Memphis Grizzlies: 3 matchups we can’t wait to see
By Ethan Becker
Matchup One: Toronto Raptors vs. Memphis Grizzlies
Out of the showdowns on this list, this one is the least likely to happen. Not only do the Grizzlies and Toronto Raptors play in different conferences, but they also sit on opposite ends of those conferences; with the Raptors sitting in the first seed of the Eastern Conference while the Grizzlies are eighth in the West.
Still, there is a level of interest behind seeing these two teams face each other. They never got the chance to play one another before the hiatus, both of their matchups were scheduled for late March, and the Grizzlies began the dismantling of the last of the Grit ‘N Grind era by send Marc Gasol to Toronto for Jonas Valanciunas; a move which almost certainly helped the Raptors in their championship season last year.
Valanciunas and Gasol are two of the last remaining of a “prototypical big man”. Two people who can enforce their will down low, but the pair also aren’t afraid to move away from the hoop every now and then.
The most realistic way that we see this matchup is if the Grizzlies and Raptors both advance to the Finals; a scenario which would prove difficult for Memphis as they’d have to work their way through the Los Angeles Lakers, LA Clippers, and Houston Rockets, all of whom are teams Memphis has losing records against.