The Grizzlies are arguably in their current worst stretch of the season. Following the December 26 home victory against the Milwaukee Bucks, the Grizzlies found themselves at 15-16. Since then, they have gone 3-13 and currently find themselves four games behind the Los Angeles Clippers for the 10th seed in the Western Conference.
Many factors can explain the Grizzlies' struggles, but as things currently stand, they are 11 games below .500 just two games before the NBA trade deadline. While there are plenty of games left, three trends should raise doubts about a potential Grizzlies turnaround this season:
1. The Grizzlies have struggled on their home floor
After last night's defeat to the Minnesota Timberwolves, the Grizzlies have lost four straight home games. For the month of January, they went just 2-6 on their home floor and suffered multiple preventable defeats. This season, the Grizzlies are not just 9-15 on their home court, but all the teams above them in the Western Conference are at least .500 or better at home.
For context, last year's Grizzlies team still managed to finish 26-15 at home despite collapsing in the second half of the season. While there is still plenty of season left, the Grizzlies are struggling at the worst time possible. Given the injuries and latest second-half struggles, the Grizzlies will likely be unable to really reverse their home-court fortunes without Zach Edey.
2. The struggles against winning teams have not gone away
Another well-mentioned fact about the Grizzlies is how poorly they have performed against winning teams. Following yesterday's loss to the Timberwolves, the Grizzlies fell to just 4-22 against teams that are .500 or better. The only team in the Western Conference with fewer wins against .500 or better teams is the 14th-seed New Orleans Pelicans.
Despite the Grizzlies not having their full roster together, they still had multiple opportunities against winning teams slip away. Arguably the worst loss of the month was the 21-point blown lead against the Oklahoma City Thunder at home on January 9, where both teams were shorthanded. They also blew a 20-point lead to the Orlando Magic in Berlin on January 15.
The Grizzlies have struggled with making halftime adjustments, even after taking early leads, and they simply need more healthy players. However, the Grizzlies winning against a great Spurs team at home on January 6th and beating the Magic by 17 in London on January 18th should raise more questions as to why they haven't beaten more teams with winning records.
3. Blown leads continue to haunt the Grizzlies
One stat that continues to haunt the Grizzlies is the number of blown double-digit leads. Their 14 blown double-digit leads currently lead the entire NBA this season. The Grizzlies have simply struggled to protect leads despite some promising flashes of basketball. One major culprit for the blown leads has been the lack of healthy guards.
Ty Jerome had a promising return, and Scotty Pippen Jr. is also inching closer to returning. With Ja Morant's Grizzlies future in question, Jerome and Pippen Jr. will have to string together consistently good performances the rest of the season if they want to inch closer to the play-in spots.