Memphis Grizzlies are in trouble if they don’t improve in these five areas

4. Memphis Grizzlies free-throw shooting woes continue

Free-throw shooting continues to haunt the Memphis Grizzlies. They connected on just 60.9% of their free-throw attempts in the season opener vs New York— the lowest percentage of any team in the NBA.

Even Tyus Jones, who is a career 81% free-throw shooter, missed two consecutive free throws at the end of the game to put the game on ice. It left the door open for the Knicks to tie the game again at the end of the first overtime period.

In games that are close, you can always look back at the free-throw attempts and see the Grizzlies often leave 10+ points on the board from missed free throws. They aren’t going to shoot 100% from the line, but they’ve got to do better than 60.9%.

5. Taylor Jenkins cannot play Steven Adams and Brandon Clarke at the same time

The final area that needs to be addressed by the Grizzlies is something only Taylor Jenkins control and that’s the lineups he constructs. After the game against the Knicks, it’s evident that Jenkins can not, under any circumstances, put Steven Adams and Brandon Clarke in the game at the same time.

Neither of them can shoot from beyond the arc, which creates a huge spacing problem. All the opposing teams have to do is clog the paint and it’s essentially five-on-three.

Jenkins played Clarke and Adams together for a total of 13.3 minutes, which is insane. When those two guys were on the court together, the Memphis Grizzlies were -13 in plus/minus. Jenkins has to pair LaRavia, Roddy or Aldama with Adams or Clarke. Those three players are three-point threats and can help create much-needed space for Ja Morant to get into the paint and thrive.