Former Memphis Grizzlies’ F Speights Has NBA Finals Blunder

Jun 7, 2015; Oakland, CA, USA; Golden State Warriors center Marreese Speights (5) tries to dunk the ball against the Cleveland Cavaliers in game two of the NBA Finals at Oracle Arena. Mandatory Credit: Bob Donnan-USA TODAY Sports

Former Memphis Grizzlies’ big man Marreese Speights caused a stir in the Twitter world last night after blowing an easy dunk–killing his team’s momentum.

Marreese Speights, now of the NBA Finals-bound Golden State Warriors, spent parts of two seasons with the Memphis Grizzlies. He quickly became a fan favorite, especially when he filled in nicely for Zach Randolph when Z-Bo went down with an injury in the 2011-12 season. He started 54 of 60 games in a Grizzlies’ uniform in that initial season alone. Speight’s best days, individually, of his NBA career thus far were perhaps the ones he spent in Memphis.

Jun 4, 2015; Oakland, CA, USA; Golden State Warriors center Marreese Speights (5) shoots the ball against Cleveland Cavaliers forward James Jones (1) during the fourth quarter in game one of the NBA Finals at Oracle Arena. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports

After getting traded and moved around, he has found a nice home with the Golden State Warriors. He is a big part of their bench and they are of course playing the Cleveland Cavaliers in the 2015 NBA Finals.

The Warriors were able to win an overtime Game 1 to take a step ahead of the Cavaliers to the World Championship. Last night was not as glamorous for Golden State. The league MVP, Stephen Curry, shot miserably from the field. It got worse, though, by the end of the third quarter when the Warriors attempted to continue their building of momentum.

The Warriors grabbed the ball for a steal and looked to throw it ahead. “Mo” Speights was sprinting ahead to their basket–wide open. He caught the pass. Looked at the rim. The crowd was ready to erupt. Speights cocked the basketball behind his head and into the air he jumped.

Disappointment. He clanged the ball in and out of the rim and off the glass it bounced. The buzzer sounded shortly after to signal the end of the period.

This killed Golden State’s momentum. They were looking to take full control of Game 2, but it stopped them just short of the Cavaliers’ lead. While Game 2 still became a second consecutive overtime matchup for the two teams, Mo Speights’ missed opportunity was a killer for his team.

Now the final series is tied at one game apiece. How will former Memphis Grizzlies’ forward Marreese Speights bounce back? Will he have a huge performance in Game 3 to more than make up for his Game 2 blunder?

Although Grizz Nation is certainly not pulling for the Golden State Warriors, we definitely wish the best of luck to Marreese Speights as he pursues his first NBA championship.

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