Tillery: Grizzlies Set To Sign Quinton Ross, Haddadi Arrival Held Up

Ron Tillery is reporting that the Grizzlies are close to finalizing a deal with free agent swingman Quinton Ross. The 27-year old former Clipper is expected to sign on the dotted line for a non-guaranteed contract tomorrow.

At 6'6" and 193 lbs., Ross is well suited to be the backup SF that the team obviously needs, given the unknown conditioning status of Antoine Walker or how well Greg Buckner will fit in with this Grizzlies team. He's a solid perimeter at both swingman positions, which is good in a division that includes Tracy McGrady, Peja Stojakovic, Manu Ginobili and Josh Howard. Also, it bears noting that at age 27, he could be a long-term fit for the Three Year Plan. Tillery notes many of the same things in a blog post on the Memphis Edge.

He also has information that Hamed Haddadi hasn't been officially cleared to travel to the United States yet. Apparently there are still some immigration issues to work out. Well, that's what they say, but we all know that he's really having difficulties in arranging transport for his pet camel, Bubbles.

Linksplosion

We're overdue for a Links post, so let's dive right in with a couple of interviews!

Yahoo! (Sean Deveney - Sporting News) - Rudy Gay talked with Deveney at Chris Paul's charity event last weekend about a variety of topics. Deveney asked some rather provocative questions, many of which seemed to be designed to get a reaction from the young SF, but Rudy enhanced his calm and comported himself quite well. He answered questions about leadership and why the fans should show up this season, too.

The Sporting News (Stan McNeal) interviewed rookie Darrell Arthur yesterday via phone. Among the topics discussed was his involvement in the happenings at the Rookie Transistion Camp and how he had to face his mother afterwards. Solid interview for a player we hope is a solid presence in the post.

Ron Tillery checks in with two solid articles in the past couple of days. The first one, found on the Commercial Appeal, discusses the likelihood that the team is done making moves for the time being and will go into preseason with the 13 players already under contract. The second (and far more enlightening, IMO) is on the Memphis Edge, and gives fans something to be excited about: This Grizzlies team has fire and intensity! Reports of O.J. Mayo and Darko Milicic getting in each others' faces during practice makes me all tingly inside.

Speaking of Darko, over on FOXSports.com, my least favorite MSM NBA scribe, Mike Kahn, has a column about The Dark One and whether or not he'll ever live up to his hype and potential. Given what Marc Iavaroni told us in his interview posted earlier this week about Milicic moving over to the PF spot more this upcoming season, I think we could see some interesting things from him this year.

In an interesting interview that Chuck Klosterman did with Michael Rand (StarTribune.com), there was the following question and answer:

RB: Kevin Love or O.J. Mayo?

CK: This is actually pretty close. I think Love has the potential to be better, but only if he’s the third option on a very good team (and that will never happen in Minnesota). Mayo is more complex. He’ll either be awesome or useless. There is something strange about his attitude; he seems detached in a way I cannot define. He might end up being a version of Vernon Maxwell who passes well, or a [redacted] sociopath.

The Grizzlies are now short a shooting coach. Mark Price has joined the staff of the Atlanta Hawks.

Hoopsworld is reporting that even though the Zach Randolph trade is dead (can I get an Amen???), the Grizzlies are still more than willing to listen to trade proposals from around the league. Does that classify as breaking news given their imbalanced roster and overwhelming amount of young guards? No? Just checking. They also check in by listing Mike Conley as one of the Top Six Players in Need of a Trade. Ummm....yeah....right.

Kornheiser's Cartel seems to think that the Grizzlies' problems lie at the feet of GM Chris Wallace. I disagree and will explain why in an interview with the mastermind of this great new blog in the very near future.

Upside and Motor has a note for fans around the league that complain about ticket prices: Be glad you aren't a Laker fan.

For the stat geeks out there, check out this post from Bucks Diary that calculates the Win Profiles for each NBA team. This is some Dave Berri-level stuff, so it isn't for the faint of heart.

Think that all NBA referees suck and that you could do better? Henry Abbott (TrueHoop) says, "Not so fast". More often than not, these guys make the correct call.

Would you like to know more about defensive principles? Then read this excellent post by Dave on Blazer's Edge. Truly a great read.

Would you like to know more about basketball -- and sports in general? Then read Eric Musselman's blog every single day. What a great mind!

Former (Vancouver) Grizzlies forward Shareef Abdur-Rahim retired this week. Most fans in Memphis never got to see him suit up for the franchise, but I'm sure that many of the fans in the Great Northwest remember his remarkable consistency as a 20/10 player, night after night.

Finally, don't forget about the Tip-Off Luncheon. There are still a few seats available at the 2nd table that we here at 3 Shades of Blue will be sponsoring, so shoot us an email if you're interested.

Acronym Anonymous

Hey guys, Diggler here.

I have been thinking lately about one thing our team has been sorely lacking over the past few seasons: INTEGRITY. Then I began thinking that this is not the only aspect that has been missing from our team, so I decided to come up with an acronym for integrity that also delves into other problems currently plaguing our team.

Enjoy my friends.

I - Identity. an aspect this team has been sorely lacking as of late. I would love to see a team who develops their own niche in the Southwestern Conference, and the rest of the league as well. We want to have a team that is not automatically penciled in as a win by the other team.

N – No laziness on defense; period. Coach O’Neill should help tremendously in this aspect. Man to man, help defense, transition defense, defensive assignments should all improve (hopefully) under his tutelage. I pity the fool who doesn’t play defense for O’Neill.

T – Trepidation. We want a team that other teams are afraid to play. We want to be a team that is known for playing tenacious defense, as well as a team that is capable of outscoring opponents.

E - Errors. Whether mental or physical, we must cut back on mistakes made on the court. Playing smart basketball is an absolute must.

G - Grit. Notice a common theme here? Our team needs to have true grit, play the game with confidence. Don’t allow teams to tear through our defense like dollar-store toilet paper.

R - Rudy. This one is, in my opinion, an absolute must. Rudy must continue to elevate his game. He must become more of a leader. This means on the court, vocally, and in the locker room. Rudy must improve his ball-handling skills, his assist numbers, his defense, and hopefully continue to elevate his scoring average as well. The sky is the limit for Rudy; it just depends on how high he truly wants to take his game.

I - Intuition. This team must be keen of mind. Make smart, quick decisions on the court to elevate team play, and overall game play as well. Eliminate mistakes that hinder smart basketball decisions.

T - Togetherness. This team must play as a cohesive unit. Like a well oiled machine, all parts should run together and compliment each other. A team that plays together stays together.

Y - You guys. Yes, that is right. This team can’t do any of the things mentioned above without the support of the fan base. Why would a team play their hearts off if the fans are unwilling to show them the same dedication (other than their fat bank accounts)? So next time you are sitting at home, bored, looking for something to do; go to a Grizzlies game. Take a friend, take your family, support a franchise we should be THANKFUL to have.

Getting Defensive: Grizzlies Set To Hire Kevin O'Neill

According to the Commercial Appeal, the Grizzlies will be hiring Kevin O'Neill to be the new lead assistant to head coach Marc Iavaroni. O'Neill was previously an NBA assistant coach under Jeff Van Gundy and Rick Carlisle, as well as the head coach of the Toronto Raptors for the 2003 season. He also has a lot of head coaching experience in the college ranks, having run the programs at the University of Tennessee, Marquette University and Northwestern University, as well as the interim coach for the University of Arizona last season. His reputation is that of a defensive expert, which is a good thing, since the Grizzlies were one of the worst defensive teams in the NBA last season by every statistic in common usage.

28th in Opponents' PPG
29th in Opponents' FG%
27th in Opponents' FGA
30th in Opponents' FGM
27th in Opponents' APG
27th in Opponents' RPG

In other words, this team doesn't defend well enough to beat much of anyone consistently. If people want to see the Grizzlies run and win, then it will start with defense. Defense creates turnovers, which leads to easy baskets. Defense leads to contested shots and perimeter attempts, which lead to blocks and long rebounds, which lead to fast break opportunities. Defense leads to running, if that is what a team truly wants to do. I realize that the Suns and Warriors don't play much defense and are able to execute a running style and win games. But they aren't able to win against teams that have a committment to run and defend when necessary, like the Spurs or Pistons. Spurs/Pistons = 5 recent titles; Suns/Warriors = 0 recent titles. Guess which one I'm leaning towards...

Back to O'Neill. I remember him well as the coach of both the Vols and Golden Eagles, and saw the job he did with the Wildcats this season, too. His reputation as a screaming tyrant is deserved, but I accept that from an assistant more readily than from the top dog for some reason. Players need a "players coach" as the head man, which means that they need a disciplinarian or two amongst the assistants to help keep order. O'Neill should be that guy, who will help the team develop sound defensive practices, while ripping the youngsters (and maybe a veteran or two) a new one when it is deemed necessary. Welcome aboard K.O.!

Another Grizzlies Preview

Lawrence Buirse has posted his Grizzlies Preview over at Hoopsworld. Go over and give it a quick read. For most die hard Griz fans, there is nothing new to learn in the article. He talks about the additions to the roster, which we are all well aware of. And breaks down the players at the different positions (that seems familiar, hint, hint, hint)

It's a good read, though I do have a couple of disagreements with him on a few points.

1.) He talks about Hakim Warrick as a Small Forward. This is wrong. I'll take you back to the Commercial Appeal article about Hak from a few weeks ago (covered by us here). Here is the key quote:

The days of Warrick trying to learn small forward appear over. Iavaroni stresses versatility but intends to count on Warrick exclusively in the frontcourt.

Ok, that is pretty clear cut. Hak will NOT be playing small forward. Sorry Buirse, it does not look like Hak will be asked to " make the transition to small forward."

2.) Here is a quote from Buirse's article:

On paper, the Memphis Grizzlies appear to be an improved team in all areas except defense.

Scoring should not be a problem for this team. Making defensive stops……that’s a tall task.

Is that what other Griz fans believe? I guess after last years performance with Barone at the helm, nothing should be taken for granted. But I fully believe we will be a much improved team on defense this year. Why?

--Marc Iavaroni was hired as head coach. He has repeatedly said that defense will be a priority. He was assigned to the defense in Phoenix, and he has coached under Pat Riley and Mike Fratello, so I'm sure he knows what he is doing. Clearly, Iavaroni is going to get the Griz to play better defense.

--We signed Darko. Darko may not be known as a defensive stopper, but his shear size and athleticism will make the frontcourt better defensively compared to what was available last year with Hak, Alexander Johnson, Lawrence Roberts, and Big Jake.

--The PG rotation now includes Kyle Lowry and Mike Conley. For the last 2 years the Griz have lacked speed and quickness at PG to stop opposing PG's from penetrating at will. No longer. The Griz arguably have the quickest PG rotation in the league now. And if we add in the perimeter defense of Kinsey and the improvement of Rudy, I think we have 4 quality perimeter players that can play lock down defense.

Chip also looked at the defensive outlook of this Grizzlies team about a month ago. Read it here. He makes a number of points on why the Grizzlies will be better defensively this year (particularly no more Barone, 2 tall 7 footers in the paint, and Conley/Lowry/Kinsey being able to stop penetration).

So, I'm not nearly as pessimistic about the Grizzlies defensive outlook for this season. Sure we still have some players that are defensive liabilities (i.e., Miller and Hak), but a lineup of Lowry, Kinsey, Gay, Pau, and Darko will make it hard for most teams to score against the Griz easily.

Paint and Perimeter

People wonder how the Memphis Grizzlies will stop anyone from scoring this year. Not only were they one of the worst defensive teams in the league last year but they signed players more thought of as offensive players than defensive in the off-season. Juan Carlos Navarro being the latest example but Mike Conley, Casey Jacobson and Andre Brown aren't known as defensive stalwarts and even Darko Milicic is more of a finese off-the-ball shot blocker than a big imposing presence in the middle. How can this team improve dramatically without a dominant rebounder, a imposing presence on penetrators and defensively challenged perimeter players being brought in to the team?

This isn't last year's team.

First, Tony Barone is a funny guy, a good talent evaluator and probably cooks a mean Veal Marsala but he isnt't a defensive coach. Marc Iavaroni is a defensive coach. He understands how to play team defense in the NBA both as a player with Philadelphia, Utah and SAn Antonio then as an assistant with Pat Riley in Miami, Mike Fratello in Cleveland and finally as the lead assistant with Phoenix where he was primarily in charge of defense. Phoenix gives up points but they wreck the offensive flow of most teams while doing it which creates quick scoring opportunities for the Suns even after made baskets. After all it isn't how few points you surrender but did you surrender less than the opponent that wins games.

Second, this year's interior team won't be expected to guard so much of the court. Why? Because with two shot blockers instead of one players will be less likely to challenge the paint. More importantly, Kyle Lowry and Mike Conley have the speed to deny the easy penetration drives that plagued the Grizzlies last season. The trouble wasn't that Gasol couldn't guard his man as much as he couldn't guard both his man and the point guard that Chucky and Damon let pass uncontested nor could he guard the Power Forward who snuck in unguarded either. Gasol was left too often with no one guarding the penetration and no one watching his rear either. Anyone would look bad being in that positions and Gasol isn't great to begin with.

Third, the team's focus will be paint and perimeter. Darko and Gasol will be patroling the paint and Kinsey, Gay, Miller, Navarro and even Jacobson will be guarding the perimeter. With the speed at point guard teams will be looking for players less comfortable dribbling the ball to create penetration. Memphis will be putting people on the perimeter looking to disrupt them before they get going. The idea will be to get into passing lanes and keep reaching for the dribbles in an attempt to get the opponents flustered.

And even if they get past the perimeter they have one of three options: continue into the paint where our interior 7fters are waiting, attempt another pass while the Grizz perimeter players are clogging the passing lanes or take the dreaded mid-range jump shot. That shot is what most NBA players are ineffective at hitting. Coaches have told players for years to drive the ball or take the three but the worst shot you can take is a two point shot near the three point line. This is where Memphis will want teams shooting.

Some teams will be able to exploit this defense. They will be able to beat the pressure on the perimeter, make the mid-range shot or a crisp pass to another player breaking into the lane. Teams will score on the Grizzlies no doubt about that. However they will be scoring at a pace they won't be comfortable playing. Memphis will look to run on deflections, run on steals, run on misses and even run on makes. The objective of the defense will be to establish a faster game and exploit our perimeter players ability to get up and down the court before teams can set up their defense.

So Memphis won't lead the league in scoring defense this season but they could come close to leading the league in fast break points (they were 5th last season despite 7 weeks of Fratello's slow ball style). Why is that important? Because the last few years the team with the most fast break points has won on average 57% of their games (according to 82games.com). That translates into 47 wins a season.

And anyone can defend that record.