NBA in Threes: Raptors split LA; Boston manages Hayward loss

Memphis Grizzlies

Realistically I don’t think the Memphis Grizzlies had a chance to come away from this matchup with the Dallas Mavericks with a win. Don’t get me wrong. I don’t think the Grizzlies are a bad team. In fact, I spent most of my time watching this game thinking that they’re not bad. They have great ball-movement and show solid defensive looks. and as a team, they make really good decisions. They were simply outgunned by the Maverick’s ridiculous offense in this game.

The Grizzlies got off to a quick start in this game and it was really a shoot out between them and the Mavs for the first quarter of play where they went 5-11 from 3-point range. I suspected that it was not a pace that they would be able to maintain for the entire game. In the second quarter, they shot 1-7 and ended up 12-36 on the night.

Another positive I saw with the Grizzlies is how the team responded after coach Taylor Jenkins called timeouts. Memphis came out of those timeouts playing well and going on runs. It’s exactly what should happen and another little clue that this team is only a savvy move or two from a big step forward as an organization.

Something that definitely needs work for the Grizz is closing out under control. Twice in the first half, the Grizzlies committed shooting fouls on guys pulling up from beyond the arc. One of those fouls resulted in a 4-point play. That’s something that simply cannot happen.

Back