Grizzlies 100 vs Nuggets 97

Well, I'm sad to admit I did not tune into this game until there were 30 seconds left in regulation. So I caught the final seconds of those heroics and then the extra period where the Grizz pulled off the miracle come-from-behind upset once again. That's the Grindhouse for ya!

Since I pretty much did not watch this game my only other comment will be, keep winning baby!

Marc Gasol and Andrew Bynum's winning performances on Tuesday solely account for the positive upswing in the center position this week. Point guard is actually best to stay behind the shadows for the win. If your point guard is your main scorer something is wrong. Mike Conley, Jr. (4 steals) and O.J. Mayo both delivered last night in the victory and Mayo's immense contributions were overshadowed by the scoring numbers of Al Harrington and Andre Miller from the Denver bench. No matter, we get the win with grit and grind hustle. Gasol and Rudy Gay demolished the opposition. Tony Allen played heroically once again ( 4 blocked shots!) . See you Thursday in Atlanta!

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Grizzlies in Game 21:

Player	eStat	μ = mean difference
Mike Conley	-1	μ = +2.250
Tony Allen	+9	μ = +5.0
Rudy Gay	+12	μ = +6.50
Marreese Speights	-9	μ = -13.063
Marc Gasol	+19	μ = +17.187
6th (O.J. Mayo*)	-5	μ = -7.688

*14^st 6th Man

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Go Grizz!

Grizzlies 73 vs Spurs 83

The score might as well have been 103 to 73. The Spurs totally walked all over the Grizzlies in their most disappointing home loss this season. Especially given that the Spurs had played a grueling match in Dallas the previous night while the Grizz had a day off, this stinker came at a very inopportune time. Now tonight the Grizzlies face a far greater opponent that will punish them mercilessly if they don't right the ship immediately. It's a down time right now since the leader, Rudy Gay, has put such a bad number on the board. They simply have to perform as a unit again.

Mentally and emotionally you can see there is a gap with this team right now and they have to get across it. In the first 9 games this week, my "eStats" show the 4 position off to the races again with the 3 right behind. This exposes how terrible Rudy Gay played against a much more inferior opponent (Richard Jefferson) on Monday night. Meanwhile O.J. Mayo needs more burn and the bench itself has fallen out of step with the flow of the team.

I believe our offense and team is too chaotic. One night Pondexter/Young/Pargo/Selby/Haddadi don't play and the next they get 15 minutes. Weird if you ask me. Where was Dante Cunningham last night by the way?

ROTATION IDEAS

1. Play OJ + Haddadi more . The Darko/Gasol twin towers worked occasionally, bring it back.
   
2. If you start Speights don't play him for 8 minutes and then bench him the rest of the way.
   
3. Don't play Pargo or Sam Young for now. They don't look like they belong. I love Sam Young and he can contribute but not on this team right now.
   
4. I think Tony Allen should sub in for Rudy Gay and OJ Mayo.

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Grizzlies in Game 20:

Player	eStat	μ = mean difference
Mike Conley	+10	μ = +7.778
Tony Allen	-3	μ = -1.556
Rudy Gay	-12	μ = -15.889
Marreese Speights	-4	μ = -10.778
Marc Gasol	-2	μ = -3.778
6th (O.J. Mayo*)	+2	μ = -2.0

*13^st 6th Man

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Rudy played another terrible game like this against Oklahoma City when they lost and then we went on to a 7 game winning streak. He's the furthest off the mean we've ever seen him. Let's see that MVP play again Rudy! "Make your own luck", brother!

Go Grizz!

Grizzlies 84 @ Phoenix 86

Not only did Jared Dudley kill the Grizzlies with free throws in the final minute of the game, he dominated Tony Allen in points. The Suns guards won the battle off of hustle and terrible shooting by the Grizzlies.

They have to bounce back at home and return to winning ways to be a factor in the West going forward.

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Grizzlies in Game 19:

Player	eStat	μ = mean difference
Mike Conley	-6	μ = -4.649
Tony Allen	-10	μ = -13.404
Rudy Gay	+9	μ = +5.211
Marreese Speights	+6	μ = +0.912
Marc Gasol	+5	μ = +7.386
6th (O.J. Mayo/Dante Cunningham)	-4	μ = -5.842

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Graphical chart of the above Average Differences:

The 5 weeks of NBA and 289 games have been played. Small-forward holds an edge over the power-forward. Shooting guard is a bit further behind after a terrific week5. Also in week 5 the center and point guard fell off the map and overall their contribution is low. The margin of victory by average has been going down each week.

Go Grizz!

Grizzlies 91 @ Clippers 98

What a hideous game - with hideous jerseys. They might work with the correct socks but with these NBA players they look ridiculous. The big men especially. The guards looked ok in them but the big, oh no. I failed to watch this match again as I failed to stay up even for the amazing comeback of the Celtics in the early game against the Magic. How do you give up 21 point halftime lead and only manage to score 25 the rest of the way? Eight points in the 4th by the Magic. Epic fail.

The Grizzlies appeared to have lost their shooting touch in this one by the look of the box score.

"None of it was their defense," Rudy Gay said. "It was us. I mean, they do have some long athletic big men that alter a couple of shots. But for the most part, we were getting good shots and just weren't knocking them down."

It's no time for freaking out over this loss as the Clippers needed one at home after losing the night before. They absolutely have to take care of business in Phoenix Saturday night now though.


This is funny:

Concerning the stats after 30 games this week, the Grizzlies have to get better production from the power forward position. If not they have to dominate with their guards, which, because of Mike Conley's allstar level play over the win streak, they could rely on. When Mike and Tony are going against Chris Paul, Chauncey Billups, and Mo Williams – game over man. Either they have to build inside with more bodies or knock down the outside shots. What is their character going to be?

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Grizzlies in Game 18:

Player	eStat	μ = mean difference
Mike Conley	-4	μ = -3.933
Tony Allen	-5	μ = -6.567
Rudy Gay	+4	μ = +0.967
Marreese Speights	-18	μ = -24.833
Marc Gasol	+9	μ = +11.633
6th (O.J. Mayo*)	-4	μ = -5.30

*12^st 6th Man

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Game Recap Link


This season is too short for 3 game losing streaks on the road. Handle those Suns! It might be time to consider starting Cunningham or Pondexter over Speights. Speights is playing less than 10 minutes a game, then why start him?

Go Grizz!

Grizzlies 84 @ Portland 97

The 7 game winstreak of 2 weeks comes to a close on this deadly road trip. Let's hope they give the Clippers hell Thursday night on TNT! Lordy, we missed ZBO in this one. Aldridge and Camby went batshit on the boards!

This week we have had 15 games in 2 days. The Grizzlies played 2 of those. The Power Forward is going insane so far. It went against us in this one for 19 points. Luckily Rudy Gay and O.J. Mayo are hanging tough for the Grizzlies. Centers are not faring well. Let's hope that trend reverses the rest of the week with a win Thursday and a mighty shutdown of DeAndre Jordan.

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Grizzlies in Game 17:

Player	eStat	μ = mean difference
Mike Conley	-4	μ = -2.277
Tony Allen	-5	μ = -7.533
Rudy Gay	+4	μ = +0.277
Marreese Speights	-19	μ = -28.80
Marc Gasol	+4	μ = +7.600
6th (O.J. Mayo*)	+5	μ = +3.666

*11^st 6th Man

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Go Grizz!

Grizzlies 91 @ Golden State 90

I only saw the highlights of this game cuz I don't have cable/NBATV and this game started 30 minutes after my bedtime on Monday night! I likely won't see any games this week because of the late night games. Tonight they face Portland who also is 2nd game on back-to-back so chances are good to extend the win streak tying the franchise record if they win. Can you believe the Grizzlies scored 39 points in the final quarter to win by 1???

After the first night's 10 games we see the 2,3,and 4 dominating. Center has reversed from last week and 6th man is a strong contributor so far! Rudy Gay certainly helped the SF cause and Marc Gasol reduced 1/3rd of the center deficit with his +15 over Biedrins! Where was the rest of our bench though? I'm glad to see Haddadi got some stats at least. Portland will be tough with Gerald Wallace back in the lineup.

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Grizzlies in Game 16:

Player	eStat	μ = mean difference
Mike Conley	+0	μ = -1.70
Tony Allen	-6	μ = -9.50
Rudy Gay	+10	μ = +5.10
Marreese Speights	-5	μ = -9.50
Marc Gasol	+15	μ = +18.40
6th (O.J. Mayo*)	+1	μ = -0.60

*10^st 6th Man

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Rudy with the "Dirk-esque" game winner

Go Grizz!

4 Weeks of NBA: 232 games

Your 4 weeks of NBA Grizzlies:

1. Grizz at top of SW division
   
2. Gasol, OJ, Rudy, and Conley playing extremely well for their fourth year together.
   
3. Marc Gasol having Allstar season
   
4. Defeated the #1 team at the time, Chicago Bulls. Lost to the #1 team in the West, OKC Thunder by point margins of 3 and 5.
   
5. Haddadi is back. The rest of the newcomers are getting it.
   
6. The defense is winning!
   

I am collecting numbers from every single NBA game played this season. It's not a sophisticated model at all, but I have fun comparing the Grizzlies starters and best 6th man to get a view of how they are shaping up to the rest of the league each night. Stats chart of each position's contributing factor to their team's final score:

Average stats after 232 games

Power-forward remains a vital figure along with center. Luckily the Marreese Speights is fitting in nicely. Small-forward is most vital position by these metrics. Now that makes me feel comfortable Rudy Gay is maxed. Just behind PF is the Shooting Guard position. Not surprisingly the 2 and 3 positions take the majority of shots so they will score more. However, this shows their contribution to not just scoring, but winning.

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UPDATE!!!!: MARC GASOL PLAYER OF THE WEEK - NBA.com

• Jan. 16 vs. Chicago: Posted 19 points, 10 rebounds, three assists and two blocks in a 102-86 win over the Bulls.
  
  
• Jan. 18 @ New Orleans: Tallied 22 points, 12 rebounds and seven assists in a 93-87 victory over the Hornets.
  
  
• Jan. 21 vs. Sacramento: Scored 20 points and added 11 rebounds, six blocks and five assists as the Grizzlies upended the Kings 128-95.

Congrats to Gasol! ZBO had many of these last season. He's filling those shoes!

Go Grizz!