The first round of the 2018 NBA Playoffs has been excellent to witness. Which former Memphis Grizzlies are making the biggest splash?
The 2018 NBA Playoffs are off to a great start to say the least.
Buzzer-beaters. Overtime sessions. Big slam dunks. Clutch shooting. Upsets. Quarrels. Only one series sweep — the New Orleans Pelicans overcoming the Portland Trail Blazers.
You name it — and it probably has happened in the first week of the NBA’s postseason. The competitiveness bodes well for the association and its ratings the league desires.
Inside these great playoff moments are some faces familiar to Grizz Nation. Being as our beloved Memphis Grizzlies are not participating in the postseason this year, it is a fine time to take a look at some 901 fan favorites of the past.
The List
The following names are the 11 players, all ex-Grizzlies, on playoff rosters:
- Baldwin, Wade IV (Portland Trail Blazers; 33 career games spent with Memphis Grizzlies)
- Bayless, Jerryd (Philadelphia 76ers; 111 career games spent with Memphis Grizzlies)
- Davis, Ed (Portland Trail Blazers; 99 career games spent with Memphis Grizzlies)
- Ellington, Wayne (Miami Heat; 40 career games spent with Memphis Grizzlies)
- Gasol, Pau (San Antonio Spurs; 476 career games spent with Memphis Grizzlies)
- Gay, Rudy (San Antonio Spurs; 479 career games spent with Memphis Grizzlies)
- Green, Jeff (Cleveland Cavaliers; 98 career games spent with Memphis Grizzlies)
- Johnson, James (Miami Heat; 52 career games spent with Memphis Grizzlies)
- Lowry, Kyle (Toronto Raptors; 141 career games spent with Memphis Grizzlies)
- Munford, Xavier (Milwaukee Bucks; 14 career games spent with Memphis Grizzlies)
- Stephenson, Lance (Indiana Pacers; 26 career games spent with Memphis Grizzlies)
Notables
Perhaps the most popular of the 11 playoff-eligible ex-Grizzlies is the Indiana Pacers’ Lance Stephenson.
“Born Ready” stays in headlines as he loves to torment LeBron James. It seems as if the Pacers are always drawing James’ Cleveland Cavaliers and the first four games of this particular series has been no disappointment.
The bulk of the entertainment factor is Lance’s hustle plays and ensuing crazy antics. Grizz fans can relate since he spent 26 games with Memphis in the 2015-16 season. Along with the good comes the bad, but the Pacers have somehow figured a way to crack the code to unleash the good side of Stephenson.
The Pacers-Cavaliers matchup also brings Jeff Green into the fold. Green was a midsesason acquisition in 2014-15 that was very streaky. For the most part, he never fulfilled the stardom that Grizzlies fans had hoped. To this day, he continues to be very hot or cold on the offensive end, but a solid teammate nonetheless.
Heading south, the San Antonio Spurs have a pair of teammates — Pau Gasol and Rudy Gay — that have their names spread plentifully throughout Grizzlies record books.
Prior to 2009, Pau Gasol was the Memphis Grizzlies’ only NBA All-Star in franchise history. It is easy to forget all the good that Pau created for the Grizz because of the success of the “Grit-‘N’-Grind” era.
To this day, Pau Gasol ranks highly in Grizz history: fifth in games played, fifth in minutes played, fourth in field goals made, third in total rebounds, fifth in assists, second in blocks, fourth in points scored, first in field goal percentage, amongst many others.
In Memphis, Rudy Gay picked up right where Pau Gasol left off. Beginning his NBA career in 2006 with the Grizzlies, Rudy was an instant fan favorite. The club was not winning many games, but it was a real treat watching Gay throw down mosterous slam dunks.
Rudy Gay proved that he could not do it all on his own. It took time — the development of Mike Conley and Marc Gasol — meshed with the additions of Zach Randolph and Tony Allen. From here, the best years of Memphis Grizzlies basketball were born.
Rudy is another prominet name in Grizzlies annals. He has set high marks including fourth in games played, fourth in minutes played, fifth in field goals made, fourth in three-point field goals made, fifth in total rebounds, fourth in steals, fifth in blocks, and fifth in points scored.
Arguably the best of these 11 former Memphis Grizzlies at this current point in time is the Toronto Raptors’ Kyle Lowry.
Lowry, an All-Star-caliber point guard, developed in M-Town prior to becoming the star he is today. Ultimately the Grizz had to choose between Lowry and Mike Conley, and though Lowry was not the winner of that contest, Memphis came out sitting pretty.
Lowry has transformed Toronto into a postseason regular. If you catch yourself looking for a team to cheer in the 2018 NBA Playoffs, you cannot go wrong with Lowry’s Raptors. They are a favorite to reach the NBA Finals and Kyle’s floor general skills are a big factor for their success.
Honorable Mention?
With every great list comes an honorable mention section. At Beale Street Bears, we could not leave without a mention of the Miami Heat’s Hassan Whiteside.
Whiteside played zero regular season games with the Memphis Grizzlies; however, he did participate in training camp with the Grizz in 2014. He failed to make the regular season roster, but that was not his last chance with Memphis.
Hassan would later receive a Developmental League call-up from the Grizzlies, but he saw no action in a Memphis uniform. He was cut twice by Memphis. He eventually became a diamond pulled from the rough as a member of the Miami Heat, but the 2017-18 season has not treated him so well.
For now, we can send continue to send thanks to Hassan Whiteside for being the practice session punching bag during the “Grit-‘N’-Grind” era of Marc Gasol and Zach Randolph.
Coach’s Decision
One last fun fact within this column for Grizz Nation is pertinent to James Posey — currently an assistant coach for the LeBron James-led Cleveland Cavaliers.
Posey is a name that may not be familiar to Grizzlies fans that only know the “GNG” era of Memphis basketball. James was a key counterpart to Pau Gasol during the span of 2003 through 2005. He was more than a “three-and-D” player, though he was excellent at shooting the trey and playing defense.
In the 2003-04 season, James Posey recorded the third-most steals in Grizzlies history with 137. At that time, it was a new record for the franchise.
Go Grizz!
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