By Sean Kennedy (@PhillyFastBreak)
The Philadelphia 76ers’ march of sadness continues on Tuesday night when they play host to the Memphis Grizzlies. Back in the end of November, the Sixers were right in the heart of their losing every late fourth-quarter leads stage (which I’m starting to feel nostalgic for), and handed away a five-point lead with 6 minutes only to lose by eight.
A few weeks later, the Grizzlies sit at 15-14, with swirling rumors that head coach Dave Joerger could be fired. If Brett Brown had the Sixers at 15-14, there’d be a weekly parade down Broad Street held in his honor. Memphis certainly has been under-performing, currently with the 5th-worst offense in the league. I wouldn’t necessarily blame Joerger as much as the roster construction, with Memphis second-worst in the league from three at 31.7% (even lower than the Sixers!). That’s not a formula for success in 2015.
Joerger has tried jiggering the rotation, starting Matt Barnes and Jeff Green as the two forward positions alongside Marc Gasol, with Zach Randolph coming off the bench, over the last five games. Randolph moving to the bench marks the official death knoll of the Grit-and-Grind Grizzlies. Memphis has only been marginally better (about 1 point better per 100 possessions) since making that change. It hasn’t helped that starting point guard Mike Conley is having a down year, shooting just 40.1% from the field, easily the worst mark of his 9-year career.
While they’ve never quite been known for their offensive prowess, the Grizzlies have actually been a below-average defense this year, mainly due to allowing opponents to sport a 51.8 eFG% on the season. One thing that won’t help that cause Tuesday night is Tony Allen likely sitting out again with a knee injury.
Yet, Memphis has also forced the second-highest rate of turnovers, which should feed nicely into Philadelphia’s desire to hand the ball over at every available opportunity. Marc Gasol is having his typically solid season, averaging 16.2 points, 7.9 rebounds, and 3.9 assists (those assist numbers are the highest in the league among centers, unless you count Draymond Green’s velociraptor center status). Gasol’s ability to be an elite defender despite being a below average athlete has rightfully been pointed out as a role model for Jahlil Okafor.
I could throw some more statistics out but all that’s really important is 1-28. The last time the Sixers won a game where Kobe Bryant wasn’t jacking up 17 threes was March 25th. Even the days of close losses feel like a distant memory. Hopefully, Philadelphia will at least put up enough of a fight to reward the few brave souls still tuning in each night.
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