Top 2016 Offseason Priorities for the Memphis Grizzlies
After running into an implacable San Antonio Spurs train, the plucky Memphis Grizzlies exited the first round of the Western Conference Playoffs, failing to win a single game.
Their fate isn't surprising given the absences of franchise centerpiece Marc Gasol (broken foot) and Mike Conley (Achilles tendinitis). It was a year in which the injury bug seemed to have taken up permanent residence. Nonetheless, the Grizzlies persevered with their Grit and Grind act, closing out the regular season with a 42-40 record and making it to the NBA playoffs for the sixth time in a row.
Battered and bruised, they’re heading into summer to lick their wounds, get some much-needed rest and tinker with what’s under the hood.
With money to spend and a couple of modest draft picks, this is a team that’s in fairly decent shape going forward. But they also have decisions to make about their own free agents, the future of an aging roster and whether their low-scoring strategy works in an ever-evolving league.
Get Healthy
The Grizzlies have been the walking wounded for months now.
Gasol was lost for the season after left-foot surgery in February, Conley was sidelined in early March and big man Brandan Wright missed all but 12 games with a knee issue. Plus, shooting guard Jordan Adams played only twice because of a knee injury and rookie Jarell Martin missed much of season with a broken left foot, only to be forced out of the playoffs after two games with soreness in the same foot.
These are the kind of nagging problems that become chronic and derail not only seasonal plans but careers. The navicular bone fracture Gasol suffered can be difficult to recover from given the type of stress that follows once a 7’1”, 255-pound center begins pounding up and down a hardwood court again.
As for Conley, insult may be added to injury given the point guard is heading into free agency. Will the Grizzlies see the two-time winner of the Joe Dumars Trophy for sportsmanship in a Memphis uniform again?
Longtime Grizzlies head athletic trainer Drew Graham has his work cut out for him.
Get Younger
The roster Memphis trotted out during the playoffs was older than Methuselah.
Stalwart Zach Randolph is 34. As is Tony Allen. Matt Barnes is 36, Chris Andersen is 37 and Vince Carter is the team’s grand patriarch at 39. Even Gasol, when he returns next fall, will be 31.
The graying of the lineup is not a recipe for success, but that doesn’t mean the elders are ready to be put out to pasture.
“Did I say I was retiring?” Carter asked rhetorically, per Ronald Tillery of the Commercial Appeal. “I'm very thankful for [the recognition on the road]. Don't get me wrong. But I plan on coming back.”
That said, the Grizzlies do have some young talent, including Adams, Martin and P.J. Hairston, a promising two-way wing who was struggling with the Charlotte Hornets before landing in Memphis during the three-team trade that also netted Andersen.
Head coach Dave Joerger singled out Martin’s potential in March, per Tillery in the Appeal: "I think you're going to see a guy who is going to blossom hopefully into a very athletic rim-runner, a pick-and-pop guy, a guy who can shoot a little bit and can handle a little bit, can do a little bit of everything as his game grows.”
It should also be noted the front office rotated in a number of D-League tryouts through its new affiliate, the Iowa Energy. Among those are guard projects Bryce Cotton and Xavier Munford, both of whom went undrafted in 2014.
A team that has long relied on veteran experience will have to continue getting younger, faster and more athletic.
Draft Effectively
The most obvious way to build for the future is through the draft. Despite the team’s penchant for trading away picks in the past, management will have the No. 17 selection in the first round and No. 57 in the second. And while these aren’t game-changing assets, they could inject some much-needed fresh blood into the system.
You never know who you’ll get in the middle of the first round, but the team could certainly use a shooter, and four-year Michigan State man Denzel Valentine nailed 245 treys as a junior, then 234 this season. He also delivered an impressive 7.8 dimes per game this year.
| MPG | 3PT% | RPG | APG | PPG | |
| Valentine | 33.0 | 44.4 | 7.5 | 7.8 | 19.2 |
| Chriss | 24.9 | 35.0 | 5.4 | 0.8 | 13.8 |
| Korkmaz | 14.1 | 48.3 | 1.75 | .083 | 5.9 |
Another big-time threat from downtown is Furkan Korkmaz, an 18-year-old who played light minutes for Anadolu Efes in the Turkish Super League this season.
Memphis might also want to consider Marquese Chriss, a power forward from Washington with a high motor and a nice touch on his jumper. The freshman is still a work in progress but has huge upside.
The late second-round pick will be a crapshoot, but the Grizzlies might want to consider parking an international prospect overseas, such as 7’3” Russian center Andrey Desyatnikov or small forward Rade Zagorac, currently playing in Belgrade.
Solve Free-Agency Puzzle
According to Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders, Grizzlies management could have up to $39.9 million to work with in free agency this summer.
But that doesn’t account for re-signing Conley, a high-priority mission. Despite being regularly snubbed at the All-Star Game, the 28-year-old is a premier point guard, using efficiency over flash while finding open teammates at a high rate.
Management also must decide about picking up Lance Stephenson’s $9.4 million option. He's a wild-card wing who can be brilliant one moment and a train wreck the next. The 25-year-old arrived in a deadline swap-out with the Los Angeles Clippers for Jeff Green. Memphis also got a future second-round pick in the process.
Do they keep Born Ready, whose production on a banged-up roster has spiked since arriving? He did, after all, put up a game-high 26 points off the bench Sunday in the Game 4 loss to the Spurs.
Apart from the unlikely possibility of Memphis striking gold in the Kevin Durant sweepstakes, the summer inventory of available players doesn’t tilt toward superstars. That means cash-rich teams will likely be throwing mad money all over the place.
Choices include Harrison Barnes despite his restricted status for the Golden State Warriors, as well as UFA Nicolas Batum, who is coming off a career year with the Charlotte Hornets. Also in the upper tier is Chandler Parsons, who can opt out of his contract with the Dallas Mavericks.
Memphis may or may not have the money to pursue these candidates, depending on Conley and Stephenson. But they could also look toward a classic stretch 4 such as Ryan Anderson or a young athletic wing like Kent Bazemore.
There’s also the case of the Grizzlies’ own Barnes—Matt, who will be an unrestricted free agent. He’s long in the tooth, but the journeyman forward is still one of the most intense defenders in the NBA.
Boost the Offense
The Grizzlies averaged just 81 points against the Spurs—the lowest total of any team so far in this year’s playoffs. Their 99.1 points per game in the regular season also put them toward the bottom of the pack. Adding an anemic 6.1 shots made from beyond the arc on 18.5 attempts further painted them into a low-scoring corner.
Memphis will need a lot more ammo before it ever becomes a sharpshooter’s paradise.
When management replaced Lionel Hollins with Joerger in 2013, the assumption was a more analytics-centric offense would follow. Three years have passed, and the team is still playing true to its Grindhouse reputation.
It wouldn’t be at all surprising to see owner Robert Pera bring the axe down after the first-round shutout. After all, Joerger nearly joined the Minnesota Timberwolves in 2014, per Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical.
But it’s also worth noting a coach can only play the cards dealt to him, and Joerger hasn’t been blessed with a bevy of long-distance assassins.
It’s going to take a fundamental shifting of priorities, with younger talent, better shooters and a willingness to truly embrace a more free-flowing style of ball. And above all, more buckets!
Except where noted, statistics are courtesy of ESPN and Basketball-Reference.com. Salary information is courtesy of Spotrac.
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