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Predicting the Memphis Grizzlies’ Best and Worst Training Camp Performers

By Christian Dudley

Memphis Grizzlies Wayne Selden (Photo by Joe Murphy/NBAE via Getty Images)
Memphis Grizzlies Wayne Selden (Photo by Joe Murphy/NBAE via Getty Images) /
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BOSTON, MA – FEBRUARY 26: Andrew Harrison #5 of the Memphis Grizzlies dribbles the ball during a game against the Boston Celtics at TD Garden on February 26, 2018 in Boston, Massachusetts. 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. (Photo by Adam Glanzman/Getty Images)
BOSTON, MA – FEBRUARY 26: Andrew Harrison #5 of the Memphis Grizzlies dribbles the ball during a game against the Boston Celtics at TD Garden on February 26, 2018 in Boston, Massachusetts. 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. (Photo by Adam Glanzman/Getty Images) /

Brendan Smart

“I think Memphis has a handful of guys that could really bust out of their shell this training camp. If you are looking at guys that take the next step in their career, it is Andrew Harrison and Dillon Brooks.

Harrison and Brooks are both guys who are still in the process of learning the NBA game, and not only that, but fitting in with two cornerstone franchise players in Mike Conley and Marc Gasol.

For Brooks, it will come down to being a consistent scorer for the Memphis Grizzlies, which Coach Bickerstaff wants him to be. After several games last season, I discussed what he saw in Brooks, and his development plan for Dillon.

J.B. just wants consistency, and knows that DB has the potential to be that guy for Memphis. If Brooks can become consistent on offense throughout four quarters, he will be the Grizzlies’ starting two-guard on Opening Night.

For Harrison, it is another year of battling for a backup role it seems. Last season, Andrew out-dueled former Grizzlies first round pick Wade Baldwin for the job. Harrison, in this year’s training camp, is facing another tough task. He is going up against a seasoned veteran in Shelvin Mack.

With Andrew Harrison, I believe that he is the Memphis Grizzlies’ best choice in terms of consistency, chemistry, and growth. Watching him go from the guy that nobody wanted to see on the floor to becoming a reliable backup was a major step for him in 2017-18. Now he has the chance to be one of the team’s best backup point guards in the past decade.

His three-point percentage rose by six percent from his first season, leaving him at 33% in 2017-18. That is with him playing through a nagging shoulder injury inside of a tanking season.

Harrison strives to continue his growth, and I think he truly appreciates  the franchise for the time it has given him to grow. He has not disappointed, and I think the 2018-19 season will be another year of good development for the University of Kentucky product.

As for disappointments, Wayne Selden and Shelvin Mack are two guys I can see the Memphis Grizzlies possibly moving on from.

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With Mack, the Grizzlies will keep him for reliable backup material if something happens to Harrison. I do not think his journeyman label outweighs the fact that he is a below-average guard on a roster with two guys that have more potential than him.

Shelvin Mack has low potential in my opinion, many see him as Memphis’ leading backup point guard. However, I just do not see this happening with rookie Jevon Carter in the mix with Andrew Harrison.

For Selden, the two-guard depth is too great, and could possibly get cut. Selden has shown so many flashes of what he could have been in the NBA, but I think his journey in Memphis ends this training camp.

Selden plays a very vicious style of play, and for someone who had knee surgery coming out of the University of Kansas and has not been able to stay healthy since, he needs to change his style of play or hit the door. The signs of the team’s future starting two-guard are over, and Wayne Selden will forever be remembered for his Summer League heroics just over one year ago.”

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