The Houston Rockets are one of the easier opponents that the Memphis Grizzlies have come up against. Going into the game, the Rockets were already on a 10-game losing streak. The Grizz would add insult to injury for the team in red, beating them by a staggering 49 points. Yes, you read that right, 49 points.
And despite the Grizzlies playing some of their best basketball, they didn’t have the type of game that you’d expect in a blowout of that fashion. Part of this can be attributed to the fact that the stars were riding the bench for a majority of the game. It was out of reach early, so there was no reason to play players like Ja Morant and Jonas Valanciunas any longer than necessary.
They wouldn’t need these guys anyway. Memphis came into Houston’s house and completely embarrassed the once-great team. In the absence of this team’s big stars, there were a few underrated players who stepped up and led this team to a victory.
Justise Winslow stepped up big in the Memphis Grizzlies’ most complete game of the year
The main and most notable one was Justise Winslow, a guy who had missed a majority of the season up until last week. Until today, we had seen him play elite defense, but he had struggled on the offensive end of the floor.
In fact, in his first game, he couldn’t hit a shot, missing every attempt in the first half. He’d continue this bad shooting spell all the way until today, when he’d finish a strong game with 20 points. He shot 8-12 from the floor and looked like the best offensive player for Taylor Jenkins’ squad.
After the game, Justise Winslow was interviewed on a Fox Sports broadcast, giving a response that would warm Grizzlies fans’ hearts. He spoke on how thankful he was that he was traded to Memphis and elaborated, saying they’ve been extremely patient with him as he heals from injury.
"This trade was one of the best things to happen to in my life on and off the court for me, this organization with being so patient with me. I'm just so thankful. A lot of gratitude and a lot of joy in my heart right now." - @IAmJustise @memgrizz // #GrindCity pic.twitter.com/Te6RFGXbtL
— Bally Sports: Grizzlies (@GrizzOnBally) March 1, 2021
This will likely be the first of many Justise Winslow post game interviews that we see, giving us a glimpse into a part of this team’s young core that we don’t often get a good look at. Look for his minutes to increase as this squad returns to normalcy after the NBA All-Star break.
Winslow should give plenty more strong quotes for us in the future, but for now, we can only sit back and watch him develop as a player.