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Report Card: Grading the Memphis Grizzlies’ 2018-19 Season in Its Entirety

By AJ Salah

MEMPHIS, TN - APRIL 10: The Memphis Grizzlies bench reacts to play during the game against the Golden State Warriors on April 10, 2019 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 2019 NBAE (Photo by Joe Murphy/NBAE via Getty Images)
MEMPHIS, TN - APRIL 10: The Memphis Grizzlies bench reacts to play during the game against the Golden State Warriors on April 10, 2019 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 2019 NBAE (Photo by Joe Murphy/NBAE via Getty Images) /
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Memphis Grizzlies
Mike Conley Chandler Parsons Memphis Grizzlies (Photo by Joe Murphy/NBAE via Getty Images) /

On-Court Performance: C-

On the whole, the Memphis Grizzlies were a tough watch this year. They showed great promise early in the season and put on a spirited post-trade deadline run, but in-between was pure desolation.

From November 23rd through the month of February, Memphis went 11-34, losing games in almost every way imaginable. They struggled mightily to score and blew massive leads; everyone outside of Mike Conley was playing with maddening inconsistency.

The Grizzlies thus fell well short of Robert Pera’s optimistic 50-win goal; sent back to square one as a franchise with the Marc Gasol trade, and Conley’s likely soon to follow. It was a generally demoralizing showing.

Related Story. Memphis Grizzlies: 3 Teams Who Should Consider Trading for Mike Conley After Early Playoff Exits. light

Memphis tried to compete and wound up back in the draft lottery despite Mike Conley being healthier than he has been in years. Their -2.4 net rating is closest to the Washington Wizards, who were mired in injury and dysfunction seemingly all season.

That long stretch of misery was buoyed by some bookending success. The Memphis Grizzlies went 12-5 to kick off 2018-19; and to think they led the West at one point. Meanwhile, their post-deadline hodgepodge was a respectable 9-10 in regular season garbage time.

Those runs saved Memphis’ equity in conveying their owed first-rounder to the Boston Celtics — a stated objective this season. It is an understandable strategy given Memphis’ long-term outlook, and thus we cannot completely call this season a failure.

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