David Fizdale: Right Hire; More Questions than Answers

David Fizdale is the new head coach of the Memphis Grizzlies. While he may be the perfect hire, there are unanswered questions about the Memphis Grizzlies.

Miami Heat assistant coach David Fizdale has landed his first head coaching gig with the Memphis Grizzlies. The news sent waves through both current and former Heat players, as well as the NBA community as a whole:

While David Fizdale is known for player development and communicating with his players, it’ll be interesting to see how that is brought into the Memphis Grizzlies. Out of all the Grizzlies players under contract for next season, there are three players that are twenty-five years old or younger from last year’s roster:

• Jordan Adams
• Jarrell Martin
• Xavier Munford
• JaMychal Green (team option)
• Lance Stephenson (team option)

This list does not include the the two draft picks (#17 and #57) they have this year. Their core of Marc Gasol, Zach Randolph, and Tony Allen is on the wrong side of thirty. The youngest member of their core, Mike Conley, is an unrestricted free agent and is approaching his thirties.

More importantly, will David Fizdale be able to lure Mike Conley back to Memphis? Fizdale has championship experience and has the ability to co-exist with star players, evident through this relationships with LeBron James and Dwyane Wade. However, the fact that this is the third head coach in four years for the Grizzlies may have Conley question the stability of the franchise.

Will the San Antonio Spurs’ interest in Conley and the allure of playing with star players Kawhi Leonard and LaMarcus Aldridge pry him away from Memphis? Re-signing Mike Conley is, by far, David Fizdale’s most important task this offseason.

With Conley putting pressure on the front office to make some moves, will David Fizdale be able to attract younger free agents to bring younger help to their “Core Four?” In last year’s injury-riddled season, the Memphis Grizzlies had to rely on 35-year old Matt Barnes and 39-year old Vince Carter for scoring and playmaking duties. Despite a surprisingly superb outing with the Grizzlies (14 points, 35% from 3-point, and a player efficiency rating of 17), they would be wise to opt out of Lance Stephenson’s team option to convince him to re-sign for a longer, cheaper deal (4yr/$28M sounds reasonable). David Fizdale will be tasked with convincing their young, enigmatic spark-plug to compromise and buy into the Grizzlies’ long-term future. If the Fizdale and the Grizzlies can do that, they have a shot at luring a young starting shooting guard or small forward (ideally and realistically, Kent Bazemore, Allen Crabbe, or Evan Fournier) while locking up a young Lance Stephenson.

How will the hiring of David Fizdale affect the draft? Will he have a major impact in the draft?

There are plenty of routes the Memphis Grizzlies could take in this year’s draft. They could go after young point guards such as Demetrius Jackson, Wade Balwin IV, or Tyler Ulis. They could chase wings such as Tauren Prince, Furkan Korkmaz, Malik Beasley, or Malachi Richardson. They could potentially look for a Marc replacement through Domantas Sabonis, Stephen Zimmerman, or Skal Labissiere. David Fizdale’s involvement in the draft will determine the direction he plans to take with this Grizzlies team for the present and for the future.

There should be questions circulating around David Fizdale’s plan for offense and defense. Will the “Grit-n-Grind” stay? Will they move towards a more modern-NBA game with small ball and more threes? If this is the case, will Zach Randolph and Tony Allen’s roles be minimized? Will young guys such as Jordan Adams and Jarrell Martin see more playing time? Will the Memphis Grizzlies find a young guy to believe in for the first time since the early playing days of OJ Mayo, Marc Gasol, Mike Conley and Rudy Gay?

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This is where it gets tricky. With a healthy lineup, “Grit-n-Grind” is still tough and lethal but very limited. If the Grizzlies can find a 3-and-D wing to come in for Tony Allen when the other team isn’t guarding him, their team will become more deadly.

“Modern NBA” small ball will be tough because of big men Marc Gasol, Zach Randolph, and Brandan Wright. Either one big of the three or any two-man combination deserve to be on the court in all 48 minutes of the game, but is that a winning formula?

David Fizdale could technically move Zach Randolph and Tony Allen to the bench; however, they would be swallowing a lot of pride. Besides, are JaMychal Green or Jarrell Martin justified to start over Zach Randolph at this stage of their careers?

Jordan Adams and Jarrell Martin should receive more playing time. Adams’ ability to get to the free throw line and shoot the three ball should bode well for the Grizzlies’ offense. With Fizdale remarkably molding Tyler Johnson and Josh Richardson into three-point weapons, he should be able to maximize Adams’ potential. Martin is a springy power forward who can potentially play stretch 4 or 5 during his career. If David Fizdale willingly plays these guys, he’ll win over Grizzlies fans who have been dying to see young talent on the floor.

The Memphis Grizzlies could find a young guy to believe in if they are developed correctly. This would ideally be found with their draft pick who can potentially be a steal (think Skal Labissiere, Demetrius Jackson, Tyler Ulis, or Malik Beasley).

David Fizdale is a tremendous hire for the Grizzlies. There is hope that the Grizzlies can find someone to maximize young talent, unlike former coach Dave Joerger. However, the Memphis Grizzlies are left with a lot of questions that should be answered within the next year.