Memphis Grizzlies: 2015-16 Season Outlook

Best-Case Scenario

Gasol and Z-Bo show no signs of being in their early 30s and turn in vintage seasons. Joerger figures out the perfect combination of minutes to allocate to his plethora of wing players, while Mike Conley has a career year, finally shedding that “most underrated point guard in the NBA” label to improbably make his first All-Star team.

Memphis benefits from having established team chemistry, grinding their way to a top-4 seed in the West. They benefit from either continued injury problems for Kevin Durant, the Spurs showing signs of old age for the first time ever or the Clippers’ new additions failing to solve their bench problems. Memphis advances all the way to the Western Conference Finals before bowing out.

Worst-Case Scenario

At age 34, Z-Bo starts to break down and Brandan Wright is forced to take on too large of a role. Joerger is unable to figure out the Allen-Lee-Barnes-Green-Carter jumble and no one in that mix is able to make enough threes to keep teams honest in the playoffs.

Despite another elite defense and a top-15 offense, the Grizzlies finish outside the top 4 in the West simply because of the insane amount of talent at the top of the conference. In a first round matchup with the Warriors/Spurs/Thunder/Clippers/Rockets, the Grizzlies fall in yet another gritty series against a superior team.

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