Your Memphis Grizzlies are now the proud owners of their first real losing streak of the season: Wednesday night’s 124-109 loss to the Houston Rockets is their fourth in a row.
To say that there is no joy in Grizzville right now would be a massive understatement.
Injuries still plague the team, and the growing frustration between Ja Morant and the coaching staff has sparked conversations across national sports media, speculating about his future with the team.
Everyone has an opinion about Morant, and I do mean everyone. Rockets forward and noted internet shit-poster Kevin Durant trolled Tee Morant and other fans from the court during the game.
All of that would be an easier pill to swallow if the team played well and won games, but that isn’t the timeline we’re on. The fact of the matter is that the on-court product right now isn’t good, effective, or enjoyable to watch.
Two things can be true at the same time: The Grizzlies are missing several key players who are integral keys to their success, and the style of play the new coach is trying to run isn’t working well with the team currently available.
And let’s be clear, the team’s star players do have some responsibility to bear in the rocky start to the season. I’m not letting them off the hook here, but if accountability starts at the top of the org chart, that leaves Tuomas Iisalo in the hot seat.
Meanwhile, the Rockets beat the Grizzlies in every statistical category last night, except for blocks and steals, and how much of a difference does it make that Memphis had one more steal and three more blocks when Houston beat them 60-40 in the paint and scored 26 points off turnovers?
How exactly does a team win games when they regularly lose by a smaller point differential than what they give up on turnovers? That’s rhetorical, but watching these past few games leaves more questions than answers about the state of this Memphis team.
The Grizzlies cut the Rockets’ lead to four in the third quarter, but the Rockets responded with a 24-7 run that put them up by 21.
Kentavious Caldwell-Pope
Jock Landale
Santi Aldama
Cedric Coward
Cam Spencer
What do these names have in common? These are all the players on the Grizzlies roster who took more shots than Jaren Jackson Jr. in last night’s loss to the Rockets.
In what universe should Jaren Jackson Jr. only have six field goal attempts? Because it certainly isn’t this one, and yet here we are. Jackson put up 9 points, his lowest-scoring game of the season.
The only two starters to score in double figures were Ja Morant and Jock Landale, who added 17 and 11 points, respectively.
It was the second unit bringing the heat in this one: Cam Spencer was the team-high scorer with 19 points off the bench, Santi Aldama contributed 16 points, and Vince Williams Jr. added 10 points.
I don’t know what the answer is, but one thing has been made abundantly clear: something must change before the Grizzlies dig a hole in the standings too deep to climb out of.
Who Got Next?
The Grizzlies continue their homestand on Friday night against the Dallas Mavericks. This is another group-play game for the in-season tournament. Tip-off is at 7 PM CST.
