5. Marc Gasol, Center
Yeah, sorry Jonas Valanciunas, but you’re going to be fighting an uphill battle for the title of “Memphis’ favorite center”.
Marc Gasol was a staple of the Grizzlies’ style of play while he was with the team. A bruising big man, he was just as intimidating in the low post on offense as he was on defense.
Gasol, it’s fair to say, had a bit of a weird start to his NBA career. Drafted by the Los Angeles Lakers but then immediately traded not only by the team that drafted him, but also for his own brother Pau Gasol, Big Spain would start his career with Memphis and lead the league in games played during his rookie season, playing all 82.
Gasol would spend seven years out of the decade with Memphis, averaging 15.7 points, 7.5 rebounds, 3.7 assists, and 1.5 blocks while having a field goal percentage of 47.4%.
The man with some of the weirdest nicknames ever (Don’t even want to know how he came to be called “The Big Burrito”) wasn’t your prototypical center for the time, playing much closer to what would be considered a stretch-five role today. During this decade’s stint with Memphis, Gasol would average 34.5% from 3-point range, and you couldn’t send him to the line, as he shot 80.2% from there.
All five of the players on Memphis’ All-Decade team played with each other, and I think that speaks volumes to the loyalty and dedication this franchise shows it’s players, especially considering that many of them weren’t drafted by the team. If the new Front Office can carry over those values into the 2020’s, then the next All-Decade team could be even better than the last.