Mike Bibby Has Been Hanging Around the Memphis Grizzlies?

Former NBA player Mike Bibby has been hanging with the Memphis Grizzlies. Will he soon be employed by the team again?

It has been 17 years since the Grizzlies relocated their franchise from Vancouver to Memphis. It has been the same amount of time since Mike Bibby — one of the very original members of the Grizzlies — was a part of the franchise. When the Grizzlies departed Vancouver, Bibby left the Grizz (or vice-versa).

If the 2018 NBA Summer League has been any indication, it could soon be a reunion of sorts for the Grizzlies and Bibby. The former floor general has been retired from the NBA since the 2011-12 season. However, it is hard to take a longtime veteran entirely away from the game.

Mike Bibby has been spotted at all four of the Memphis Grizzlies’ summer league games thus far in July. There are a few roles of which Bibby could play for the Grizz — obviously not as a player, but as a mentor for the young guys. Not only was Mike Bibby a fundamentally sound point guard during his playing days, but he was a gamer. He was made for the moment. He had some grit behind his grind, too.

Basketball runs through the veins of the Bibby family. Mike’s father, Henry Bibby, served as an assistant coach for the Memphis Grizzlies from 2009 through 2013. Plus, Mike played in the NBA for 14 seasons, including a three-year stint with the Vancouver Grizzlies.

There is something brewing between the Grizzlies and Mike Bibby. Could Mike follow in the footsteps of his dad? It looks as if that is the case. If not as an assistant underneath J.B. Bickerstaff, then probably in an advising role similar to that of Tayshaun Prince. After all, Prince has recently talked to the Detroit Pistons about his own reunion of sorts. Plus, a head coaching position became available today with the Memphis Hustle. There are a handful of possibilities for Mike Bibby right now. Any day, there should be an official announcement as to what his exact role will be. It is clear that he will be a member of the Grizzlies once again, but it will be his first time calling Memphis his home.

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Looking back at a recent Beale Street Bears piece, notice that Memphis’ large new group of coaches has something in common. Much of the staff has at least 10 years of NBA playing experience. This is rare and phenomenal for the current Grizzlies squad. The team is not littered with video coodinators (though, Brad Stevens is solid, no doubt). The new coaching staff has guys that have put in many seasons of professional basketball experience. They know what it really takes to form team chemistry and to coexist with one another. Some of them were able to succeed on the highest stage of the top level of basketball.

In all honesty, player development within the Memphis Grizzlies organization went from zero to 100 with the blink of an eye. Developing the young guys has never been a thought of the Front Office’s during the “Grit-‘N’-Grind” era. Now, there are guys such as Nick Van Exel and Jerry Stackhouse sharing their wisdom with the Grizzlies of the future. With a staff this strong — and perhaps going to gain more strength — the team’s future is in excellent hands.

Go Grizz!