Grizzlies Tidbits

Hello, again, Grizzlies fans. I hope you all enjoyed the sweltering Memphis heat this weekend and that this post finds you well. You may not be aware, but the weekend was a very active one for the Memphis Grizzlies. I'm not going to do a separate post for each news item, but instead give an overview of the headlines in Grizz-Land.

• The biggest story involving the Memphis Grizzlies right now is the bizarre disappearance of former Grizzly and Memphis Tiger center Lorenzen Wright. He was reported missing on Friday and has not been seen by anyone in over a week. According to his family, he has gone away unannounced before, but never for more than 48 hours. It is a story that was first strange, then scary and is now becoming tragic. Wright has been in financial trouble recently and his Eads home was foreclosed on. He was visiting his family in Collierville last Sunday evening, but by Monday morning had completely vanished. There has been no activity on his credit cards, cell phone or passport. Police have said that there is no foul play involved, but the truth is that no one has any idea what has happened to Wright. One has to pray for a happy ending to a story that is getting worse and worse with each passing day, but that happy ending is looking less and less likely.
• In happier news, the Memphis Grizzlies newest member, guard Tony Allen, was introduced to the media on Friday afternoon. He was gregarious, ebullient, jocund and made a great first impression. My favorite part of the Tony Allen Era happened on Friday afternoon. In an interview with AM 730's Chris Vernon, Allen was legendary. Among other topics, he talked about how he thought the Oklahoma State assistant that recruited him was gay, his favorite highlight from the playoffs(watch it here), his desire to help the Grizzlies win and his recent passion for the game of golf. Listen to the entire interview and I promise you that you will come away a bigger Tony Allen fan. I listened and he is now one of my favorite Grizzlies.
• The Commercial Appeal's Ron Tillery reported that Grizzlies management "is not expected to soften its stance on having 20% of the rookie deals tied to performance bonuses." In other words, if Greivis Vasquez and Xavier Henry are to sign a contract with the team, they will have to accept 100%, instead of the usual 120%, of the rookie salary. Ultimately, I think Vasquez will sign. He is not a hot commodity and had a very poor summer league performance. He seems genuine about playing for the Grizzlies and I think he will take the small pay cut (which for him, the 28th pick, is only about $172,000). Henry is another story and I have written plenty about his contract dispute. Tillery's report only strengthens my belief that Henry will never sign with the team. Look for him to be traded in the next few weeks.
• Grizzlies doctors are concerned about Vasquez's ankle, which they will evaluate this week. Those doctors have not ruled out surgery for the rookie. More is expected to come to light in the next few days.

That's what's happening in Grizz-Land. Keep sticking with GrizzLife for all your Griz needs.

Owen