Can Memphis Contend in the Loaded West?

From left to right: Zach Randolph, Marc Gasol and Mike Conley hope to play together more next season.

By Bennett Corcoran (@CorcoranNBA)

After achieving significant playoff success under former coach Lionel Hollins, the Memphis Grizzlies took a step back in 2014 under new coach David Joerger. While many expected them to duplicate their previous performance as a middle of the pack, fringe-contender, the Grizz were instead fighting for a playoff spot in the last week of the season.

Memphis started just 10-15 to begin the season, as the team struggled to adjust to a slightly different defensive system under Joerger. Much of this stretch can be attributed to the loss of Marc Gasol, who sprained the MCL in his left knee just 13 games into the season. Without their former Defensive Player of the Year anchoring the middle, the Grizzlies were exposed, left to learn a new system without a defining piece of the puzzle. Kosta Koufos is a serviceable big man, but the Grizz lean heavily on their front line, making the loss of Gasol difficult to overcome.

After Gasol finally returned in mid-January, point guard Mike Conley tweaked his ankle just a few weeks later. The injury forced Conley to sit the first seven games in February.

Because of this untimely string of injuries, the foundational players did not share nearly as much time together on the floor last season. The trio of Conley-Gasol-Randolph logged just under 1,200 minutes together last season, about 550 minutes less than in 2013.

West Round 1 Preview: (2) Oklahoma City Thunder vs. (7) Memphis Grizzlies

Russell Westbrook at the top of his game might be the difference between a 1st Round exit and a trip to the Finals.

By Jeremy Conlin (@jeremy_conlin)

By the Numbers:

Oklahoma City:
59-23 (34-7 Home; 25-16 Road)
PPG: 106.2 (5th); PPG Allowed: 99.8 (12th)
+6.3 Average Scoring Margin (3rd)
Off Rating: 108.1 (7th); Def Rating: 101.0 (5th)
+7.1 Net Efficiency Rating (3rd)

Memphis: 
50-32 (27-14 Home; 23-18 Road)
PPG: 96.1 (27th); PPG Allowed: 94.6 (3rd)
+1.6 Average Scoring Margin (14th)
Off Rating: 103.3 (16th); Def Rating: 102.1 (8th)
+1.2 Net Efficiency Rating (14th)

Season Series: Oklahoma City 3-1
Oklahoma City 116, Memphis 100 (December 11)
Memphis 90, Oklahoma City 87 (January 14)
Oklahoma City 86, Memphis 77 (February 3)
Oklahoma City 113, Memphis 107 (February 28)

Injury Bug Biting Western Conference Contenders

The Grizzlies have missed Marc Gasol's presence on the defensive end, but do they have other issues?

By Bennett Corcoran

Despite the horrendous performance so far this season by the Eastern Conference, the West is doing just fine, sporting ten teams above .500 and two more teams (Lakers and Timberwolves) almost there.

It will be interesting to see which teams emerge as bona fide playoff contenders and which teams plummet as the season continues. With plenty of games remaining on the schedule, anything can happen but, at least for now, it appears that injuries are playing a significant role in the Western Conference playoff race.

One surprise this season has been the inconsistent Memphis Grizzlies, who last season used their toughness and grit to get all the way to the Western Conference Finals, but now sit at just 10-12. New coach David Joerger initially attempted to implement too many new plays and concepts, straying away from the true identity of the team; playing sound defense while running the offense through Marc Gasol on the high post and Zach Randolph on the block. With Gasol sidelined four to six weeks with a knee injury, the defense has declined rapidly.