Zach Randolph’s Unforgettable Sacrifice For The Memphis Grizzlies

Every MVP candidate this season — outside of James Harden — is seemingly playing alongside another player of (nearly) equal value. Stephen Curry has Klay Thompson, LeBron James has Kyrie Irving, LaMarcus Aldridge has Damian Lillard, Chris Paul has Blake Griffin, and Marc Gasol has Zach Randolph.

Gasol is Memphis’ undisputed best player, but Zach Randolph has been exemplary for the Grizzlies as of late with his play on the court.

While Randolph is accustomed to having the offense run through him, Gasol has emerged as the fulcrum of the Grizzlies’ offensive schemes, and it’s helped alleviate Randolph of some of the offensive pressure as he undergoes his athletic decline.

Big Spain is averaging career highs in both points (19) and assists (3.8); however, Mike Conley has also helped mitigate Randolph’s offensive responsibilities by making massive strides at the basket since his rookie season, when he averaged a measly 9.4 points and 4.2 assists. I wrote here about how Memphis was on the verge of trading Conley due to his stagnant progression.

Similar to Marc Gasol, who played a key role in deterring the Grizzlies from going through with the trade, Conley is also averaging a career high in points with 17.4. The Gasol-Conley duo has developed a close bond ever since the big man came over from Spain in 2008, and they’ve come to master the pick-and-roll during their time together.

With Marc considerably slimming down and Conley extensively improving his ball handling, there are a vast array of play options out of the initial pick-and-roll that would be extremely strenuous for opponents to stop. Occasionally, the svelte Marc Gasol will just roll to the basket to posterize whoever happens to be in his way.

Sometimes Mike Conley will just shimmy-shake his way into the lane and knock down one of his patented off-handed floaters.

While these plays don’t utilize Randolph, it’s important to take note of Zach’s location in the videos above (if he’s on the court): typically right under the basket getting ready to clean up any miscues.

Most teams have a potent one-two punch who are deadly in the pick-and-roll; however, most do not get to enjoy the luxury of having a player of Randolph’s caliber who is willing and able to do the dirty work: crashing the boards and bodying up the best defenders with such a running high motor and energy.

Consequently, Randolph’s sacrifice has enabled the Grizzlies’ perennially-poor offense to spike to the top 10 in offensive efficiency this season.

In return, the augmentation of Marc and Mike’s games has allowed Randolph to become more effective and efficient than he has in seasons past. No longer the focal point of the Grizzlies’ offense, Randolph has flourished in his new role of bullying defenders inside.

He’s used the mid-range jumper sparingly this season in favor of posting up, and his field goal percentage has skyrocketed to 51.3 percent as opposed to 46 percent in each of the past three seasons. His Player Efficiency Rating of 21.6 is the highest it’s been since the 2010-11 season, and he’s grabbing 21 percent of all available rebounds — which is a career high.

The fact that Randolph has embraced going from the No. 1 option to the third banana while sustaining his proficient play at age 33 is commendable, but perhaps something equally impressive is the double-double streak he’s putting together. Randolph has rattled off 10 straight double-doubles, and he’s averaging 19.6 points and 13.1 rebounds on 59.2 percent from the field in that span.

While Zach isn’t a top-tier MVP candidate in the eyes of many basketball pundits, his workhorse mentality on the boards combined with his soft shooting touch from the field are immensely valuable to the Grizzlies as indicated by ESPN’s tweet below:

You can’t get any more valuable than that, and that isn’t a jab at Marc, who’s having the best season of his career; rather, it’s a testament to how potent this Grizzlies team is. Marc Gasol is the MVP for the Grizzlies, but he couldn’t have led Memphis to the second seed in the West without the help of his trusted colleague, his counterpart in the formation of the dynamic front court duo.

Without the hassles of carrying the load offensively, Randolph has been rejuvenated on both ends of the floor this season. His willingness to take a step back coincides with Marc and Mike’s breakthrough seasons.

The special bond between this tightly-knit group of players is palpable; it’s a unique relationship in which Randolph is the catalyst for making his teammates better as they simultaneously return the favor — and the Grizzlies have never looked more cogent.

Next: Marc Gasol Has Become Memphis' First All-Star Starter