Q & A with Grizzlies blog “3 Shades of Blue“
As you all probably know, the Wolves take on the Memphis Grizzlies tonight at Target Center. We might actually have a chance to win this game… especially since Foye will be out with his ankle injury (ok ok, that was low.) I am not sure what to think. The Grizzzzzzz are right behind us in the standings of ineptitude, otherwise known as the draft lottery seeding. If they were to beat us, they would have a legitimate chance to pass us, which would move us “up” from sixth to fifth… with potential for even a “higher” lottery position. I guess no one really wins in this scenario. It’s pathetic what some NBA games amount to when the dregs of the league are playing out the string the last two months of the season.
Anyways, my fellow Bloguin member Joshua Coleman over at “3 Shades of Blue” runs a pretty sweet Memphis Grizzlies blog (but you should all know that already.) Plus, I’ve done stuff with them in the past. So, double shame on you if you haven’t heard of their blog. When Josh and the crew aren’t too busy interviewing their owner, he found some time to do a friendly little Q & A with Yours Truly. We tried to keep it pretty light-hearted, because really, what’s there to analyze at this point? I truly do advise you all to check their blog if you’ve got any interest in their team, or just enjoy the NBA in general. (Plus they have some pretty tight articles.) Below are his answers to my wit inducing and highly thought provoking questions. If you want to see my answers to his queries, you will have to go check out his blog. I really believe its worth your time, unless you hate me… then don’t. Without further delay:
Please click “Read More” to get to the good stuff.
Josh Coleman: I continue to watch games so that I may accurately recall just how bad this season was when I look back on it a few seasons from now when the Grizzlies are back in the playoffs. Ok, that’s not really true, but it sounds good, right? I keep watching so that I can assess this roster and see who should stay, who should go, who should play what position and just generally act like the junior GM/coach that all bloggers purport themselves to be. That’s all you can do in a season like this and maintain sanity, I think.
I think the current roster without any changes would take about 4 years to make the playoffs. But, with three draft picks this year and next, a quality free agent signing or two each of the next two offseasons, and I could see this team making the playoffs in the 2010/11 season. Next year will be an excellent barometer for just how much talent this team really has on it, in my opinion.
CW: Ok, what needs to be done to return the Grizzlies to glory? (or, at least the playoffs?) I know this is a broad question, but what would YOU do if you were running things?
JC: Here’s what they need: Another low post scorer/rebounder (preferrably a PF), a swingman with the size and speed to play and defend both SG and SF, a scoring combo guard and an energy guy. If they can get at least two of those four this offseason (and I think they should be able to with 3 draft picks and a ton of cap space), then they should be able to return to the postseason in two years.
Low post PF: Blake Griffin (obviously), Greg Monroe, Jordan Hill early in the first round; DeJuan Blair or Tyler Hansbrough late in the first round or with the second round pick
Free Agency:
Low post PF: Brandon Bass, Chris Wilcox
Energy: Chris Andersen, Ryan Bowen
CW: Crazy, next thing you know, ya look at the Memphis roster and they have since traded Javaris Crittenton and Kyle Lowry. (And we all thought Conley wasn’t gonna hack it.) Any thoughts on those guys? Do you miss them? Do you ever entertain the thoughts of Marko running the point full-time?
JC: LOL — I’m not a Mike Conley cheerleader per se, but I’ve been accused of being that and worse. I always thought that Conley was going to hack it and that it would take 3 years for him to fully arrive, as it does most young point guards not named Kidd or CP3. I don’t miss Lowry or Critt in the least, to be quite honest. They have far more limitations than Conley in my unqualified, unmedicated opinion and I’m glad that they aren’t standing in his way or even on his peripheries any longer. As for Marko…..umm, no.
CW: Would you trade your entire roster for the Wolves entire roster? (One word answers are not acceptable here.)
JC: No. I’d consider it, but ultimately, I think that Mayo/Conley/Gay/Gasol/Arthur is better than Foye/Jefferson/Love/Gomes/Telfair/Brewer, both in terms of fitting together as a team (I still don’t see the Love/Jefferson pairing working out long-term) and as potential trade pieces to upgrade the talent levels in the future. I really like the Foye/Love/Jefferson trio in terms of talent though and would consider that to probably be better than any three players the Grizzlies currently have on the roster right now.
[CW Edit: I don’t blame him for not wanting to trade. Also, I just said “one word answers were not acceptable” because there’s no brevity allowed in this article!]
CW: On a scale of 1 to a google, how sad are you that your organization never got the chance to market the “Gay-Love” era of Grizzlies basketball? (For the record, I’m truly saddened.)
JC: I was devastated. I had been writing Gay-Love jokes ever since our blog got to witness his workout and knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that he was going to be our selection unless we traded up. Maybe we can trade Rudy to you guys in a couple of years so we can see that magical dream finally come to fruition.
CW: Please tell our fans that there is a light at the end of the tunnel. Please tell us that we are not the only suffering NBA franchise. If you cannot bring yourself to do so (or are not capable-I would understand), at least let our fans know that the Wolves aren’t the worst off team in the entire Association?
JC: There is light at the end of the tunnel, and you are not the team with the worst future prospects in the L. That distinction belongs to the Washington Wizards in my opinion. I mean, they might actually have to ship out their top draft pick because they won’t be able to pay him due to their residence in Luxury Tax Purgatory. As I said earlier, I like most of the young guys on your team, even if I question how they mesh as a cohesive unit. Grizzlies fans are suffering through some of the same issues, as it hasn’t been proven that either Mike Conley or Rudy Gay can truly coexist with O.J. Mayo, who is obviously the best player on the team going forward. But as all this young talent matures and develops, things should start looking up for both franchises…just in time for the upcoming lockout. When it rains, it pours.
[CW Edit: We lost to the Wizards at home two days ago. Egads.]
And now let’s play a little “Word Association!” Everyone loves Word Assocation, right? Anyways, I asked him the word(s) on the left, in bold, and Josh’s answers are italicized.
Kevin McHale – Clotheslined Kurt Rambis….and I loved it.
Michael Heisley – Smarter and wealthier than us…more stubborn too.
Winning Streak? – Something that Lakers fans know about, but I’m not familiar with.
The rest of this NBA season – An exercise in futility…and hair pulling.
Thanks Josh! It was fun, as always.
Again, my answers to the other half of this Q&A can be found HERE.
Thanks Josh and best of luck to your team tonight! Seriously, please defeat us tonight.
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