The Memphis Grizzlies have a short history, with a handful of players who can be recognized as some of the best since the franchise was created in 1995. Names that come to mind are Zach Randolph, Shareef Abdur-Rahim, and Pau Gasol.
But today, the Memphis Grizzly legend that was in the news was a player who didn’t have the flashiest playstyle. He was extremely impactful on the court, but wouldn’t wow anybody on the stat sheet. That player is Tony Allen.
Memphis Grizzlies legend Tony Allen was a defensive guru in the NBA
As I said, Tony Allen didn’t always do things that showed up on the stat sheet. Offensively, he wasn’t very good. Hovering around 25 minutes per game with the Grizzlies, Allen only managed to score between 8-10 points per game in each respective season.
His 3-point shooting was pretty bad, but not bad enough to prevent him from shooting the ball. His percentage within the arch was actually pretty respectable, as his shot selection was elite. In his career, he made over 50% of his 2-point shots.
But none of that is noteworthy. Allen won’t go down for his 2-point efficiency or ability to guide an offense — he’ll go down as one of the best defenders in the history of the league.
Tony Allen was the type of player who could lock up any NBA superstar that you put on him. If you played against LeBron James, he would step up. Kobe Bryant. Anybody.
Recently, Memphis Grizzlies legend Tony Allen was in the news for less admirable reasons
While Allen will go down as one of the toughest players in the game, he wasn’t without flaws. Every so often, the Grizzlies forward had a tendency to… let’s just say he exaggerated contact from time to time.
This resulted in him being fined for flopping in 2013, followed by a warning given in 2015.
As a result of this, he was listed by Bleacher Report as the 6th-worst flopper in the NBA since 2000. Other members of the list include LeBron James, Manu Ginobli, and James Harden, each of whom is a flopper in their own respect.
At the end of the day though, his flops were extremely effective. Would it be overly optimistic to say that he was one of the best floppers in the game? Say what you want about Allen, but more of his flops drew calls.
I think phrasing is important here. Tony Allen may have been a frequent flopper, but he was among the best floppers in NBA history.