Greatest Grizzlies: Seizing Opportunity Propelled Marreese Speights

If it were not the Memphis Grizzlies suffering a freak injury, Marreese Speights may never have received his golden opportunity in the NBA.

It was December of 2011. The inevitable NBA lockout had surprisingly come to a close and teams had to quickly whip into shape. Nearly two months of the season was shaved from the schedule. It was great to finally play ball, but for the Memphis Grizzlies, the worst was yet to come.

In the fourth game into the shortened 2011-12 regular season, Zach Randolph sustained a significant injury versus the Chicago Bulls. The players’ hearts sank. The fan base instantly became depressed. This roster was on the brink of accomplishing something big. However, those plans seemed to become derailed with the blink of an eye.

In an effort to salvage the short season, the Grizzlies’ Front Office hit the phones. They did some digging through opposing rosters to find a big man on the cheap. They desperately needed luck on their side to pull a diamond from the rough. To Grizz Nation’s amazement, they did just that.

The Memphis Grizzlies completed a transaction with the Philadelphia 76ers. In the multi-team deal, the Grizz officially pulled the plug on another former first round Draft pick (Xavier Henry), but it was worth sacrificing. It was do or die in the Western Conference. The franchise truly needed to continue building momentum. Less than one year prior, Memphis had completed perhaps the biggest playoff upset the NBA had ever seen.

MEMPHIS, TN – APRIL 3: Marreese Speights #5 of the Memphis Grizzlies talks with Lionel Hollins of the Memphis Grizzlies during the game against the Golden State Warriors on April 3, 2012 at FedExForum in Memphis, Tennessee. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2012 NBAE (Photo by Joe Murphy/NBAE via Getty Images) /

On the receiving end, Marreese Speights landed in Memphis, Tennessee. The former 16th overall pick recalls the series of events like it was yesterday. “When Z-Bo went down, I got traded to Memphis a couple days after,” he tells Beale Street Bears. “I was always prepared to play a bigger role my first three years in the NBA. Then when I got to Memphis, my opportunity came.”

This opportunity was the big break that Speights needed to showcase his first-round talent. From his third season (spent with Philadelphia) to his fourth season (as a member of the Grizzlies), “Mo Buckets” saw his playing time double. Of 60 games played with Memphis in the shortened season, he started 54 times.

Though Marreese Speights had been groomed as a center first and foremost, he adapted exceptionally well to the power forward role. Notching just four double-double performances in his first three NBA seasons, Marreese achieved seven in his initial season with the Grizzlies.

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There were few people that believed the Memphis Grizzlies would save their season after seeing Zach Randolph go down with an injury. “Z-Bo” would return to action to play a reserve role through the majority of 28 games (eight starts). As the postseason arrived, the Grizzlies finished the regular season with a stellar 38-22 record. They then had a powerful bench to support their star-powered core, which still included Rudy Gay at the time. This depth was enabled by Mo Speights quickly fulfilling his potential.

In speaking of this group’s core, Marreese thoroughly enjoyed playing with those Memphis legends. “It was an amazing time starting next to Rudy, Marc [Gasol], Mike [Conley], and Tony [Allen]. It was fun, man. Those guys made things easy for me.”

There was so much offensive firepower on the floor alongside Speights. Gay, Gasol, and Conley were all capable of producing 20+ points on any given night. Defenses would be stretched thin, opening easy looks around the basket — sometimes a midrange jumper, too — for Marreese.

The city of Memphis truly embraced Mo Speights from the start. This is the underrated aspect of his quick integration with the team. To this day, Marreese credits the Grizzlies’ fan base for their unwavering support.

“Memphis really grew me up. That city. Those people. Those fans are amazing. The time I had in Memphis prepared me for the [Golden State] Warriors. The city of Memphis gave me advice — it wasn’t just one person,” Speights explains. “It was all the love from the fans. Memphis was great to me. I wish I never would have left there.”

In an attempt to shed salary and a roster spot, the Memphis Grizzlies traded Speights in a multi-player deal to the Cleveland Cavaliers in the middle of the 2012-13 season. Though it may seem like a minor trade on paper to casual NBA fans, it was truly a significant deal.

Marreese Speights was a key component to the Grizzlies’ grand scheme of things in a short amount of time. Memphis earned a trip to the Western Conference Finals in this particular season — the most postseason success in franchise history. However, Grizz Nation must wonder how the team would have fared if “Mo Buckets” would have remained.

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In the end, it all panned out for Speights. Eventually becoming a member of the Golden State Warriors, he would win an NBA World Championship in 2015. Ironically enough, Mo and the Warriors had to go through Memphis in the Western Conference Semifinals. Talk about a bittersweet series for Grizz Nation. The fan base had formed a bond with Speights in his time in Memphis. Regardless, the respect remains mutual.

For his contributions to the Memphis Grizzlies’ record books in 100 regular season games (56 starts), Beale Street Bears ranks Marreese Speights No. 23 in all-time Grizzlies history. Speights excelled when the franchise needed help the most.

Go Grizz!

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