Player Grades: Memphis Grizzlies vs Philadelphia 76ers
By Davis Howe
After a dud against Atlanta Hawks, the Memphis Grizzlies—both starters and role players included—lit up the scoreboard as they hosted the Philadelphia 76ers.
Tonight’s game felt more like a regular season game than the past two preseason matches: starters played in the second half, and the Sixers lost by 30. In the last Memphis Grizzlies; home game until the season opener vs the Minnesota Timberwolves on the Oct. 26, the Beale Street Bears put on a show. After a hotly contested first half that ended with the teams knotted up at 53, the Memphis Grizzlies shot ahead on the backs of impressive shooting nights from Mike Conley, James Ennis, and… Zach Randolph? Coach Dave Fizdale has been vocal in his efforts to get guys shooting more 3s, and tonight it all came together. As a team, the Grizzlies shot 13-for-29 from beyond the arc. Zbo and Marc Gasol contributed 4-for-6 and 1-for-1 3-point shooting nights, respectively. Another area the Grizzlies shined in was transition ball: at one point, the Grizzlies’ offense had forced the Sixers into three consecutive fouls on quick drives to the hoop, one ending in a nice and-1 play by James Ennis. Every other attempt by a coach to “modernize” the Memphis Grizzlies’ pace and 3-point shot has met with failure. Perhaps Fizdale will finally get our boys to buy in.
As for the players themselves, there were quite a few bright spots in tonight’s game. Troy Williams continues to fight for his roster spot, and several of the new guys are fitting in nicely. As with my Magic and Hawks post-game articles, players are ranked below roughly according to performance.