Yet again, another outsider is hating on the city of Memphis. It’s no surprise to me and shouldn’t be to you. According to Forbes and John Hollinger, Memphis sucks. I beg to differ. I take pride in our city and in the Grizzlies. My love for the city is another topic and another post. I wanted to share what John Hollinger wrote on ESPN.com. He ranked the best to worse NBA franchises, and he put the Grizz dead last. Here’s what he had to say:
“Well, somebody has to be the league's most forlorn franchise, and it turns out that somebody is the Grizzlies. Winning an average of just 27 games a season in 15 years of tenuous NBA existence, this is a team that has managed to scale the lofty 25-win mountain just five times.
The Grizzlies also switched cities -- and countries -- after just six seasons in Vancouver, opting to bolt for Memphis despite the city's questionable economic base. They're the second-most popular basketball team in their own city, and might have the second-largest payroll too. Being run on the cheap to offset poor crowds has turned into a vicious cycle -- there's no reason to care so nobody comes, which only further discourages spending on a winner.
Cost concerns prompted the team to trade All-Star Pau Gasol in a sweetheart of a deal for the Lakers, and after three straight playoff seasons in Memphis earlier this decade the Griz returned to near the bottom of the NBA heap. Even those three years come with an asterisk -- though Memphis made the postseason three times, it has never won a playoff game.”
We true Grizzlifers may have a different spin on Hollinger’s story, but even the most optimistic fan can’t deny some truths in the story. But here is to hope and a future. Let’s pray the Grizz get lucky and land a future star. I believe in Memphis and the Grizzlies, and hopefully in a few years, John Hollinger and the rest of the country will too.
Grizz for Life
I like the optimism; we can't give up on the Griz!
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