With Louisville’s Anas Mahmoud joining the Memphis Grizzlies for summer league play, two former Cardinals-turned-Grizzlies offer advice for the center prospect.
Prior to the beginning of NBA summer league action, the Memphis Grizzlies announced a stellar roster full of prospects with potential. Though there are a couple of young NBA veterans on their roster for the Utah summer league, there exist some impressive names. A few are undrafted guys from the 2018 NBA Draft, while others have become professional journeymen.
As you scroll through the list of names, you will come across University of Louisville graduate Anas Mahmoud. Mahmoud is a 7’0″ center that is a raw prospect, but if some weight is added to his 215-pound frame, could equate to a valuable frontcourt reserve in the years to come.
It was a smart decision for Anas Mahmoud to accept the Memphis Grizzlies’ invitation to join their summer league squad. If you look at the team’s depth chart, you will notice a lot of uncertainty behind three-time NBA All-Star Marc Gasol at the five-position. Deyonta Davis, entering his third professional season, is still playing in the annual summer league. Davis is still attempting to prove he belongs at the NBA level. Ivan Rabb is another raw prospect, but is quickly showing signs of being worthy of the backup center postion.
Beside these options, the Grizzlies do not have much hope of relieving Gasol when he needs a breather in regular season games. Memphis could always play someone, such as JaMychal Green out of natural postion. However, it would be smart to investigate true center candidates. A veteran would be nice if one could be had on the cheap (via Free-Agency or trade), but Louisville’s Mahmoud could be a future prospect. Think low-risk, potential high-reward.
Defense is where Mahmoud prides himself most, and only takes seconds to realize this when analyzing his collegiate statistics. In 23.4 minutes per game, the Louisville Cardinals product posted 2.9 blocks. His per-40 stats leave him just shy of 5.0 blocks per contest. He averaged just 6.8 points and 5.0 rebounds in his senior season, but he was surrounded by several other NBA Draft hopefuls that required stat-sheet stuffing, too.
Anas Mahmoud is not ready for the NBA just yet, but the Memphis Grizzlies’ Front Office would not make a wrong move if they were to stash him in the G-League’s Memphis Hustle. Playing in games versus other talent of comparable height and size is what will make Anas’ game develop at a steady clip.
As he begins his NBA journey, Anas Mahmoud has plenty of mentors and advisors from his college days to seek inspiration. There are a few ex-Louisville products that have found their way onto Memphis Grizzlies rosters of the past. More specifically, Luke Hancock and Russ Smith, both of which are members of the Louisville Cardinals’ 2013 national title team. Both guys spoke to Beale Street Bears about the advice they would extend to Mahmoud as he begins his NBA climb.
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“Take advantage of every moment,” states Hancock, who landed a short-term deal with the Memphis Grizzlies in 2014. He goes on to say “now that you’re a pro, everything counts. From what you eat, to what you drink, to how late you stay up. Everything matters because those guys are elite. They are the best players in the world for a reason. If you are a professional, you go out and handle business. Those guys get great opportunities.”
Furthermore, Smith, best known as “Russdiculous,” provides some solid advice, not specifically to Anas, but to the Memphis Grizzlies’ Front Office in favor of Mahmoud and his summer league peers.
“Not so much Anas, but I would probably more so ask the front office, to be more patient with the young guys. I thought we had a really good core. The front office, just, separated us — myself, Jordan , JaMychal , and a lot of guys. They separated all of us, so I think if they be patient with Anas, use him a little bit, and keep a young core together, they can be real good,” explains Russ Smith.
Granted, when Smith was a member of the Grizzlies’ regular season roster for portions of two seasons, the team had a high concentration of veterans. It was the latter end of the “Grit-‘N’-Grind” era. Regardless, it was that particular bunch that Smith mentioned that sparked the team’s enhancement in developmental processes.
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Take a look at Memphis’ current coaching staff. You will see an increased number of mentors and advisors. Nearly all of J.B. Bickerstaff’s recently-assembled crew has a wide range of NBA experience as a player, as well as some post-career coaching titles. A lot of the personalities are ones in which the young current Grizzlies can easily relate. Along with last year’s G-League expansion of the Memphis Hustle, there are plenty of improvements the Front Office has recently taken to boost their player development department.
Luke Hancock and Russ Smith are two players that the Memphis Grizzlies should have kept around rather than discarding. For example, Smith is now a world record holder of a 61.2 points per game average that he compiled while playing in China. The Grizz need scoring and shooting. This should have been a perfect match, right?!
Though these moves are in the past, perhaps the Memphis Grizzlies will consider another Louisville guy — Anas Mahmoud — and invest in his development more than they did with Hancock and “Russdiculous.” Only time will tell, and in the world of Hustle and two-way contracts, time is no longer of the essence.
Go Grizz!