Last night was the first Friday night home game of the regular season for the Memphis Grizzlies, who were soundly defeated 146-114 by the Miami Heat.
It was a record-setting game for all the wrong reasons.
The Heat’s 146 points are the most points ever scored by a Grizzlies opponent in a regulation game, and their 86 first-half points are a franchise record for the most points ever scored against the Grizzlies in a single half.
There is a joke to be made about the Grizzlies being 86’d in the first half, but it is hard to laugh after the disaster I witnessed.
I don’t want to jump to too many conclusions this early in the season, but the defense was not defending last night. Hell, the defense stayed home, along with three-point shooting.
Is it just a coincidence that the Grizzlies are struggling from beyond the arc after losing their two best three-point shooters in the off-season?
The first quarter was a masterclass in how not to open a game, or how to get cooked from beyond the arc by A’ja Wilson’s boyfriend, Bam Adebayo. Adebayo led the Heat in scoring, and he scored 18 of his 24 points in the first quarter and shot a perfect 4 of 4 from the field on his first four three-point attempts.
By contrast, the Grizzlies shot 1 of 7 from beyond the arc for the first quarter, and 2 of 12 in the second quarter, closing out the first half shooting a dismal 15.8% (3 of 19) from three-point range.
It’s a pretty safe bet that when a team gives up nearly 90 points and is down by 39 points at halftime, it will lose the game. (Is it too soon to shout out to Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier, who was arrested this week by the FBI in a gambling probe? Nah.)
Jaren Jackson Jr. led the team with 19 points in just over 21 minutes on the court.
Ja Morant was the only other starter to score in double-digits, finishing the night with 12 points in just over 21 minutes as well.
The starters playing limited minutes might have been the only bright spot for Memphis in what turned out to be the worst loss in franchise history.
Limiting minutes for the starting five meant bench players saw a lot of run, with promising performances from two-way players PJ Hall and Olivier-Maxence Prosper. Rookie Cedric Coward led the second unit with 16 points.
Keeping in mind their greatly diminished frontcourt and the expected returns of injured players, this is a Grizzlies team that has not yet reached its final form. Hopefully, these growing pains will be alleviated in the coming weeks.
Who Got Next?
The Grizzlies are back at it again tonight, facing off against the Indiana Pacers to close out their three-game homestand to start the season. Tip-off is at 7 PM CDT.