What Zach Randolph meant to Memphis

What does it mean to truly be a champion? How can you unite a community with nothing more than a big heart and a basketball? Zach Randolph wasn’t just a great player for the Memphis Grizzlies; he was so much more.

All legends have a beginning, and many come from the places you least expect them. Zach Randolph’s legend is no different.

It all started on July 2, 2009. The Memphis Grizzlies received Zach Randolph in exchange for trading Quentin Richardson to the Los Angeles Clippers. As stupid as it may sound now, this move wasn’t well-liked by the people of Memphis. Great! An unstable, divisive locker room presence on a team full of young guys. What could possibly go wrong?

Regardless of whether it was deserved or not, Zach Randolph had quite the reputation coming to Memphis. At the time, he was nothing more than a talented player with significant issues – a ball hog and troublemaker with an attitude problem. Many people were certain that he was just going to make a bad situation worse in Memphis.

However, you can’t judge a book by its cover. No one could’ve predicted what Zach Randolph would become to the city of Memphis. He became more than just a great teammate and player; he became an icon. Even after he left, his impact both on and off the court will remain forever in Memphis.

A Blue-Collar Player

The 2011 series where the eighth-seeded Grizzlies defeated the top-seeded Spurs was only possible through the dominance of Zach Randolph. Whenever the Grizzlies needed a basket, Z-Bo delivered. Not even arguably the greatest power forward of all time in Tim Duncan could slow him down (the world deserved a prime Z-Bo against prime Dirk Nowitski matchup that season).

After winning that series, Zach was asked by Doris Burke what about the city of Memphis allowed him to thrive.  He replied:

"“I love this city. They love me back. It’s a blue-collar town, and I’m a blue-collar player, a hard-worker. Nothing’s been given easily to me, and nothing’s been given easily to this town. It’s a fit.”"

Zach Randolph gave the city of Memphis a person to rally around. No matter how you look at it, Memphis is a flawed city as it’s full of flawed people just like any other place. However, the people of Memphis are a proud and hard-working group. The blue-collar culture, the toughness, the grit, are the things in which this city has always taken great pride. When Randolph – a person who greatly exhibits these qualities – came to the Grizzlies, the people of Memphis saw a star who was not much different from them.

Though hardly anyone celebrated his arrival at first, Zach Randolph also established the winning culture and identity of the Memphis Grizzlies. When he arrived in Memphis, this wasn’t a team ready for any kind of success. After all, a team that featured a raw Mike Conley, Marc Gasol, and rookie O.J. Mayo isn’t exactly Finals-bound. However, Z-Bo immediately gave the team a star that it so desperately needed. His stabilizing influence and talent gave the team a foundation as it entered the “Grit ‘N’ Grind” era. People didn’t call him “last name twenty, first name ten” for nothing.

The memories that Zach Randolph created as a player for the Memphis Grizzlies are unforgettable. After all, watching a grown man wrestle another grown man in the middle of an NBA game is the stuff you tell your kids about:

Zach’s impact in the community is just as great as his impact as a player.

The People’s Champion

As we are in the time around July 4th, it’s important to remember the veterans who fought for our freedom. Unforunately, not everyone shows enough respect for the men and women who have sacrificed for us. Zach Randolph isn’t one of those people.

Jimmy Keep was an 89-year-old Iwo Jima survivor who was returning to Iwo Jima. However, his son said that he’d be more interested in going to a Grizzlies game than returning there. He was a huge fan of Zach Randolph, and after the Grizzlies invited him to two games, Zach formed a lasting bond with him. Two men, both tough as nails in their own right, met at just the right time. Keep sadly passed away on March 20th, 2016 – one day after Z-Bo had his first career triple-double.

Acts of compassion like this are what endeared Zach Randolph to the community in Memphis. In 2013, Zach donated $20,000 to the Metropolitan Inter-Faith Association, who then used the money to pay the utility bills of many families living in poverty. In 2014, he gave out five hundred food baskets to the community. Whenever someone needed a helping hand in Memphis, Zach has always been ready to help.

Zach Randolph is and always will be a champion in Memphis. No, he never could help bring a title to the Bluff City. On the other hand, it truly is something when a player’s impact on the court is only surpassed by their impact in the community. Even as he’s now a Sacarmento King, Zach’s greatness both on the court and in the community will never be forgotten by the people of Memphis.

Lasting Legacy

It hurts, doesn’t it?

It hurts to see someone this community has cherished for so long finally walk away. Nothing lasts forever, and that’s an important lesson to remember through all of this. Time will go on, and the Memphis Grizzlies will be fine next season.

Zach’s Randolph’s time in Memphis teaches us one very important thing: Appearances can be deceiving.

When Z-Bo arrived in Memphis, people expected a troublemaker who would be here one year, and then gone the next. Instead, they received a legend who will forever live on in the history of Memphis.

It fit perfectly right from the beginning. The young, raw Memphis Grizzlies needed a star, someone who would bleed Beale Street blue. Zach Randolph was a troubled star that needed a new beginning. It was a union that blossomed over the last eight years.

Next: Twitter Reactions to ZBo leaving

We all need to thank Zach Randolph for the time he spent here. He helped make the Memphis Grizzlies a contender when no one expected it. Though he had help along the way, he established an identity that’ll live on even after he retires. He taught us that sometimes a little bit of grit and a little bit of grind is enough to win the day. And let’s not forget the most important lesson of all….

To never, ever, bluff