Many NBA teams are in the midst of a rebuild, hoping to build a young core. Leading the pack are the Memphis Grizzlies, who have the brightest of futures.
Throughout the NBA, there are plenty of teams in the middle of the rebuild. The Memphis Grizzlies included. But, Memphis’s case isn’t like your typical rebuild. Heading into their Friday matchup against the LA Clippers, the Grizzlies are the eighth seed in the Western Conference, with a 3.0 game lead over the Portland Trail Blazers.
No other rebuilding team can claim that. Now, the reason why the Grizzlies are ahead of the rest is quite simple – they have the best young core in the NBA.
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Now, some cases can be made for teams like the Atlanta Hawks and New Orleans Pelicans having the best foundation. Trae Young is incredible for the Hawks and Zion Williamson is a one-of-a-kind prospect for New Orleans. But, Memphis has a superstar player of their own in one Temetrius Jamel Morant. He goes by Ja for short.
When the Grizzlies selected Ja Morant second-overall in the 2019 NBA Draft, there was plenty to be excited about. Other than Williamson, Morant was one of the most dynamic players in college while at Murray State. One of his highlights, among many, was the triple-double he had against Marquette during March Madness.
So, when Morant was selected by Memphis the expectations were through the roof. That, and Morant was viewed as the heir apparent to Mike Conley, so the pressure was on. But, people did eventually temper their expectations for Morant since it takes time for a young guard to adapt to the NBA game.
Apparently Morant didn’t get the memo about it taking time for him to adapt. Through 49 games, Morant is averaging 17.7 points on 49.5 percent shooting to go with 3.5 rebounds, 7.0 assists, and 1.0 steals per game. He’s also the runaway favorite to be crowned Rookie of the Year this season and for a while was making a case to make an appearance as an All-Star in Chicago.
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More importantly, he is the heart and soul of this Memphis Grizzlies squad. Wherever Morant goes, Memphis follows and right now, it seems like a trip to the playoffs is within reach thanks to Morant. Neither Young or Williamson can make that claim, as their respective teams will be back in the draft lottery.
But, it isn’t just Morant alone that’s driving the Grizzlies towards success. The players around him are also making a huge impact, and are part of Memphis’s young core. Alongside Morant in the backcourt is Dillon Brooks, who is having a superb season of his own with averages of 15.6 points, 3.4 rebounds, and 2.0 assists.
Backing up Morant and Brooks is a tough, defensive backline of Brandon Clarke and Jaren Jackson Jr. who are averaging 29.4 points, 10.6 rebounds, and 2.5 blocks combined. Sprinkle in younger role players like Tyus Jones, Grayson Allen, Justise Winslow, and Kyle Anderson complimenting the Grizzlies’ young stars, and this core’s potential becomes absurd.
To be completely fair to both Atlanta and New Orleans, they too have exciting young pieces surrounding their young superstars. But, they currently don’t possess the proper structure in order to make that work like Memphis does with Taylor Jenkins. Jenkins, who the Grizzlies hired last June, was an understudy of Mike Budenholzer, who in turn was a disciple of Gregg Popovich in San Antonio for 17 years.
Both Jenkins and Budenholzer were together during Budenholzer’s time with the Hawks and the Milwaukee Bucks. Jenkins used that time to learn how to cultivate a healthy, sustainable, and winning culture and clearly has applied it swiftly in his short time with the Memphis Grizzlies.
Going forward, the Grizzlies are built for long-term success thanks to their combination of youth and smart coaching. With a likely playoff run ahead of them, the future feels bright in Memphis.
In fact, out of every team in the NBA, the Grizzlies have the greatest potential going forward. No team, Atlanta and New Orleans included, can claim that. Only the Memphis Grizzlies can.