The Memphis Grizzlies could be described with a wide range of words so far in the 2020-21 season. A franchise that has historically had teams that are identified by strong defense and good-enough offense isn’t fitting the mold this year.
They’ve been great at times. They’ve been awful at times. They’ve been one of the best teams in the NBA and one of the worst teams in the NBA in any given 48-minute span. As the season progresses, this team fails to align with one singular identity.
That said, there have been areas that the Grizzlies have continuously excelled in. All year long, they’ve been elite at shooting floaters, creating turnovers for opposing teams, and securing points in the paint.
That said, this hasn’t been the case in every single game.
The Memphis Grizzlies can change identities depending on their opponent
While the Grizzlies certainly do excel in the aforementioned categories, they don’t necessarily do these things every single night. Take Friday night’s game against the Chicago Bulls for example.
The Grizzlies played an extremely strong game. They wiped out a Bulls team that didn’t stand much of a chance without Zach LaVine in the lineup. But they didn’t do it in the ways that you would have expected.
The Grizzlies were outscored in the paint and out-rebounded by Chicago, with Jonas Valanciunas unable to record a double-double for the first time this month.
But it was how they responded to this that has defined the team so far in 2021.