other up when needed.
Should the Grizzlies be worried? Nah. They’re tied with the Houston Rockets for the best record in the NBA and Conley always starts slowly. They’ll be ready to go in April — when it really matters.