Memphis Grizzlies Are Built to Cope with Latest Injury Report

Injury woes are beginning to arise for the Memphis Grizzlies as their schedule does not become any easier.

After appearing in all 82 regular season games as an NBA rookie in 2017-18, Dillon Brooks is not having as successful of a sophomore season with the Memphis Grizzlies.

It began with a rough shooting percentage in October’s preseason action. The struggles have carried over to the regular season for Dillon as it took him eight games to finally log a double figure scoring performance.

In the Grizzlies’ first seven games, Brooks shot just 35.3% from the field, including a miserable 27.3% from beyond the arc. The minutes (17.9 through the first seven games) were not coming either as the team’s depth was outdueling him.

All of a sudden, the switch was flipped and the wall was removed for Dillon Brooks. In that eighth game, he notched 17 points on 7/10 shooting. His defensive efforts were showing clear signs of improvement, too.

As Dillon has finally found his early-season stride in the Memphis Grizzlies’ last few games, life knocked him down — literally — in Saturday’s win over the Philadelphia 76ers.

The former Oregon Duck suffered a left leg injury off of a Joel Embiid  bounce pass. Though Dillon Brooks was able to leave the court on his own power, it was clear that he was not okay. He did not return to action on Saturday.

On Monday, the official injury report was released by the Memphis Grizzlies. Included were details about Dillon Brooks’ injury, and it was not good news for him and the Grizz.

Dillon is expected to miss six to eight weeks of games for the Grizzlies. Over this period of time, Memphis faces the tall tasks by the likes of the Milwaukee Bucks, Toronto Raptors, Los Angeles Lakers (twice), Houston Rockets (twice), Golden State Warriors, Boston Celtics, and more. December looks to be brutal.

After being injury-free to begin the 2018-19 season, the ailments are starting to pile up. Thankfully, this season’s Memphis Grizzlies squad is built better than in recent years. As Head Coach J.B. Bickerstaff has stated, there is “strength in versatility” within this group.

When considering Dillon Brooks’ absence from the rotation, the only positive aspect is that the Grizzlies can cope for a month or two. If the injuries continue to occur, then drastic measures will have to happen. But for now, Memphis is in goods hands.

This is no knock on Brooks. It is bad timing due to his recent success. His shot was starting to fall and he was getting back to make a big impact much like he did plenty of times in his rookie season. Regardless, this opens minutes for a couple of the Grizzlies’ reserve weapons.

Coping is nothing new for Memphis’ wing rotation in 2018-19. Chandler Parsons has appeared in just three of 11 games thus far. Omri Casspi has missed the Grizzlies’ last three games as the team heads into their Monday evening matchup versus the Utah Jazz.

For the majority of teams the NBA has to offer, they would be on their last leg (no pun intended). This is quite a bit of depth the Memphis Grizzlies have sidelined at the moment. However, they still have pieces in their arsenal that have been very deserving of larger roles. Now is their time to shine.

MarShon Brooks has been on a roller coaster of a journey through the Grizzlies’ first 11 games this season. His scoring punch has matched his minutes. After an 18-point, 19-minute outing versus the Phoenix Suns, MarShon put up zero and three points, respectively in the next two contests. As you could guess, he barely touched the floor in those outings.

Additionally, Wayne Selden has been placed within a smaller role than MarShon. Though when Wayne sees the floor, he has been making the most of it. His energy has been very noticeable in the early portion of 2018-19. He has been a spark plug, and much like Brooks, Selden has been better as of late.

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This is an opportunity to give more burn to MarShon Brooks and Wayne Selden. This deep roster is filled with guys that deserve 15+ minutes per game, but it becomes a true numbers game. This is a time that Coach Bickerstaff can really piece together some solid lineups. After all, he has yet to nail down a consistent rotation.

Over the past three games prior to Dillon Brooks’ injury, he has been receiving an average of 24.8 minutes per game. Those are now up for grabs between MarShon and Wayne. That is by far a good thing, especially as fans have been wanting to see more of this duo.

Memphis’ main pitfall has been scoring, and this is the speciality of both MarShon Brooks and Wayne Selden. That is what those guys do best, and with a tough stretch of the schedule coming up, it may be the break the Grizzlies need in order to string multiple wins together.

There are other implications that come with Dillon’s absence, too. There is a slight chance this opens a small window of opportunity for rookie Jevon Carter at the point guard spot being as Coach Bickerstaff enjoys playing Mike Conley and Shelvin Mack simultaneously in the backcourt. The same could be said on the wing for the Memphis Grizzlies’ two two-way contracts in Yuta Watanabe and D.J. Stephens.

This is something in which the Grizzlies were prepared. The Front Office did their due diligence to piece together a product with great depth in order to make a true run at the postseason. That was the top goal entering the 2018-19 season. The NBA Playoffs.

Tied for the fourth-best record in the Western Conference, the Memphis Grizzlies are well on their way. It is all about pushing through this tough schedule with less hands at the table. This season, Memphis is ready and fully competent to fulfill their potential, all while being underestimated across the league.