Memphis Grizzlies basketball has never been defined by a superstar controlling the entire game. If you look back, most Grizzlies teams had a really well-rounded roster that can play basketball from top to bottom.
This year is no exception.
While you have a clear distinction between the primary contributors and the bench players, there are 13 players who could realistically have a big role on this team. That being said, we only see 11 or 12 play, but that’s still more than a lot of NBA teams.
There are no real negatives to this situation; the Grizzlies have too much depth and most of that depth is comprised of young players with a boatload of potential.
But the Memphis Grizzlies have more talent than they know what to do with
Something that I’ve been preaching all season about this Grizzlies team is the fact that Taylor Jenkins has too many players to develop. By having as many young, promising role players as this team does, you’re guaranteeing that some of these guys will hit a ceiling.
Take De’Anthony Melton for example. In his rookie season in 2018-19, he played 19.7 minutes per game, starting in 31 of the 50 games that he appeared in. The next year, his minutes would decrease slightly with a coaching change and his production would go up along with it.
His minutes would receive another bump upwards this year, but his playing time is not matching his increased productivity on the court. Despite doubling his scoring output, cutting down on turnovers, and shooting the ball significantly better, his minutes per game only increased by less than 60 seconds.
It’s clear that he can play, but when he is fighting for playing time beside Dillon Brooks, Desmond Bane, and Grayson Allen, there are only so many minutes that he can accumulate each game.
And the issues aren’t specific to the 2-guard position. At center position, we see a strong veteran player in Gorgui Dieng completely out of the lineup, even without Jaren Jackson Jr. still injured. It’s nice to have this much depth, but at some point, you have an opportunity to move these guys and build off of it.
Trades are going to have to happen with this team. They’ll be looking to deal out Gorgui Dieng, but any one of these guys on a deep team could be sent elsewhere. We’ll have to see how committed the front office is to the current roster, but we may see some movement.