Wednesday, November 26, 2014
Saturday, November 22, 2014
Two big reasons for the Grizzlies' historic start
The Memphis Grizzlies continued their best start in franchise history, beating the Boston Celtics 117-100 last night at FedEx Forum. For 21 straight regular season home games, Memphians have left The Grind House with DJ Khaled's "All I do is win" blaring over the sound system.....another franchise best. Chants of "Let's Go Grizz-lies" can be heard on the post game radio shows. Fans are starting to believe that something special may be brewing down in the We Don't Bluff City.
And shockingly enough, so are the national pundits.
As a born and raised Tennessean, and admitted Grizzlies fan from day one, it's awesome to see a small market team that brings it's lunch pail to work game in and game out get some well deserved recognition.
Memphis, and their hot start, is now mentioned in the same lead segment as the Cavaliers and Lakers. And there's two big reasons for that.
Zach "Z-Bo" Randolph and Marc Gasol.
Randolph and Gasol are without question the most dominant and versatile power forward / center combination in the league. And they are without question the reason the Grizzlies...at 11-2...were the league's best team the first month of the season.
What's so awesome about these two is the fact that their rise was not meteoric. They put the "Grind" in the Grind House.
Randolph has been associated with the Grizzlies for so long that people forget who they both were prior to his arrival in 2009. He was not known as Z-Bo with the Clippers, he was known as the "Black Hole".
Why?
Because if you passed him the ball..it would disappear. You might as well crash the boards because Zach ain't passing it back...even if he was quadruple doubled. He was the same way with the Knicks....where he played prior to being shipped to LA. Randolph would get his 20 and 10, but the team would suffer...and ultimately underachieve.
The Clippers didn't trade Z-Bo to Memphis...he was jettisoned. I mean...they got back Quintin Richardson in return.
Who?
Let me digress.
When Randolph arrived in Memphis...they bore no resemblance to the Grit & Grind team you see today. In fact, they looked more like the Vancouver Grizzlies. But Z-Bo did something that changed everything...he openly embraced the city of Memphis, it's fan's, it's struggles, and it's reputation. Maybe they were mirror images of his own.
As Randolph blossomed into a team first...locker room leader...face of the franchise type of player....so did the Grizzlies. Each year after his arrival Memphis got better and better...and now they are knocking on the door. Maybe Randolph saw being traded to the Grizzlies as a proverbial "last chance warning" from the basketball gods...and kudos to him for responding like he did.
His payoff?
He's winning far more than he's losing now...and he's still posting his double doubles. Funny how those things tend to happen (message).
For Gasol, he was a mere throw in on the trade that sent his older brother Pau...who was one of the best players in the league...and Memphis' only star...to the Lakers in February 2008. That trade infuriated Grizzlies fans. The Lakers got two more titles from it, and we got back his pudgy younger brother....who was out of shape and raw as an uncooked onion.
No one at that time could have ever predicted that young Marc would blossom into what he is today...which is the best overall big man in the league. He can score inside...he can step back and nail a 20 footer. He can lead the break...he's an excellent passer and free throw shooter. He's a staunch defender (Defensive Player of the Year two years ago)...and he's tough as nails. He likes contact...he likes to mix it up...he ain't scurred.
All of the things that would endear you to a Memphian.
When Gasol missed considerable time at the start of last season...the Grizzlies struggled mightily. Upon his return in January, Memphis went on a tear and never looked back. If he's not an All Star this season...they need to stop doing it all together.
What makes the Randolph-Gasol tandem so potent is their unselfishness. Both are worthy of being double teamed, and both are more than willing to find the other if that happens. Both can bring their defender out of the paint with deadly mid range accuracy, and both wear down their opponents by leaning...pushing...holding...and intimidating.
I've watched plenty of Big's in the league waive the white flag late in games....they just don't want any more of those two behemoths. If you don't believe me, then ask Blake Griffin.
Ok...digressing again.
Credit head coach Dave Joeger for continuing to run his offense through these two. It's a recipe for playoff success. Z-Bo and Marc have responded to the tune of a combined 35 points and 20 rebounds a night. Not to mention the countless Big's they get into foul trouble on a nightly basis.
Memphis did the right thing by re-signing Z-Bo this past off season. Gasol is having a career year in the final year of his deal.
No way the Grizzlies let him test free agency.
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And shockingly enough, so are the national pundits.
As a born and raised Tennessean, and admitted Grizzlies fan from day one, it's awesome to see a small market team that brings it's lunch pail to work game in and game out get some well deserved recognition.
Memphis, and their hot start, is now mentioned in the same lead segment as the Cavaliers and Lakers. And there's two big reasons for that.
Zach "Z-Bo" Randolph and Marc Gasol.
Randolph and Gasol are without question the most dominant and versatile power forward / center combination in the league. And they are without question the reason the Grizzlies...at 11-2...were the league's best team the first month of the season.
What's so awesome about these two is the fact that their rise was not meteoric. They put the "Grind" in the Grind House.
Randolph has been associated with the Grizzlies for so long that people forget who they both were prior to his arrival in 2009. He was not known as Z-Bo with the Clippers, he was known as the "Black Hole".
Why?
Because if you passed him the ball..it would disappear. You might as well crash the boards because Zach ain't passing it back...even if he was quadruple doubled. He was the same way with the Knicks....where he played prior to being shipped to LA. Randolph would get his 20 and 10, but the team would suffer...and ultimately underachieve.
The Clippers didn't trade Z-Bo to Memphis...he was jettisoned. I mean...they got back Quintin Richardson in return.
Who?
Let me digress.
When Randolph arrived in Memphis...they bore no resemblance to the Grit & Grind team you see today. In fact, they looked more like the Vancouver Grizzlies. But Z-Bo did something that changed everything...he openly embraced the city of Memphis, it's fan's, it's struggles, and it's reputation. Maybe they were mirror images of his own.
As Randolph blossomed into a team first...locker room leader...face of the franchise type of player....so did the Grizzlies. Each year after his arrival Memphis got better and better...and now they are knocking on the door. Maybe Randolph saw being traded to the Grizzlies as a proverbial "last chance warning" from the basketball gods...and kudos to him for responding like he did.
His payoff?
He's winning far more than he's losing now...and he's still posting his double doubles. Funny how those things tend to happen (message).
For Gasol, he was a mere throw in on the trade that sent his older brother Pau...who was one of the best players in the league...and Memphis' only star...to the Lakers in February 2008. That trade infuriated Grizzlies fans. The Lakers got two more titles from it, and we got back his pudgy younger brother....who was out of shape and raw as an uncooked onion.
No one at that time could have ever predicted that young Marc would blossom into what he is today...which is the best overall big man in the league. He can score inside...he can step back and nail a 20 footer. He can lead the break...he's an excellent passer and free throw shooter. He's a staunch defender (Defensive Player of the Year two years ago)...and he's tough as nails. He likes contact...he likes to mix it up...he ain't scurred.
All of the things that would endear you to a Memphian.
When Gasol missed considerable time at the start of last season...the Grizzlies struggled mightily. Upon his return in January, Memphis went on a tear and never looked back. If he's not an All Star this season...they need to stop doing it all together.
What makes the Randolph-Gasol tandem so potent is their unselfishness. Both are worthy of being double teamed, and both are more than willing to find the other if that happens. Both can bring their defender out of the paint with deadly mid range accuracy, and both wear down their opponents by leaning...pushing...holding...and intimidating.
I've watched plenty of Big's in the league waive the white flag late in games....they just don't want any more of those two behemoths. If you don't believe me, then ask Blake Griffin.
Ok...digressing again.
Credit head coach Dave Joeger for continuing to run his offense through these two. It's a recipe for playoff success. Z-Bo and Marc have responded to the tune of a combined 35 points and 20 rebounds a night. Not to mention the countless Big's they get into foul trouble on a nightly basis.
Memphis did the right thing by re-signing Z-Bo this past off season. Gasol is having a career year in the final year of his deal.
No way the Grizzlies let him test free agency.
follow @plcolter
Wednesday, November 19, 2014
Monday, November 17, 2014
Two Titans have everything to play for Monday night
Monday Night Football is finally coming back to the Music City. For three and a half hours Nashville Tennessee will have the most popular sport in the country...and most of it's viewers...all to themselves. A good thing for a small market team with little to no national exposure.
Being in the Monday Night Primetime slot is also good for the players. Not only do they get an extra day to rest and prepare, but it also gives them a platform to showcase their talent in front of their peers.
Saturday morning I caught the ESPN promotion for Monday's game between the Tennessee Titans and the Pittsburgh Steelers...and it told me everything I needed to know about their thoughts on the match up.
The commercial was a video montage of Pittsburgh's Ben Roethlisberger connecting on a td pass to wide receiver Antonio Brown...set to the classic old school song..."Can't take my eyes off you". I waited for a clip of the Titans in the commercial....
And waited...and waited.
I finally caught a glimpse of the Flaming T logo at the very end...when the announcer guy said Steelers...Titans. Then I blinked and it was gone.
The struggle is real.
From a business standpoint I completely understand. It's difficult to market a 2-7 team with zero superstars on it's roster. A team that the majority of the national audience has yet to see play this year, and the few highlights they saw were not complimentary to say the least. So, ESPN is using the strategy:
"We got Big Ben and Antonio Brown...one of the most prolific qb/wr tandems in the league....playing on Monday night. Tune in to watch these two shred the Titans". As a fantasy owner of Brown, I...wait....
Let me digress on that.
Pittsburgh comes into tonight's matchup having everything to play for, with a division title and playoff birth still within their sights. For the 2-7 Titans, I'm sure that most veterans just don't want to embarrass themselves tonight. Especially the defensive players, who witnessed Big Ben toss 6 touchdowns passes in a game twice in the past month.
Offensively, the goal should be to keep Mike Tirico and John Gruden...tonight's announcers...talking about the game in the fourth quarter...instead of the "Batman" building or the best places to eat in town. That only happens when the home team refused to show up to the fight.
But two rookie Titans have everything to play for tonight. They can use the national stage to introduce themselves to America, and increase their Q rating at the same time.
Qb Zach Mettenberger and rb Bishop Sankey.
Mettenberger, sixth round rookie qb out of LSU, makes his third start of the season. Anyone who knows anything about the Titans knows that qb issues have plagued them the past several years. Mettenberger, with a lights out performance on a national stage, can get his name mentioned in the first segment of all of the post game shows, and morning shows on Tuesday. More importantly, a good showing in front of a national audience could put pressure on the Titans organization to look long and hard at him being the qb of the future, Once John Gruden calls you special, you're on the map. And we all know that Jake Locker will not be re-signed next year.
Bishop Sankey, rookie second round pick out of Washington, is also slated to start, and is trying to distinguish himself from the other rb's in the Titans crowded backfield. Shonn Greene was penciled in to be the starter and bell cow this season, but injuries and costly turnovers have him earning his way out of the dog house. Sankey has been decent at times, but hasn't had a break out signature game yet. If he's able to deliver one tonight, then he too will make the highlights rounds for at least the next 48 hours.
As a team, the Titans have nothing to gain with a victory tonight. Their playoff doom is a forgone conclusion. But for Mettenberger and Sankey, the stakes couldn't be higher. If they both come out and deliver performances worthy of being talked about on Mike and Mike the following morning, then maybe ESPN will feature them the next time Tennessee is in a Monday Night Football promotion.
follow @plcolter
Being in the Monday Night Primetime slot is also good for the players. Not only do they get an extra day to rest and prepare, but it also gives them a platform to showcase their talent in front of their peers.
Saturday morning I caught the ESPN promotion for Monday's game between the Tennessee Titans and the Pittsburgh Steelers...and it told me everything I needed to know about their thoughts on the match up.
The commercial was a video montage of Pittsburgh's Ben Roethlisberger connecting on a td pass to wide receiver Antonio Brown...set to the classic old school song..."Can't take my eyes off you". I waited for a clip of the Titans in the commercial....
And waited...and waited.
I finally caught a glimpse of the Flaming T logo at the very end...when the announcer guy said Steelers...Titans. Then I blinked and it was gone.
The struggle is real.
From a business standpoint I completely understand. It's difficult to market a 2-7 team with zero superstars on it's roster. A team that the majority of the national audience has yet to see play this year, and the few highlights they saw were not complimentary to say the least. So, ESPN is using the strategy:
"We got Big Ben and Antonio Brown...one of the most prolific qb/wr tandems in the league....playing on Monday night. Tune in to watch these two shred the Titans". As a fantasy owner of Brown, I...wait....
Let me digress on that.
Pittsburgh comes into tonight's matchup having everything to play for, with a division title and playoff birth still within their sights. For the 2-7 Titans, I'm sure that most veterans just don't want to embarrass themselves tonight. Especially the defensive players, who witnessed Big Ben toss 6 touchdowns passes in a game twice in the past month.
Offensively, the goal should be to keep Mike Tirico and John Gruden...tonight's announcers...talking about the game in the fourth quarter...instead of the "Batman" building or the best places to eat in town. That only happens when the home team refused to show up to the fight.
But two rookie Titans have everything to play for tonight. They can use the national stage to introduce themselves to America, and increase their Q rating at the same time.
Qb Zach Mettenberger and rb Bishop Sankey.
Mettenberger, sixth round rookie qb out of LSU, makes his third start of the season. Anyone who knows anything about the Titans knows that qb issues have plagued them the past several years. Mettenberger, with a lights out performance on a national stage, can get his name mentioned in the first segment of all of the post game shows, and morning shows on Tuesday. More importantly, a good showing in front of a national audience could put pressure on the Titans organization to look long and hard at him being the qb of the future, Once John Gruden calls you special, you're on the map. And we all know that Jake Locker will not be re-signed next year.
Bishop Sankey, rookie second round pick out of Washington, is also slated to start, and is trying to distinguish himself from the other rb's in the Titans crowded backfield. Shonn Greene was penciled in to be the starter and bell cow this season, but injuries and costly turnovers have him earning his way out of the dog house. Sankey has been decent at times, but hasn't had a break out signature game yet. If he's able to deliver one tonight, then he too will make the highlights rounds for at least the next 48 hours.
As a team, the Titans have nothing to gain with a victory tonight. Their playoff doom is a forgone conclusion. But for Mettenberger and Sankey, the stakes couldn't be higher. If they both come out and deliver performances worthy of being talked about on Mike and Mike the following morning, then maybe ESPN will feature them the next time Tennessee is in a Monday Night Football promotion.
follow @plcolter
Thursday, November 13, 2014
Wednesday, November 5, 2014
History in the making for this year's Grizzlies?
In March we discussed the NBA's best kept secret...the under the radar rivalry between the Oklahoma City Thunder and the Memphis Grizzlies. What's so special about this rivalry? The fact that both teams' current identities were essentially birthed from it (http://plcolter.blogspot.com/2014/05/grizzlies-thunder-have-each-other-to.html).
If that's not enough, then throw on the tape of their 2011 and 2014 playoff encounters. I challenge anyone to find 14 more entertaining games.
But I digress.
The previous post was written just prior to last year's game 7, a game in which Zach Randolph was suspended for throwing a "punch" at OKC reserve Steven Adams in game 6. Z-Bo was torching the Thunder to the tune of 18 points and 8 rebounds in the series, and GrizzNation was crying foul. After all, Memphis had already won on the Thunder's home court their last trip there.
Conspiracy theorists were claiming that Durant...fresh off his tear jerking MVP acceptance speech...would be given every "opportunity" to advance. I personally find that laughable...but entertaining none the less.
What is it about these two teams?
Fast forward to today, and it seems as if the game 7 loss to the Thunder motivated Memphis in a way that we haven't seen.
Like literally.
For starters, the Grizzlies are 4-0 for the first time in franchise history. That's significant in itself because they hadn't won a season opener in over a decade. Last year's start was particularly brutal, sitting near the basement floor of the Western Conference as late as December. They clawed (no pun intended) their way back into playoff contention and still posted a 50 win season.
An incredible feat given the strength of the West last year.
A strong start is a recipe for success for a team that's known for closing strong. If Memphis can squeak by Phoenix tonight (road underdog) they have a few "winnable" games to follow (No KD OKC, Milwaukee, L.A. Lakers, Sacramento, Detroit).
Optimist could be looking at an 11-0, 10-1 start to the season. A critical cushion as they resume division play against Houston after that stretch...who by the way..is also undefeated at 5-0. And let's not forget Dallas (playoffs last year) and the defending champion Spurs.
Monday night, Memphis made franchise history once again, winning their 16th straight regular season home game..dating back to last season. How fitting to occur on the 10 year anniversary of the opening of the "Grind House" FedEx Forum.
A historic start to a season that's less than a month old. How can Grizzlies fans not be excited?
If Memphis continues to push history's boundaries...then a few more feats could be on the horizon this season....
1. Division Title
2. Conference Finals Victory
3. Finals Appearance
Any and all three would be a welcomed site in the we don't Bluff City. And who would GrizzNation have to thank? You guessed it.
OKC.
follow @plcolter
If that's not enough, then throw on the tape of their 2011 and 2014 playoff encounters. I challenge anyone to find 14 more entertaining games.
But I digress.
The previous post was written just prior to last year's game 7, a game in which Zach Randolph was suspended for throwing a "punch" at OKC reserve Steven Adams in game 6. Z-Bo was torching the Thunder to the tune of 18 points and 8 rebounds in the series, and GrizzNation was crying foul. After all, Memphis had already won on the Thunder's home court their last trip there.
Conspiracy theorists were claiming that Durant...fresh off his tear jerking MVP acceptance speech...would be given every "opportunity" to advance. I personally find that laughable...but entertaining none the less.
What is it about these two teams?
Fast forward to today, and it seems as if the game 7 loss to the Thunder motivated Memphis in a way that we haven't seen.
Like literally.
For starters, the Grizzlies are 4-0 for the first time in franchise history. That's significant in itself because they hadn't won a season opener in over a decade. Last year's start was particularly brutal, sitting near the basement floor of the Western Conference as late as December. They clawed (no pun intended) their way back into playoff contention and still posted a 50 win season.
An incredible feat given the strength of the West last year.
A strong start is a recipe for success for a team that's known for closing strong. If Memphis can squeak by Phoenix tonight (road underdog) they have a few "winnable" games to follow (No KD OKC, Milwaukee, L.A. Lakers, Sacramento, Detroit).
Optimist could be looking at an 11-0, 10-1 start to the season. A critical cushion as they resume division play against Houston after that stretch...who by the way..is also undefeated at 5-0. And let's not forget Dallas (playoffs last year) and the defending champion Spurs.
Monday night, Memphis made franchise history once again, winning their 16th straight regular season home game..dating back to last season. How fitting to occur on the 10 year anniversary of the opening of the "Grind House" FedEx Forum.
A historic start to a season that's less than a month old. How can Grizzlies fans not be excited?
If Memphis continues to push history's boundaries...then a few more feats could be on the horizon this season....
1. Division Title
2. Conference Finals Victory
3. Finals Appearance
Any and all three would be a welcomed site in the we don't Bluff City. And who would GrizzNation have to thank? You guessed it.
OKC.
follow @plcolter
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