After increasing their winning streak to four games with a victory over the Charlotte Hornets on January 22nd, the Memphis Grizzlies find themselves just 0.5 games out for the second seed in the Western Conference. The Houston Rockets snuck by the Cleveland Cavaliers on the same night to keep their half-game lead over the Grizzlies.
Memphis spent the majority of the first half of the season with one of the easiest schedules in the NBA and it benefitted them greatly as they had to deal with a rash of injuries to their roster. They recently just completed their toughest stretch of the season with 11 consecutive games against the top 12 teams in the West and finished with a 6-5 record in those games.
Currently, they are in the middle of a four-game homestand with three consecutive games against the league's worst teams before the schedule difficulty heats up again. As they sport the NBA's third toughest remaining strength of schedule, here are some gaps they will need to fill in to remain in the West's top three.
Figure out their primary rotation
As the trade deadline nears the Grizzlies might not have time to set their rotation how they would want when everyone returns because of a possible trade. However, coach Taylor Jenkins has had a tendency to play too many players, and as deep as the team is, that isn't conducive to a contending team.
The best players will need to play, and a pecking order after the starters will need to be truly established to get through their tough schedule over the last stretch of the season. Vince Williams Jr. and Marcus Smart's returns are around the corner so the team will need to start planning on who will be the primary players.
Included in the Grizzlies' second-half schedule are seven matchups against the top two seeds in both conferences which they only have a record of 1-4 against those teams currently. As much as the general public wants to believe the Grizzlies are title contenders this season, they have yet to consistently prove it against the league's best.
Injury has played a huge portion in that, but the minutes played by their best players in those matchups have hindered them just as much. They currently don't have a single player averaging over 30 minutes per game, and for a team with a "big three," that is not good enough to deliver victories against the NBA's elite.
Memphis will have its full collection of talent available soon, so the time is now to begin establishing the pecking order to get this team prepared for the gauntlet that they are about to face.