Why the Memphis Grizzlies Took a Huge Step Back with Loss to Toronto Raptors
The Memphis Grizzlies' new owner, Robert Pera, has made lots of changes since buying the team in 2012. Those changes came head-to-head, as the Grizzlies hosted the Rudy Gay and the Toronto Raptors last Wednesday night.
The result: Rudy Gay and the Raptors 103, Dave Joerger and the Memphis Grizzlies 87.
Pera's first big change came in the form of "The Rudy Gay Trade." Pera looked to save money and focus on his talented frontcourt by getting rid of quick-triggered Rudy Gay, even though he was their leading scorer at the time.
Everything turned out well for Memphis, making franchise history last season by appearing in the Western Conference Finals and finishing with a 56-26 record.
Although everything was fine and dandy for the Grizzlies, there were definitely some bitter emotions from Rudy Gay. Something like a bad break-up.
When asked by a Toronto sports radio station what he missed most about Memphis, Gay replied, "Nothing," as reported by Sam Amick of USA Today.
Ouch.
Although he has since clarified that his response was out of anger, there was still some obvious conflict between Gay and the Grizz.
His reunion with the Grizzlies in Memphis Wednesday night was truly a homecoming.
In fact, he still has a house in Memphis. He and the rest of the Raptors ate a dinner cooked by Gay's mom and watched basketball at his house the night before their game, as reported by Cathal Kelly of Thestar.com.
Of his homecoming, Gay had this to say, per Don Wade of The Memphis Daily News: “Slept in my bed. First time in a while. Felt good to be back.”
It's obvious Rudy wanted to stay in Memphis, whether he admits that or not.
For the most part, Gay has downplayed his homecoming, giving very PR-like answers and refocusing the questions to Raptors basketball and not his return to his former home court. But his cold answers still have a touch of emotion.
Of his homecoming, as reported by the Associated Press, Rudy Gay said:
""I don't think it was for me as much as we needed any win. Obviously, you want to win every game, but for me personally, it was more emotional."
"
Obviously, the Grizzlies had moved on to bigger and better things, losing the Western Conference Finals to the almost-champion San Antonio Spurs.
Last season, the winner of the Rudy Gay Trade was definitely the Grizzlies.
But Pera decided to make another change this offseason by replacing head coach Lionel Hollins with Dave Joerger.
This one hasn't been as successful thus far. Mind you, we're only nine games in.
The Grizzlies are 4-5 under Coach Joerger, and the entirety of Grizz Nation is frustrated.
Turnovers are high, defense is down—the Grizzlies just aren't themselves.
With so many emotions tied to Wednesday's game, a fairly meaningless regular season game transformed into a huge game for the Grizzlies.
A struggling Memphis team faced their former franchise player—who they did so well without. They had to win. They had to show up the trigger-happy Rudy Gay who said he would miss nothing about Memphis.
A win against Rudy Gay and the Raptors wouldn't have necessarily ignited a fire under the Grizzlies, making them buckle down on defense and take care of the ball on offense, but it wouldn't have hurt. It would have at least validated the trade, yet again.
And it would have validated the firing of Lionel Hollins and the hiring of Coach Joerger.
For the most part, fans have been pretty accepting of Joerger, the six-year Grizzlies assistant turned head coach.
Excited for a new offense with the same "grit and grind" mentality, Grizz Nation stayed loyal through their first few losses. Their loss to the New Orleans Pelicans was a bit concerning, but they shrugged it off with "we're just five games in." Their loss to the undefeated Indiana Pacers was a bit more concerning, as the Grizz didn't even reach 80 points in the matchup.
Then, they faced the Raptors. This was their game to get back on track. Picture Grizzlies fans rubbing their hands together in anticipation.
Gay had other plans.
Gay had 23 points on 8-of-18 shooting, a far cry from his inefficient 11-of-37 shooting night against the Houston Rockets. He also had six rebounds, five steals and two blocks. Quite a game for a man with something to prove.
The Grizzlies, on the other hand, gave up over 100 points, the fifth time this season they've allowed 100 or more. Last season, the Grizzlies only allowed their opponents to score 100 or more points 11 times for the entire season. They also turned the ball over 19 times.
The Grizzlies shot just 17 free throws all night, making 11. Compare that to the Raptors, who went 33-of-39 from the free-throw line.
Memphis's uninspired play was met with boos in the fourth quarter. Center Marc Gasol responded to fans' dissatisfaction, as reported by Ronald Tillery of The Commercial Appeal, "We’re hearing them. Trust me, we’re frustrated too. We don’t like playing poorly. If we knew the solution, we’d do it right away.”
A game that, on the surface, had little significance (eighth game of the season, non-conference opponent, not a huge playoff contender) has huge implications for a team searching for something to rally around.
A win against former teammate Rudy Gay could have been it.
But now, Joerger and the rest of the Grizzlies are left scratching their heads, looking for something to get them going in the right direction.
You can see it in the players' postgame interviews. They are, as Marc Gasol puts it, "trying to get back control."
When asked in a postgame interview if he was having to coach effort more than he thought he would, Coach Joerger replied, "without question."
The Memphis Grizzlies have been up and down this season. In fact, the loss to Toronto is their first consecutive loss this season. They still have yet to put two wins together, although they have a chance to tonight.
The season is still very young, but as of now, the Grizzlies just aren't playing like themselves. They aren't playing as hard or as intense as we are used to seeing.
With this loss to their former teammate, who seemed like the loser of the Rudy Gay Trade last season, the team morale has got to be down. Following the brutal beating of the Indiana Pacers with an emotional loss to Toronto, the Grizzlies have definitely taken a step back.
Don't get me wrong, there is still a ton of basketball to be played this season. But the Grizzlies just can't seem to get it going.
A win against the Golden State Warriors looked like it could be the turning point; they only allowed 90 points and scored 108. But Memphis followed that win up with a tough loss against the Pacers and now a bitter loss to the Raptors.
Fear not, Grizz Nation, we still have 73 more games to go.
There is plenty of time to bounce back. And although the win against the Kobe-less Los Angeles Lakers was a little closer than a playoff contending team would want, it is still a win.
Their game against the Sacramento Kings tonight could be their first two consecutive wins this season and can push them in the right direction.
But the Grizz still have some work to do to totally bounce back.
They will have to defend better. The Grizzlies have three NBA All-Defensive Team players (Tony Allen, Mike Conley, Marc Gasol,) and last season's Defensive Player of the Year (Gasol). They shouldn't be giving up 103 points to the Toronto Raptors.
They showed some promise against the Lakers, allowing only 86 points. But they will have to be able to stop more talented teams than the Lakers to really become a title-contending team again.
In a Western Conference full of high-scoring, fast-paced teams (think Los Angeles Clippers and Golden State Warriors), the Grizzlies will have to defend and take care of the ball if they want to make their way back to the Western Conference Finals.
The Grizzlies still have plenty of time to gel as a team.
They are not out, but they are definitely down.
