Some may question if the Grizzlies have enough ability to seriously compete.
They have a strong grinding team, that can wear you down, with a strong front court, with Zach Randolph and Marc Gasol, who can easily make a living off of banging inside with the best of 'em.
They may not be the prettiest girl at the prom, or the sexy pick that fans rave and rant about, but they win games, bottom line.
The Oklahoma City Thunder have the sparkle and the big name stars, that everyone draws to.
The aging Spurs have their icon and legendary Tim Duncan and perpetual top PG Tony Parker.
And, of course, so far, with the Lakers throwing a clunker, they are declining.
Even the Clippers and their star PF, Blake Griffin and top 3 PG, Chris Paul, all draw more attention than the team from Tennessee.
The Grizz have improved upon last year's team as well.
Last year, where they had went 41-25 in a shortened season.
Over the last 3 seasons, they have been mounting.
How can this season end up any different than 2010 and 2011? Of course, 1st and foremost, as long as they can stay healthy is always important, as with any team, especially after last year's injury problems with Zach Randolph.
The front court blend of Gasol and Zebo is tough to matchup with.
They both play excellent defense.
On top of that, they can both easily drop 25+ on any given night without question, against any team in the NBA.
Their PG play has gotten better this year, Mike Conley, has been playing up, compared to last year.
Rudy Gay has been scoring brilliantly, and along with an improving bench, with Marreese Speights playing well, and Darrell Arthur, and what they bring to the table with their rebounding and scoring ability.
People tend to overlook how they beat down the Spurs in 2010, in 6 games.
That series opened a lot of people eyes; this is a team that was on the come.
Are the Grizzlies the best team now equipped to beat the presumed best team from the West, OKC? Matchup wise it looks as if they can.
They play better team defense than Oklahoma City, and scoring, rebounding and passing threat big man, Gasol gives a vast advantage over Perk.
Would be a great battle, and in their game this year so far, they beat the Thunder 107-97 behind Rudy Gay's terrific game.
I think the Grizzlies are good enough to grab that 2nd or 3rd seed.
With potential to win 55+ games, they are currently on pace to win about 57 on the season.
Which I would figure 54-55 games should be enough to hold down the 2nd or 3rd seed, characteristically that's enough to grab that slot.
Even looking across the league, comparing them to the Eastern conference bests, the Knicks and the Heat, they match up well, scoring and playing defense.
And with Randolph and his smooth jump shot, that catches so many off guard even today, what makes him such a double threat is his toughness and ability to bang inside as well, and scrap up the rebounds, a career rebounder, who has also been superb on the offensive boards as well, and offensive rebs keep a game smooth.
They're very important and teams need someone there to get more authority off the glass.
More possessions equal more opportunities to score the ball.
Rudy Gay's game has been as their key scorer, leading the team with 19/gm, Zebo snagging 12 rb/gm, and the improved PG play with Conley dumping off 6 ast/gm roughly 3 steals/night.
They have enhanced their defense even from last year so far.
A defense that's only giving up 91/gm and holding opponents to shooting less than 44% from the field, bringing a stable 3 point shooting team, as well.
As a team, knocking down 36%, led by Conley and Pondexter, this, of course, opens up the power game inside, because teams now have to worry about the down low guys kicking it back out for the deep ball.
It's time to buy into the Memphis Grizzlies, there not just an up and comer; they are a very legitimate team, with very legitimate title chances.
They have a strong grinding team, that can wear you down, with a strong front court, with Zach Randolph and Marc Gasol, who can easily make a living off of banging inside with the best of 'em.
They may not be the prettiest girl at the prom, or the sexy pick that fans rave and rant about, but they win games, bottom line.
The Oklahoma City Thunder have the sparkle and the big name stars, that everyone draws to.
The aging Spurs have their icon and legendary Tim Duncan and perpetual top PG Tony Parker.
And, of course, so far, with the Lakers throwing a clunker, they are declining.
Even the Clippers and their star PF, Blake Griffin and top 3 PG, Chris Paul, all draw more attention than the team from Tennessee.
The Grizz have improved upon last year's team as well.
Last year, where they had went 41-25 in a shortened season.
Over the last 3 seasons, they have been mounting.
How can this season end up any different than 2010 and 2011? Of course, 1st and foremost, as long as they can stay healthy is always important, as with any team, especially after last year's injury problems with Zach Randolph.
The front court blend of Gasol and Zebo is tough to matchup with.
They both play excellent defense.
On top of that, they can both easily drop 25+ on any given night without question, against any team in the NBA.
Their PG play has gotten better this year, Mike Conley, has been playing up, compared to last year.
Rudy Gay has been scoring brilliantly, and along with an improving bench, with Marreese Speights playing well, and Darrell Arthur, and what they bring to the table with their rebounding and scoring ability.
People tend to overlook how they beat down the Spurs in 2010, in 6 games.
That series opened a lot of people eyes; this is a team that was on the come.
Are the Grizzlies the best team now equipped to beat the presumed best team from the West, OKC? Matchup wise it looks as if they can.
They play better team defense than Oklahoma City, and scoring, rebounding and passing threat big man, Gasol gives a vast advantage over Perk.
Would be a great battle, and in their game this year so far, they beat the Thunder 107-97 behind Rudy Gay's terrific game.
I think the Grizzlies are good enough to grab that 2nd or 3rd seed.
With potential to win 55+ games, they are currently on pace to win about 57 on the season.
Which I would figure 54-55 games should be enough to hold down the 2nd or 3rd seed, characteristically that's enough to grab that slot.
Even looking across the league, comparing them to the Eastern conference bests, the Knicks and the Heat, they match up well, scoring and playing defense.
And with Randolph and his smooth jump shot, that catches so many off guard even today, what makes him such a double threat is his toughness and ability to bang inside as well, and scrap up the rebounds, a career rebounder, who has also been superb on the offensive boards as well, and offensive rebs keep a game smooth.
They're very important and teams need someone there to get more authority off the glass.
More possessions equal more opportunities to score the ball.
Rudy Gay's game has been as their key scorer, leading the team with 19/gm, Zebo snagging 12 rb/gm, and the improved PG play with Conley dumping off 6 ast/gm roughly 3 steals/night.
They have enhanced their defense even from last year so far.
A defense that's only giving up 91/gm and holding opponents to shooting less than 44% from the field, bringing a stable 3 point shooting team, as well.
As a team, knocking down 36%, led by Conley and Pondexter, this, of course, opens up the power game inside, because teams now have to worry about the down low guys kicking it back out for the deep ball.
It's time to buy into the Memphis Grizzlies, there not just an up and comer; they are a very legitimate team, with very legitimate title chances.
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