As the Memphis Grizzlies look toward the future, the 22-year-old Ivan Rabb makes a lot of sense in the starting lineup going forward and his promising performances of late aren’t the only reason.
The Memphis Grizzlies took care of the New Orleans Pelicans on February 7th, much to the delight of the fans still recuperating from Marc Gasol‘s departure. One of the bright spots in that game was second-year prospect Ivan Rabb, who claimed the starting spot and seems poised to keep it.
With his increased output, Rabb deserves more minutes and patience in the remaining 25 games, given that the Grizzlies have already given up on the 2018-19 season. His presence on the court can potentially accelerate the rebuilding phase Memphis has opted to enter into, by means of expediting Jaren Jackson Jr.‘s development and forcing Jonas Valanciunas to consider whether to excise his player option for the 2019-20 season.
Ivan Rabb displayed his his mobility against the Minnesota Timberwolves and Oklahoma City Thunder in the past week and continues to contribute well in the rebounding department. He makes hustle plays and rolls to the basket for easy buckets, especially when Mike Conley is handling the point guard duties.
Rabb’s slight frame is likely to cause defensive issues and makes him susceptible to being bullied by the likes of Joel Embiid, and these issues were well-documented in his scouting report. Nevertheless, Ivan Rabb averaged 14.7 points on 72.0% shooting, 9.7 rebounds, and 1.0 blocks in his last three games when Karl-Anthony Towns, Steven Adams, and Anthony Davis were on the court.
It would be wise not to pit Rabb against strong big men and the Memphis Grizzlies have veterans Joakim Noah and Valanciunas to step in where Ivan Rabb is exposed. Nevertheless, the California product has proven that he cause problems with his ball-handling, mobility, and mid-range shot at the other end.
There are parallels between Ivan Rabb’s game and that of Thomas Bryant, who has provided some life for the distraught Washington Wizards‘ fans this season. Both players are not known for their explosiveness or strength but rather for their energy, hustle, and mobility. Both players were selected in the second round of the 2017 NBA Draft and struggled to get playing time early in their careers.
Both the Wizards and Grizzlies adamantly refused to rebuild coming into the season, but found themselves with no other options mid-way through. Ivan Rabb has a higher ceiling and is a better rebounder than Bryant. It is now up to the coaching staff to put the veterans on the shelf and let Rabb showcase his improved skills.
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Pairing Ivan Rabb with Jaren Jackson Jr. will render the latter as one of the focal points of the Memphis Grizzlies’ offense whereas Jonas Valanciunas would steal opportunities from the praised rookie. With Marc Gasol, JaMychal Green, and Joakim Noah off the court, Rabb and JJJ have a net rating of 10.7 in Memphis’ last 3 games.
In the long run, those lineups are likely to bleed points but losing means improving Draft odds at this stage of the season. On the bright side, Rabb and Jackson Jr. will allow the Memphis Grizzlies to up their pace and run the floor.
Playing in the open floor would complement his talents and Rabb’s mobility can create more space for him to get to the basket as compared to Valanciunas, who also cannot shoot the three. As the undisputed leader of the post-Gasol era, Conley can make the Rabb-JJJ tandem a joy to watch before the offseason hunt for more young talent begins.
As any rebuilding team, Memphis will need to dump salary to make it work. Currently, the franchise is saddled with big payrolls such as that of Chandler Parsons and Mike Conley and the league-wide aversion to Parsons’ contract signals the difficulty the Grizzlies will face in creating cap space.
However, keeping new addition Jonas Valanciunas out of the starting lineup in favor of Ivan Rabb could potentially convince the 26-year-old to opt out of his player option for next season and explore the market for a big contract when many NBA teams will have cap space.
Some of the free-agent hunters will miss out on the available superstars this summer and may offer the Lithuanian a lucrative deal. In a different scenario, a team that lands a superstar this summer may view Valanciunas as a complementary piece, which may appeal to the former Raptor as opposed to warming the bench on a rebuilding Memphis Grizzlies roster. Either way, that would save the Grizzlies $17,617,978 and that is all that matters.
Should Jonas Valanciunas decline to exercise his player option, the Memphis Grizzlies can always insert him back into the lineup with a view to increasing his trade value and look for potential suitors before the 2020 NBA Trade Deadline.
If it all works, the potential ripple effects suddenly make Ivan Rabb look like the key to Memphis’ future. And he does not need to put up big numbers to help the franchise.