Stat No. 3: The Memphis Grizzlies didn’t miss a free throw the entire night
Admittedly, I’m giving free throws half a slide because I simply cannot talk about free throws for more than 100 words. Still, the Grizzlies’ success at the charity stripe cannot be ignored.
Memphis, a team that was among the best free-throw shooting teams in the league last season (3rd), continued to do their thing in the season opener. The Grizzlies made it to the line 12 times and sunk each shot. It was an impressive performance.
Jaren Jackson Jr. and Desmond Bane each hit four apiece, while Ja Morant and Kyle Anderson both did their job at the line.
Stat No. 4: The Memphis Grizzlies held a huge edge over the Cleveland Cavaliers in rebounding
This one shouldn’t come as a huge surprise. Once again, the Memphis Grizzlies were one of the best rebounding teams in the NBA last year. That said, Jonas Valanciunas was the primary rebounder, so his presence missing from this squad had some fans in a tizzy.
Fortunately, it looks like Steven Adams will plug into the system and be a carbon copy of Valanciunas when it comes to grabbing boards. On the glass, Adams pulled in 14 rebounds, six of which were offensive, helping the Grizzlies amass 53 on the night. This is exactly what he was doing in the preseason and it looks like he’ll benefit from a Grizzlies team that plays a lot of basketball in the painted area.
Speaking of the paint…