Perfect Season?

Yes, it’s early, and this is likely as ignorant of reality as a Cubs fan expecting to break the streak, but I am already excited. Not just because we are 2-0 in the preseason. That holds about as much weight as Calipari’s claims of ignorance, but I have been very impressed with several factors in the recent wins.

The first is the newfound resistance to folding when the game is on the line. It’s a well-known tendency of the Grizz to play great for several quarters only to fold in the third or the fourth quarter. Well in these first two games, our hometown heroes have had to bounce back from some kind of deficit. In the first game, against the Pacers, the Grizzlies lost their four point halftime lead to begin the fourth quarter down five. It seemed like it was going to be the same ole same ole from the Grizz. Give up, game over, lose by fifteen. But no, the team rallied for a comeback, outscoring the Pacers by seven in the fourth on the way to a narrow two point victory.

In the next game, the Hawks dominated the Grizzlies on the way to a 54-33 lead at half. Thirty three points in the first half. Pretty pathetic. But, again, the Grizz bounced back with an explosive second half, and in the third quarter outscoring the Hawks 42-18. We were able to hang on at the end of the fourth to send the game into extra time. At this point, the cynic would just assume that this affords the Grizz another chance to blow the game. But again, the Grizz came through in the clutch to ensure a hard fought road victory. Neither of these games were pretty wins, but in each the Grizz found a way to grind out a win despite 27 turnovers in the first game and 22 in the second. They were able to step up on defense when necessary and pull out the W.

Also, I saw some potential in the bench performances over the first two games. Not exactly perfect play, but there were some shining moments. Hasheem threw up ten points in the first half on 3-3 shooting. Sure, he managed later to foul out with only ten points, but hey, it’s still the preseason. Sam Young had two solid games, with six and thirteen points. But most impressively, Acie Law had six points against the Pacers and against the Hawks, had nineteen to lead the Grizzlies in scoring. He did it everywhere- midrange, slashing, three-balls, and free throws. He looks like he could be a huge addition to the notoriously weak Grizz bench.

It may not be much to get excited about. But hey, I’m a Grizz fan. You gotta find some sustenance somewhere. Let’s see if we can come out strong again tomorrow night against the Hornets. And while on the topic, who’d have thought that a guy named Quincy Pondexter would turn out to be an NBA player? Go figure.

Michael