Comment Archives: Today
Re: “Griz-Spurs Game 3 Preview: Five Takes”
Nice analysis, but it does not address the fact that the Grizz just don't have the championship caliber players needed to win an NBA title. Tony Allen's antics don't help team cohesion either. Grizz could be very dangerous with a playmaker and a couple of true scorers.
Re: “Griz-Spurs Game 3 Preview: Five Takes”
It all comes down to the wing rotation for me.
As mentioned, I think when Tony is in the game, I think he needs to be guarding Parker. In fact, I would try to rotate his minutes in such a way to maximize his time on Parker.
I think that'll be the best way we can slow the efficient Spurs offense. It also gives an added benefit of helping protect Conley from foul trouble, while also allowing him some rest on the defensive end if you can have him guard more of a spot up shooter.
Obviously, you have to limit the minutes Allen and Prince play together as well. If Lionel doesn't want to disturb the starting line up, he has to have a quick trigger, which I think he will, and Q better be in quickly.
When Tayshaun is in the game, I like the idea of playing him some on Parker as well to give Conley the break while also forcing Parker to work a bit harder against a bigger defender. I also like the idea of having him play more of a back up point role to give Conely some breaks on offense, even if Conley is on the floor with him. That's where Tayshaun's value will be.
Other than that, it's going to require a lot of minutes for Bayless and Pondexter the rest of this series. If we do that, I think we get the big fellas both going, and I think we make this a series.
Re: “Welcome to Memphis: The Griz Glossary”
I prefer The Spaniard!
Re: “Griz-Spurs Game 3 Preview: Five Takes”
I don't think you can write off the fourth quarter due to Duncan's foul trouble without acknowledging that the Spurs didn't get any separation earlier in the game until Conley's phantom third foul forced him out in the second.
Re: “Griz-Spurs Game 3 Preview: Five Takes”
While I agree with most of Chris's assessment, I don't think Zach is our biggest problem. We need to make some outside shots, especially mid range jump shots and three-point baskets to open up some room for him to work inside. Every time we've been bounced from the playoffs its been because of our lack of outside shooting.
Give Zach some room to operate and he'll deliver. Guaranteed. Anyway, how can you put most of the blame for a loss on a guy who pulls down 18 rebounds?
Stopping Parker's penetration is also one of our biggest problems. I suggested putting TA on him even before the series started, but I'm still afraid he might take his task to seriously and get in foul trouble, and be unavailable when we really need his defense. With the way Bayless is playing this is less of a concern to me now. We're not going to beat the Spurs with good defense alone. We're going to have to score in the nineties to win the series.
My last criticism is of our teflon center, Marc. Lately he's been getting all of the awards and accolades, and little of the criticism for the team's struggles. Though he's become a very good player, his lack of offensive aggressiveness is killing us. Not only is he looking to pass when he's open above the free throw line, his refusal to take the ball aggressively to the hole and dunk has cause two critical layups of his to be blocked. The last one in SA really cost us. Marc reminds me of his brother Pau in too many instances with his lack of aggression. He needs to realize we don't just want him to score, but need him to score.
Re: “Welcome to Memphis: The Griz Glossary”
I wish more people would call Marc "Wendigo" a phrase which HP Basketball coined, I believe.
Re: “Welcome to Memphis: The Griz Glossary”
No mention of the giant Eva Longoria head when we played the Spurs in 2011? Otherwise excellent.
Re: “Conservatively Speaking”
Not just that: the Fincher gospel group “webmaster” is Caren Jordan who lists her contact as jordanc@ccschools.net -- Crockett County Schools. Apparently she’s doing Fincher family business on school computers (and probably school time, as well).
Someone e-mailed me this info. I didn’t find it. They write:
“The person who would or should know this would be the IT person for Crockett County Schools, in this case an Ashley Jordan. Hmmm. Oddly, it appears that the Technology Director at ccschools.net is actually married to Caren Jordan. And that would be Caren(nee Fincher) Jordan.
“Caren Jordan works not only in 'School Nutrition' at Crockett County Schools, but also in ESEA 'Finance.' ESEA is the Elementary and Secondary Education Act that morphed into GW's 'No Child Left Behind.' It was originally part of LBJ's War on 'Poverty' – of all things. Just great. The Crockett County schools ESEA person is also webmaster/booking agent for a congressman who wants to cut the safety net for the impoverished.”
The hits just keep on coming. Tax dollars for me but not for thee, seems to be the Fincher family motto.
http://www.thefincherfamily.com/photos.html
Re: “Letters to the editor”
Luckily veggie dogs grow on trees and don't have to be planted, no ground cultivation, no irrigation system or fertilization. No harvesting, no processing, no transportation to warehouses, distribution centers and markets. Frankly, I wouldn't be surprised if stuffing some ground up cow into a piece of pig intestine has a smaller carbon footprint that your veggie dog ... and it sure sounds tastier.
Re: “Is It OK for a Judge to Call Someone "Hoss" in Court?”
I've been in Judge Potters court many, many times and it can be less than formal. Many people appearing before him are return customers, some over and over again, so many times that he kind of knows them, that's no excuse, if the reference was objected to he should have apologized. Sorry to hear about his serious health issues, I like the guy.
Re: “Conservatively Speaking”
Very good reporting. Thanks.
Re: “Is It OK for a Judge to Call Someone "Hoss" in Court?”
The enviro court is a mixed bag. Sometimes it's a blessing--providing a needed venue for addressing property problems that plague our communities. Other times it is, itself a nuisance for folks that have been caught up in a personal battle of wills with Code Enforcement. I don't know if it's changed since the last time I was in there and told to stop acting like "Perry Mason", but the thing that stood out to me was that there wasn't a court recorder, leaving me to wonder if one would have any meaningful recourse should one disagree with the judge.
Re: “Surprise! Memphis Gains Population Since 2010”
""It appears we are seeing a leveling off of movement from the city as we approach the merger of the school systems," said Maura Black Sullivan, assistant chief administrative officer for the city of Memphis.".......Ms. Sulliavan, are you really trying to insinuate that the "merger of the school systems" is a driving force in the apparent increase in the urban numbers...........really?
One would have to see the breakdown of the increase to get a more accurate picture, but to say there is a "leveling off movement" is merely supposition..........it could just as easily be that existing households have increased with displaced family members in the "I stays" category as well...............heck, I live next door to a family that I couldn't tell you how many people live in the house with all the coming and going of family members "staying"...........first there was the original members. A grandmother, grandfather and their grandson and his wife who moved back from out of state to care for his grandparents. Then the grandfather passed away and a daughter and her two teenage children and grand baby moved in to live off the grandmother when they had been evicted from their house. After several incidents prompting MPD visits, the grandson and his wife, having had enough of what he called "ghetto" kin folk leaching, moved out . Next there was the "player" son who moved in with grandma, another uncle, for awhile there was another teenage grandson...........heck it's grand central station over there with family members moving in and out and the surprising fact is that you never see any of them leaving for work. Somebody must be getting some kind of income if the number of empty beer cans I pick up out of my side yard are any indication though.
My SIL was teaching in one of the city schools and has complained numerous times about the constant inflow and outflow of many of the students in her classes as they move from one household to another and back again during the school year........
So this is one Memphis resident who will take the "increase" with a grain of salt at face value until I see the details.......
Re: “Is It OK for a Judge to Call Someone "Hoss" in Court?”
Memphomania is correct....Judge Potter owes the man an apology in this instance. With that said, J42 is also correct. Judge Potter has developed a model environmental court that has garnished respect from across the nation in its approach and successes, but it is time for Judge Potter to step down. There comes a time in anybody's career where their abilities start to diminish, their temperament changes either by age, health or ego and they see themselves as the "god" of their little kingdom...........Judge Potter has found himself in that category. Time to retire Judge.
Re: “Is It OK for a Judge to Call Someone "Hoss" in Court?”
You're right that Judge Potter has a good reputation and for a long time he was a good judge, with a good temperment who did treat most people in his courtroom with proper respect.
And, it's in no way proper for a judge to call anyone appearing in his/her court "hoss." If the shoe were on the other foot and Mr. Carter had address his Honor as "Hoss," you can bet it would not have gone well for Mr. Carter.
Judge Potter, as most everyone familiar with the goings-on down at 201 knows, has of late suffered many health related problems. He rarely even appears on the bench in his own courtroom and actually has gone to the legislature and gotten approval to have a few lawyers, who are unelected by the people, to sit as special judges in his courtroom.
Judge Potter's personal problems have definitely had a negative impact on his temperment on the bench and he should, by all means, resign. It's a shame that a man who once was such a good judge refuses to resign, as he should.
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Re: “Griz-Spurs Game 3 Preview: Five Takes”
I'd bet that you think a Rudy Gay would help the Grizz out Wolfgang, wouldn't you? After all, he's 6-9, can jump out of the gym and get his own shot whenever he wants.
The comparison for the Grizz is the old Pistons title team with Rip Hamilton, Billups, Ben Wallace, Rasheed, and Tayshaun. They didn't have any NBA title caliber players either according to your definition, but they dispatched of a Laker team with 4 Hall of Famers (Kobe, Gary Payton, Shaq, and Karl Malone), and they did it in 5 games.
What they did have was a team full of elite defensive players and a few players who could make just enough happen on the offensive end, a lot like this Grizzlies team. I believe we are the only NBA team with 3 starters who made first or second team All-Defense. When you have that, you can get by without a prototypical offensive creator.
You are correct though that typically you have to have at least one or two of those elite scorer types to have a shot at an NBA title, but it isn't a hard and fast rule. The Pacers are constructed similar to this Grizzly team, and they are in the same position we are. You can bet they're going to give the Heat everything they want and then some. There isn't just one formula for success in the NBA.
As I've said before, you better hope that the Grizzlies haven't figured something out with the Spurs. If they have, this series is going to go deep, and the last thing you want is to end up in a Game 7 with a team that thrives on physically wearing you down. Personally, I think we're sitting here at 2-2 come Tuesday morning, and I think the Spurs will feel a lot of pressure going into Game 5 to figure out how to counter the changes the Grizzlies make for these next two games.