Memphis Grizzlies: 5 bold predictions for 2017-18 NBA season
By Greg Cassoli
1. The Grizzlies land the No. 1 overall pick
This is our most bittersweet prediction. If Memphis has any chance at landing the top pick in next year’s draft, that means they didn’t make the playoffs. That seems more like a likelihood than a bold prediction, at least from this observer’s perspective, but if the Grizzlies do miss the postseason, it won’t be by much.
The NBA’s recently agreed upon lottery reform won’t go into effect until 2019, which means Memphis’ chances at winning the pole position, should they finish respectably but just outside the playoff picture, will be minuscule.
That’s sad to think about, but it’s also what makes this prediction so bold. Assuming they play up to, or nearly up to, expectations, the odds of the Grizzlies nabbing the No. 1 overall pick are staggeringly low. What a boon it would be for the organization, though. Memphis desperately needs more youth and top-end talent. Securing the first pick in the draft would allow them to land both without having to pay through the nose to get it.
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Memphis would get a small bump in the present, and a long-term star to pin their hopes on. It’d be the ultimate consolation prize for missing out on postseason play, and a little bit of karmic justice for having remained competent for so many years in a row.