The Memphis Grizzlies continue to suffer as the season drags on, hitting near rock bottom. What is the rest of the season going to look like?
After ESPN‘s Adrian Wojranowski dropped a Woj Bomb a few weeks back, things have looked gloomier by the day down on Beale Street. The Memphis Grizzlies are slogging through the rest of the season, caught in the painful purgatory of a team that is still trying but has nowhere to go.
The Grizz currently sit 14th in the Western Conference, a playoff berth now just a dream in another life. The team is a full eight games behind the eighth-seeded Los Angeles Clippers and there are better teams in their way.
So far, all has been quiet on the trade front, with the rumor mill spinning at a lackadaisical pace. There was some noise about a Marc Gasol to Portland offer but nothing has happened yet. In the Grizzlies’ most recent home game, a game in which they blew a 25-point lead at home, Gasol reminisced on his time in Memphis, instead of displaying his usual agitated self after a loss.
If Gasol has played his final home game for the Grizzlies, it means they will still sink even lower in the standings. Despite his old age, Gasol is imperative for their offensive “attack,” with the team still being 6.8 points better per 100 possessions with him on the floor.
Lineups without Gasol are rare, since he is among the league leaders in centers in minutes per game, but the most used lineup sans Gasol posts a paltry 97.7 offensive rating, easily ranking in the bottom part of the league.
A worse offense means losing more games, but the Grizzlies could be stuck where they are now. Four teams below them, the Chicago Bulls, Cleveland Cavaliers, New York Knicks and Phoenix Suns are just going to continue to lose and lose. They are too far “ahead” of Memphis in the tank race to catch up now.
The Grizz are zeroing in on the Atlanta Hawks, who have had a better record since the start of December. Right now, the lowest it looks like they can feasibly drop is fifth in the lottery standings. The other teams around them, the New Orleans Pelicans, Dallas Mavericks, Orlando Magic, Washington Wizards and Detroit Pistons are all still trying, with the Wizards and the Pistons in the playoff mix.
The Grizzlies’ schedule does ease up just a tad throughout the rest of the year, as they’ll split their remaining games home and away. But considering their losing ways, it wouldn’t be a surprise to see them drop a lot of those winnable games.
All of this goes without mentioning Mike Conley. Conley’s name seems to be completely absent from the rumor mill at the moment, but just like the Kristaps Porzingis trade showed, things can move incredibly quickly in the NBA.
Things will become much clearer after the trade deadline when the team could look completely different, but right now things seem to continue trending downward.