Sitting in the Shade, Part Two

This is Part Two of our interview with Coach Marc Iavaroni.

3SOB: You have Marc Gasol and also Darko at center, quite a few options at power forward but the interior is considered an area of weakness on the team. You have a lot of experience coaching with with big men. Are you going to be directly involved with coaching the big men this season and what improvements do you hope to see?

MI: Well I think one of the things I learned my first year is that you have to delegate and you have to trust them and not micro-manage them but I think you also have to know what your expertise is and that was one of them. I think this was very important in the recruitment of Marc Gasol - because he had options and we had to recruit him - was the question 'was I going to be on the floor for him?'

I learned that the first year. You have to have delegation, but at the same time if they think your really good at something why wouldn't you be supervising that? Why wouldn't you be overseeing that? Why wouldn't you be actually in the trench? And I am willing to do that.

You know before games head coaches usually walk around in coat and tie and get their mind set for the strategic things going on in an hour or two. I've decided I am going to break that mold a bit. I'm going to get a little more prepared earlier in the day. I am going to get out there in my sweats for half an hour or so and work with our bigs. I'll work with our bigs at the end of practices because they are all young. They are all 23 years old. I'd like them to be on the floor with me 45 minutes before practice. Now I know there will be others at practice 45 minutes or so that I will work with also but that is less so. I want these guys to know that I will be expecting this of them. They are going to be on the court with me. Last year when we did perimeter and big guys I took turns supervising them. This year I'll be in there every day.

3SOB: Last year you said you saw players as perimeter and interior players and you don't worry about specific positions. Is that going to continue this year?

MI: Yeah, I do think you need to have versatility. I think you do need perimeter skills and big man skills are different. Now perimeter players need to work on their post up defense because people are going to try and post them up but they need to work on their post up game offensively. I think with the bigs if you can play 4/5 you have an advantage. Guards if you can play the 1/2, or 2/3 or if you're good enough to play a 1/2/3 then you got an advantage.

The real tough position is the one we are asking Rudy to do and that is play the 3/4. Now you have to have perimeter skills and perimeter knowledge of our offense and you also need interior skills and interior knowledge of what we're trying to do. That's going to be the challenge that we're going to put on him. We know Rudy led us in scoring last year. What other areas do you want to lead us in this year. That is going to be very important and defense is going to be one of those. This is an area where we are going to count on him. This is a team leadership need.

But getting back to your question, I think the key is that the guys have the skills we need on the perimeter and on the inside. They need to know what we want and they need to do it on a more consistent basis. They have to be more successful.

3SOB: You traveled this summer to Europe to see Darko. What did you talk about and what do you want him to improve on this season and how is his Achilles?

MI: Well we wanted to see how he was doing and make sure he was going to come into camp in shape. He didn't finish last season with a splash because of injuries. He was having problems with his heal so we wanted to make sure he was doing things that were obviously going to make him stronger and in better shape but we're not going to do things that exacerbate that. We wanted him to think more like a 4 in terms of his training. You know we had a sort of informal date of May 12th as in terms of when we wanted him to get back in there and start getting into condition where ever they were with the supervision of Mike Curtis.

So that said when I went to see him in Italy for their training camp in Costa, Italy I saw him for two workouts out of five and unfortunately after the second workout of 2 a days - and they had been there since July 4th and I got there on July 15th I believe so they had been there quite a long time and they go pretty hard in national team workouts - that's when it started flaring up. So we did a lot of talking but unfortunately not a lot of working on the court. Their coach is sensational. He welcomed me with open arms. Let me know what was going on with the team and Darko and what his expectations were.

So it finally got to the point where it was not getting better. So they decided it was best to let him go back to Belgrade and get that taken care of. So unfortunately he was inactive for about 20 days before he got back into light training. We wanted to make sure that that thing had toned down. So it's going to be very interesting how he shows up. He's do in any day. He's got somewhat of a visa issue. Hopefully we are getting him in this weekend. It's going to be very important to see what shape he is in because we want him in the 4 spot because as you said we might be a little light there.

Hakim Warrick is known as an NBA player but he isn't known for his bulk and size. We want to Present different looks.

3SOB: Well my next question was going to be if you see Marc and Darko working together...

MI: Well sure. I mean that is a definite possibility.

3SOB: That's very interesting. How do you see Marc Gasol fitting into this system? What adjustment issues do you see with him?

MI: (laughing) Well I think normal for any guy who lived a couple of years in Memphis watching his brother play and then went overseas and to become an MVP despite not being able to get a major Division 1 scholarship.

Other than that I think its a continuation of him asserting 'I'm not Pau Gasol and I'm not going to try and be him. I really like myself and I like what I've done so far but I'm no where near satisfied.' Those are the vibes I've gotten from him. I've gotten a real good spirit from him. He's a 23 yr old who's kind of on a mission. What he did in the ACB last year I think reflected that. He's now asserted himself after helping a team win a world championship two years ago in 2006. He's asserted himself on that team as a player with real value. He's a player that has gotten the attention of other people outside his country. People like Kobe Bryant who said we got Pau and he is great but we gave up a player that could be great.

Of course I'm paraphrasing but I think he's going to understand that he needs to stay in great shape in this league. There has to be a toughness not only in your mind, which I think he has, which is the place to start but he's going to have to translate that quickly into physical toughness and develop his mind even more maybe up another two or three levels to get to the higher level. Certainly before his career is over.

He's a player who's demonstrated that he's got skills with both hands and he has good footwork and moves. He's a very unselfish passer sometimes to a fault and he's got an almost deceptive quickness to him. He will make a jump shot on a pick and pop or stepping off the low block, but at the same time he has a quick first step which I really like. Foot speed is important at this level. He's got to be challenged athletically. Only because we have great athletes not good athletes at this level. So there's going to be people like Dwight Howard, Shaquille and Yao Ming who are going to go after him. I think it is going to be very important that we support him and stay with him through thick and thin because that is what a rookie year is all about. He's going to be challenged early. In the first pre-season game he's going to be right there in the hunt with Yao Ming. I don't know how much Yao will play in that pre-season game but we've got them on opening night as well. So it will be trial by fire because he's going to play.

3SOB: After your first year with head coaching experience has your coaching philosophy changed significantly and if so in what ways?

MI: I think number one you need to know who you are. I don't think you can't be a chameleon. I think there was a real interesting dialogue about me. People said Iavaroni was a defensive player. He played with Billy Cunningham and Cotton Fitzsimmons. He came into the league with Mike Fratello who's a defensive coach. He then goes to Miami with Pat Riley after the Lakers showtime when everyone was starting to realize this guy was a defensive coach. Then he went to more of an offensive system in Phoenix. So people wondered what I was going to be like.

I look at the personnel. My philosophy has always been you have to look at your personnel to get the most you can but know what you're about. I think last year rightly so we got attacked for not being defensive enough. I committed to looking at our defense a little too late. That's not a problem admitting that. I can learn from that. I just felt if we didn't run with the personnel we had, we had gazelles, if we didn't run we were really going to have some troubles. With players like Juan Carlos Navarro we're not going to walk it up. We're going to let him go. Rudy Gay is a tremendous runner. I didn't want people to lock in on him. Mike Conley we drafted for a reason and that is speed. Kyle Lowry can probably get up the court from one pass around the free throw line and have it in the other lane in about 3 seconds or less so I wasn't going to take that away from him. So I've learned that you have to be who you are while knowing the talents you have on your team.

3SOB: Last year you mentioned you didn't want the team committing fouls. Do you think that philosophy accounted for the defensive problems and are you more willing to tolerate fouls especially if it doesn't affect what you are doing on offense?

MI: Well again I think we want to emphasize the defense more. For many reasons it was not very good. I think I am less concerned about fouls affecting the flow of the game as I was last season.

Now I don't want to see fouls because people got beat all the time. That's not defense. That's a bailout. We want to make sure we are so into stopping our guy and being physical and yeah we may pick up some more fouls. I wouldn't have a problem with that. I don't want silly fouls but I think you have to establish in the referees minds that we are going to be aggressive. That you are not going to back down. I think our guys are going to have a chip on their shoulder. They really are. We are trying to change the culture here. We are perceived as a soft team last year and the only ones who can change that is us.

3SOB: What is Kevin O'Neill's role as assistant coach, how is your relationship working with him and how involved were you in his hiring?

MI: I was very involved. I mean we are talking about someone who is going to be on my staff. He's got a reputation for defense. I have a very good close relationship with Rick Carlisle. He's probably my most trusted confident in the league. I don't have a lot of guys I talk to but Rick is right there and he also spoke very highly of Kevin. So I am excited we were able to do this and get him in here. This is a perfect opportunity for him. I feel very comfortable introducing his defense. We are going to change some principles. We are going to be doing some things differently. More forcing the ball to the side. We're going to be tougher on the ball tougher on pick and rolls and we're going to simplify things. These are all things that let me to just relax, coach and see the game. Kevin can do his job as well. I don't want to micro manage.

3SOB: Hubie Brown coached the rookies during the summer league. Last season you coached the rookies in the summer league. This season you didn't. Was there any particular reason for that?

MI: Oh well I am happy for Hubie Brown but I'm not Hubie also. I coached two games the first year so there really wasn't much of a change. Last year we spread it around amongst the assistant coaches. It's all about having development. Like player development I like to have coaches develop. I think I did that more for my staff as opposed to me not wanting to do it. After all they are going to hear me all season.

Last season was my first year and I wanted to establish myself with the team. That wasn't the case this year.

3SOB: Last question, how many starting positions are set in your mind?

MI: I think it is best that I don't go in with mind focused on who should start.

I think it would be a shock if Rudy doesn't start but beyond that I think people realize that it's wide open. I trust Rudy enough to know he's done his work this summer not anticipating anything. Everyone still has to go out and earn their spot.

At this point the practice was really starting to get going and Coach Iavaroni excused himself to get back to work. I thank Coach Iavaroni for fitting us in for the interview and for the honesty and bluntness he responded to our questions. I haven't seen any other coaches willing to do that for their fans. I was impressed in how many of the Grizzlies were at the 'voluntary' workout. Sure Darrell Arthur, Mike Conley and O.J. Mayo were there but so were more established veterans like Hakim Warrick and Kyle Lowry. With the anticipated arrival of Marc Gasol, Darko Milicic and other veterans over the weekend Coach Iavaroni should have nearly all his players in town and working out way before the official start of training camp.

Sitting in the Shade: An Exclusive Interview with Marc Iavaroni

We at 3 Shades of Blue have been very blessed. First, as simple fans we are very fortunate to have an NBA team in town. Second, after 5 years of Jerry West's secrecy and silence we have a front office willing to talk to fans about anything they want to know. People who read our site may not realize just how fortunate the fans of the Grizzlies are to have a team so willing to sit down and talk so openly about the franchise.

Because of this, the boys at 3 Shades of Blue were lucky enough to be given a few minutes the other day with Head Coach Marc Iavaroni. As has been our tradition we are including the entire interview without any editing. Coach Iavaroni has been very busy this summer and he is only getting busier as the season progresses. Coach Iavaroni was kind of enough to cut short his own personal workout to squeeze us in before a voluntary workout with 7 players so there wasn't any time for follow up questions.

Catching the end of the coach's personal workout I did get to notice that Coach is still in excellent shape and is not someone I would want to play against in a game of H-O-R-S-E. Here is Part One of our interview with Coach Marc Iavaroni.

3SOB: You have probably been asked this 100 times this summer but you were the topic of a lot of rumors at the end of last season about you not being brought back. Now that you are back what do you believe is required of you by Mr. Heisley to be a success this season?

MI: Well first of all I think what Mr. Heisley did at the end of last season was really good because he wanted to have an opportunity to share his thoughts on the season. We had a season of upheaval, of major personnel changes and he wanted to make sure we were on the same page going into my second season. Now of course there was speculation because of the record. That's the way it is in this league. When you have a record that people look at in black and white and don't go into the intricacies of why the record then they start speculating and that was fine. So I thought we had a really good discussion on what he assessed the season to be.

What he wanted to make sure was foremost on our minds going into year two and that was obviously an improvement on defense, it was making sure the young players were going to continue to develop because we have a lot of young players that we are relying on and he wanted to make sure there were improvements in areas in end of the game situations. He wanted to know about defensive aspects and what we were going to do in the off-season. He wanted to make sure we learned those lessons and then there were also a lot about personnel changes.

3SOB: It was reported that you played the devil's advocate on the O.J. Mayo trade. What were the reasons against the trade and what arguments were being made in favor of it?

MI: I think again another healthy situation. Here we are in what used to be called the war room but here we are in the draft night and frankly I think it was positive. We said let's look at everything. Now if someone wants to brand me the devil's advocate as several people were saying that is fine. I've never been a sheep. Mr. Heisley has never been a sheep. Heisley has always led by leading and I am the same way. Obviously, foremost on my mind is that we were a young team and we were going to get younger. Like it or not I tend to develop affinities for players in my corner and one of those players was Mike Miller.

The number one reason for being a devil's advocate was Mike Miller's a pretty good player. I really like him as a person. I thought he embodied what we are trying to do here. It was not I don't like O.J. Mayo. I think that's what happens when you start getting into this. People say that you liked Miller more than Mayo. No, I questioned it because I wanted to make sure what we were giving up makes sense in the future. And like everyone else talking through it you realize it is enough. Mike Miller's deal is coming up in a few years. He's going to be eligible for an extension. We had a player who could be as good and maybe better in O.J. Mayo. We also felt that we felt we had it in our power get more bigs so maybe weren't going to need Kevin Love. Kevin Love also had some knee issues. That was frankly more frightening to people down the road management and ownership-wise than for me who is trying to win next year.

3SOB: You mentioned Mike who is obviously a great player. Who do you see replacing Mike both on and off the court and does the team have enough 3 pt shooting for you right now?

MI: It doesn't frankly and we are going to have to change our philosophy unless we add some late three point shooters. We have to be more space, drive the ball and draw fouls. I don't think we can come down and just launch threes. We don't have the proven personnel to do that. I think that O.J. Mayo is going to be a guy who down the road that could be as good as Mike if not better an outside shooter than Mike is.

Now remember last year Mike shot over 40% so that is quite a task for him in his rookie year. You can't judge him as a rookie just like we didn't judge Conley on his first year, we didn't judge Kyle Lowry as a rookie although his first year even though I wasn't there. We didn't judge anyone. Rudy Gay. After his first year we didn't say this is all he is going to be. He proved last year that his first year was a distant memory.

So I guess my point is yes we are going to have to alter our philosophy. Yes to help our defense in transition - which was the worst in the league last year - we are going to have to look at our offensive strategy and our balance to allow us to get back and play good defense. These are things we are willing to do. Again Mike's not here so we are going to have to adjust. You can't count on him to be as much of a play maker but we can look at O.J. to be one.

3SOB: Well what about off the court? Who are going to be the guys in the locker room? Who on the team right now can take that role?

MI: Well I think you look around and say what have they been doing in the off-season? who's led by example? Who has led himself and then tried to lead others? I think they've all taken turns at that. I think Kyle Lowry jumps out as a guy has admitted I want to be a leader. Sometimes I wasn't a good one but I want to be a good one. I think Mike Conley led by example more than being on the phone and such. I mean he went back to school. He's going to get his degree eventually. He's been working very hard at the Ohio State facility with Mike Curtis who is no longer with us unfortunately. He took a job at rival Michigan ironically.

Rudy Gay. He's a guy who does more than just try to become a better player. He tries to make people better. He does a lot of charitable things, does a lot of things with kids. He's a little bit of a pied piper this summer. He's spread the word on Rudy Gay and the Memphis Grizzlies. Javaris Crittenton has been working very hard on his game in Atlanta. Not just with Mark Price as a shooter, but also on his overall game. Hakim Warrick's been working in New Jersey.

So when you say leadership, you say okay, what have they done in the off-season and what are they bringing to the table when they are back? That remains to be seen. We need to see how they are on the court. How are they going to approach that role. And then we also need to decide who will be our team captain. We don't have that position right now. We need to see.

(laughing) That's the short answer...

We'll post the remainder of the interview with Coach Marc Iavaroni tomorrow morning.

The Grizzlies Are Still Afloat

by Chip Crain

The guy is a billionaire and still profits from his other businesses. Spending $100 million and only recouping $70 million of it back, resulting in a $30 million loss, shouldn't be THAT big of a deal.

These guys own sports teams like someone else might own a boat or something. It's not a necessity that they have to have. It's a status thing.
a post on the Grizzlies Message Board

That has to be one of the least informed opinions I have ever seen. Do people seriously believe that the owners in the NBA can swallow $30 million losses every year because they see the team like a boat?

No one is going to lose tens of millions of dollars every year and not want to do something to stop that trend. Michael Heisley is no different and he took moves this year to stop it from continuing along that path. Sure it will magnify pain in the short run but these moves had to be made to put the team in position to move forward in the future.

Owners in the NBA are extremely competitive personalities for the most part and they want to win. Michael Heisley wants to win too. The team he had at the end of Jerry West's tenure was not the team he wanted and so he decided to remake the team from the ground up. A lot of people, including some who write on this blog, were screaming for him to do this for years. The attitude was that Pau Gasol, Mike Miller and the others were never going to compete in the playoffs. Not because they couldn't be role players on championship teams but they could never lead a team there by themselves and having them in that role of leader was preventing the Grizzlies from getting the type of player who could.

Well Heisley saw the same thing. He decided, along with Chris Wallace and Marc Iavaroni, that the team needed to be rebuilt from the ground up. They decided to go with a youth movement which has its risks not the least of which is some years of struggling at the front end. Do people prefer he try to rebuild by spending up to the salary cap with players who will only make the team average at best?

Heisley understands that the fans have to be won back and that will take wins on the court. He said as much at the press conference welcoming Mayo and Arthur to the team. He wants to win in the worst way and when the time is right he will spend the money needed to get the right player to help put the team in a position to win it all. He's not interested in acquiring a player who will make us marginally better this season but not be in position to spend money on the right player at the right time.

No one knows how well the team will perform this season. Most likely they will struggle with so much youth on the team. However, if Antoine Walker takes hold of the PF position and plays like he wants to be in the NBA in 2010 then who knows?

Grading the Josh Smith Signing

By Chip, Josh and Kirk

Or how does this move by the Grizzlies help the team in the 3 Year Plan?

Michael Heisley said after the big trade to acquire O.J. Mayo back in late June that all moves by the Grizzlies from this point forward should be viewed in regards to the Grizzlies established Three Year Plan (TYP). Since then the team has signed Marc Gasol to a 3 year contract for a relatively small amount of money. That move clearly sits well in regards to a 3 year plan. They have been rumored to be involved in trade discussions with Orlando, New York, Atlanta, New Jersey and a host of other teams but nothing has come of those rumors as of yet.

Then there was the one definitive move of signing Josh Smith, an unrestricted free agent of the Altanta Hawks to a 5 year deal for a reported $58 million. Once the Hawks received the offer they immediately matched the offer and therefore locked up Josh Smith with the team for at least one year. How should fans judge this move in regards to the TYP?

3 Shades of Blue asked this question to each of our writers. Only three responded which should give you an idea of how much editorial clout people have on this site. So in opposite order of seniority here are thier opinions.

Kirk:
Well, in my honest and humble opinion, losing Josh Smith hurt, but we were all aware from the first moment that Atlanta would match the offer sheet we signed him to. Signing Josh Smith would have been fantastic for both the team and the franchise in general, but with the low ball offer we gave him, we all knew it was nothing but a pipedream at best. Josh Smith would have given us the athletic 4 we have been so desperately needing, as well as given Rudy an upcoming star to be paired with. If Conley and Mayo develop the way they should, and according to plan, then you would have an extremely formidable 1-4 that could compete with any other in the league. Then you could plug any stiff you deem appropriate at the 5 spot, and his assignment should be nothing more than shot blocking, setting picks, and clogging the lane.

Honestly, not signing Josh Smith really has no effect on the "3 year plan", because according to it, we are trying to build a team that can compete by that time. We still have 3 years left.... I will reserve judgement till after the offseaon following this basketball season, and see if the team has improved both on the court, and on paper as well. Who knows, with another strong draft and sound decisions in free agency, we truly could have the type of team Mr. Heisley is hoping for.

All I can say is the kool-aid sure is delicious, so we should all start drinking it.

Chip Crain:
I think the signing of Josh Smith was a great public relations move but little else. As Kirk already stated, there was little chance that Atlanta wouldn't match the offer. Josh Smith is an up and coming star in this league along the lines of Andre Iguodala, Luol Deng and Monta Ellis. Each of those players resigned with their teams for far more money than the Grizzlies offered Smith. It was a pipe dream to assume Atlanta would allow Smith to leave with no compensation. It did however get people around the country in general and Memphis in particular to start thinking that Heisley wasn't solely interested in running the cheapest operation in the league.

Since public relations are not a component of making a team competitive for the playoffs that bit of emotional lift does nothing in regards to the team's 3 year plan. What it did do is take off the market a player who the Grizzlies could have tried to sign next summer with their free cap space. By offering him the contract and having it matched by Atlanta, Josh Smith won't be a free agent for 5 more years. 5 years is outside of the 3 year time frame Heisley established. Even if the Grizzlies couldn't sign Smith next summer that is one fewer player for other teams to use their cap space.

So if we are only judging the signing in a three year window it would seem that this hurt the team.

Joshua Coleman:
Before the signing took place, I made my feelings about Josh Smith quite clear. In the time since then, we've learned that Smith showed up in Atlanta more muscular and physically imposing, appearing ready to play the position of PF. And you know what? Doesn't change my opinion a great deal, even though I rate him more highly as on the "Big Change Capability Potential Meter" as a result of those physical improvements. (Yeah, I just made that up, by the way.)

So, how does his signing affect the much ballyhooed TYP? Well, as has already been noted, it received some good publicity on many fronts, although there were plenty of people who viewed it as nothing more than an obvious PR move in which the Grizzlies had no intention of having Josh Smith in Beale Street Blue. With the tumultuous nature of things in the ATL, I don't know how anyone could think that there wasn't at least a chance that the Hawks might let Smith go. But ultimately, that didn't have any effect on the TYP. I believe that Smith's presence in Memphis would have resulted in more wins this year, as well as the next two after that, but not enough to justify his salary. Just my opinion, of course, but Smith seems like another Shawn Marion or Andrei Kirilenko to me -- great team players who provide eye-popping stats on a nightly basis, but aren't #1 options, or even guys that you really concentrate on running plays for. I think that signing Smith would have been a detriment to the goal of the TYP, as it would have placed the Grizzlies further back in the lottery next season, which is where they are most likely to find the top talent needed to help them return to the postseason at the conclusion of the TYP. In this respect, cheaper talent (Hak, D.Arthur, new draftees) would be better than higher priced free agent talent.

A Suggestion to Micheal Heisley

by Chip Crain

I was reading Eric Musselman's blog (which I recommend all of our readers do as well) the other day and he mentioned an article in the New York Times. In the Talking Business section was the story "Leaving Boardroom for Skybox" and it was about Home Depot founder Arthur Blank and his travails as owner of the Atlanta Falcons.

Mr. Blank made two keen observations that I hope Mr. Heisley will take to heart as well. First, Mr. Blank made a clear distinction between the business side of the team and the sports operation side for lack of a better term. Mr. Blank associated well with the business side of the operations but has yet to make similar inroads on the field.

So how did Mr. Blank make the inroads on the business side? Quite simply he developed strong relationships with his associates (his word for employees) and then he listened to his clients (i.e. the fans). He took over a franchise that rarely sold out games and turned that around simply by conducting surveys of the fans, listening to what they wanted and expected and implemented changes to address those concerns. Notice that he didn't give lip service to them, he actively got involved to change what was wrong while maintaining what was done properly.

The result has been remarkable. The Falcons routinely sell out games now and actually have a waiting list for season tickets. He did this despite the Falcons failure to produce on the field. The team has only made the playoffs twice since Mr. Blank took over as owner. Last season the Falcons were one of the worst teams in the league.

Mr. Blank also looked at the team and quickly came to the conclusion that, while he may understand the business side of the franchise intuitively, the sports side was a totally different animal. He dabbled in coaching hires and the like but he recognized that he doesn't have the skills to determine what makes a good coach like he can determine what makes a good manager. They are different animals. He admitted to himself that he wouldn't have a clue about personnel decisions either. So he hired the best people he could to make those decisions and then let them do their thing. He didn't look over their shoulders or demand to be given the final word on any deal. He hired people he felt knew how to manage a team and let them do their job.

In contrast, Mr. Heisley has been getting more and more involved in the team decisions while seeming to lose interest in attempting to appease his clients. As he said in our interview:

I'm not so sure the professionals have that much more going for them than the fans have going. A lot of it really turns out to be luck. How many trades do you make that turns out horrible because the guy gets injured and he hardly ever plays for you?

Does that sound like someone who believes there is a difference between managing a business and managing a sports team? Does that sound like someone who doesn't believe he can do as well or better than the people he hired to do the job?

On the other side Heisley doesn't appear to be pushing the please the clients concept either. This season's Fan Advisory Board hasn't been selected yet despite camp beginning in less than three weeks so it is doubtful the board will have any effect on changing the fan experience this season. How much impact will the board have on this season if they won't even be selected as a group prior to the start of training camp? Services have been cut in the past and perks eliminated but has anyone done a survey to figure out how this was affecting the fan experience?

Last season the team opened up the parking garage for anyone. Club or better level season ticket holders used to be the only one's allowed to park there. Did anyone survey the season ticket holders who were denied the opportunity to buy those spaces to see how they felt about it? Did anyone ask the people who pre-paid for the right to park in the covered lot how it felt to suddenly be forced to park on the roof in the rain because their normal spots were taken? Aren't those people the exact ones the team is lamenting losing lately?

So Mr. Heisley, please pay attention to the owners who have been successful and pay more attention to your clients and less on the basketball operations. You have hired Chris Wallace and Marc Iavaroni. Now is the time to let them make the decisions that you hired them to make. Focus on the fans who are your clients. Make them feel like you care. Ask for their ideas and then implement the ones that are feasible.

It is just one person's opinion, but I think it is valid.

Will the Grizzlies Find Leadership?

Fortidunie Vincimus (By Endurance we Conquer)

This was the family motto of Ernest Shackleton, the famed explorer whose leadership during the Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition prevented a single death of his expedition when he was trapped on an ice flow off of Antarctica for over 20 months. His story was not one of great success but of great leadership. His vision and inspiration that enabled these men to survive an arctic winter is legendary even if the ultimate outcome of his expedition was complete failure.

So what does this have to do with the Grizzlies? Well I was reading Eric Musselman's blog the other day titled "Talent is Never Enough" based on the book of the same title by John Maxwell. The gist of the book revolved around this quote according to Musselman:

"Simple talent will never translate into success unless other factors related to character and attitude are strong as well. The more talented a team is, the more leadership is needed. Teams don't simply come together on their own; that they require leadership to do so."

It got me thinking about the Grizzlies. They have significantly increased the talent level on the team with the additions of O.J. Mayo, Darrell Arthur and Marc Gasol joining the developing talents of Kyle Lowry, Mike Conley and Rudy Gay. Talent doesn't appear to be the problem on this team. Not many teams in the NBA can boast as much young talent as the Grizzlies can trot out every night. Throw in Milicic, Crittenton, Jaric, Walker and Hakim Warrick and you have extremely talented players two deep at almost every position. What is lacking is leadership.

I want to look at leadership at the Grizzlies. First I will look at leadership at the top. The Front Office people who make the decisions on the make up of the team. In Memphis this is the trio of Michael Heisley, Chris Wallace and Marc Iavaroni. Each have roles to play in the team and how they lead goes a long way in determining how the team feels. These men are the Generals in the field headquarters so to speak. They aren't in the field but their decisions determine the likely success of those in the field of battle. In the second part I will discuss the actual players on the court or soldiers in the field to continue the analogy.

You do not lead by hitting people over the head - that's assault, not leadership.
Dwight D. Eisenhower

Michael Heisley is definitely providing leadership of a sorts right now. He has laid down the vision the franchise is to take. He has established performance standards that need to be reached while maintaining the ultimate vision of success. That is the primary job of a leader: to focus anxiety on short term objectives while never losing sight of the ultimate goal. The problem many people have with Mr. Heisley is not his vision but rather his lack of inspiration. Heisley hits people over the head with his vision and doesn't appear to inspire them to share in his vision. This blunt approach may work in turning the ship around but with out inspiration it won't convince people to buy into that vision.

Effective leadership is putting first things first. Effective management is discipline, carrying it out.
Stephen Covey

Chris Wallace has not shown true leadership of this team in his role. Rather than leading the team with his vision, Chris Wallace is merely administering the vision laid down by his superior. Chris Wallace has done what he was told to do but it is not his vision that is being pursued. At least that is not the message that Memphis is getting. It is obviously Heisley's vision and Wallace being the effective manager exercising the discipline to do what the leader has demanded must be done.

Of course there is a theory that to be a great leader, one must first be a good servant. If that is the case Wallace could be exercising his servantship position now to become the leader of the future. Wallace is somewhat hamstrung in how he builds this team, but he is in fact making a large amount of the personnel decisions. What the Grizzlies become will have as much to do with who is here three years from now as it does in the way the team came to be there. Heisley may be determining how much is paid to players but it is Wallace determining who the players are that get paid.

The very essence of leadership is that you have to have vision. You can't blow an uncertain trumpet.
Theodore M. Hesburgh

If there was one major complaint about Marc Iavaroni's first season as head coach it had to be his vision of what the Grizzlies should become. Many fans have questioned just what the vision of a Marc Iavaroni coached team is. Does he want the team to run or to control the ball? Does he want the team to focus on rebounding and defense or get out and run? Whatever his vision of this team is, he needs to sell it to the team and the city so they can buy into his vision.

The good news is that Iavaroni is starting his 2nd season as a head coach at any level this year. He knows what he has to do to keep his job. What everyone needs to see from him is a clear vision of what to expect from this team. Not vague platitudes but a clearly stated vision.

What worries me is that Iavaroni still seems reluctant to put forward his vision. He seems to be deferring to Kevin O'Neill's strategy on defense and leaving everyone guessing on offense. You can't lead without a confident steady message that the team can rally their support around. You can't lead saying that you are giving power to your subordinates and washing your hands of the matter. Either this is your team and O'Neill is working your strategy or it's not.

It is time for Iavaroni to stand up and be the leader on the bench.

Next I will look at the players....

Blogging at the Forum

Well tonight I finally got to see what the media sees all the time when covering the Grizzlies. I was got to see the inside of the Don Poier Media Center. It was a very interesting and informative experience. And like any rookie put on the big stage I started off with a fumble. When we were called into the media room to hear Chris Wallace and Marc Iavaroni's comments about the drafting of Kevin Love I forget my pen and failed to hit the record button on my recorder. Boy did I feel stupid.

Of course no one is interested in what I thought of the media center or how I made a fool of myself. Well some people may like reading that but most people want to know about the draft picks and what the Grizzlies thought about their night.

First off Chris Wallace wasn't high fiving anyone when he came into the media center. He was rather subdued in fact. He spoke matter of factly about the selection of Love and what he means for the team. Wallace feels Memphis has a player that is going to be a great rebounder, an excellent outlet passer and who has a lot to learn about playing defense in the NBA. While he did say Love has to learn a lot he also made a very intriguing comment which really stuck in my head. Wallace said that Love is ready to function in a team defense philosophy. He will be where he is supposed to be on defense and not just 50% of the time but every time. That says a lot about Love's basketball intelligence and also a lot about what he felt about some of the people who were supposed to be playing defense for the Grizzlies last season.

Next Wallace left to return to the draft room as Marc Iavaroni took the mike. Iavaroni was clearly excited about the selection of Love. He talked about his strength of charecter, his desire to be great and his intelligence. Marc is clearly thrilled to be having a leader like Kevin Love with the team.

That isn't to say that Wallace isn't excited. Wallace just looked like he had more work to do. Judging from his selection of Donte Green at 28 I think Wallace knew someone was going to slide in the draft and he wanted to make sure the Grizzlies were ready to pounce when that opportunity came up. Wallace also dealt with the trade rumors about attempting to move up to get Beasley and why Memphis wasn't interested. Miami wasn't asking for Mike Miller plus the pick and point guard. They wanted Rudy Gay! Beasley may be a star in the making but there is no way Memphis should give up that much for the right to find out.

My personal feelings are that Love was the smart pick and the right pick. Love will be contributing right away. He has a learning curve of course but he won't be the type of player who hurts the team when he is on the court. Love will immediately improve the team's pick and roll plays as he can set a mean pick and hit the perimeter shot if his man tries to cover the cutter. He will be the best rebounder Memphis has ever had and will ignite the running game with his outlet passes. There may be other players who have better careers but there won't be many and Memphis couldn't afford to miss with this pick. He should team up well with Rudy Gay and Mike Miller to make the team stronger both physically and mentally.

Donte Green is nothing short of a steal. No one expected, myself included, to find a player with this much potential that late in the draft. Green will step right into the hole that was Casey Jacobsen last season and should be a huge improvement immediately. Unlike Love however Green will need much more maturing to reach his full potential. He has a long way to go on defense (don't all Syracuse players) and his shot selection needs to improve but he should have time to do that backing up Rudy Gay. Most importantly he will need to get stronger.

Speaking of stronger, Mike Conley has developed guns. He is ripped. I got a chance to talk to him as the draft was starting and Conley admitted that he had been lifting a lot of weights while taking a class at Ohio State. I asked Mike about his newfound muscles and he said that he worked for a week with Mike Curtis, the strength and conditioning coach and also Kevin O'Neill. That means Mike realizes he needs to improve his strength and defense and is working on it. He also has been playing phone tag with shooting coach Mark Price and is planning on getting together with Mark to work on his shot in Atlanta during the summer. Mike also admitted being a little concerned about all the trade rumors about him but was very grateful to hear Chris Wallace say Conley was not being discussed in a trade. He likes being with the Grizzlies and doesn't want to go anywhere.

Kyle Lowry was there and he told me that he was planning on spending most of the summer in Philadelphia but he too is going to be working on his shot with Mark Price. Kyle didn't get the trade assurance that Conley did and he said he understands this. It's a business and it wasn't harder this year than it was last year hearing the Grizzlies wanted Conley in the draft. I got the impression that Kyle isn't going to let these things bother him and he will come to camp ready to win the starting job. He just seems to have the attitude that he is using these things as motivation.

Last season started with a front line of Gasol, Gay and Milicic. Backing that line up was Stromile Swift, Casey Jacobsen and Hakim Warrick. Next season it looks to be Gay, Love and Milicic with Donte Green, Hakim Warrick and Marc Gasol backing up. That is a huge improvement on paper. Now it will be wait and see if the paper translates onto the court.

ADDENDUM: Learned another lesson tonight. Don't leave before the Grizzlies tell you the night is over. I left before the news of the Mayo-Love trade and the Greene-Arthur deal was announced. Instead of being in the meeting with the team hearing how they feel about the deal I am lying in bed wondering why I thought it was so important to get home and get some sleep! I guess this shows you are never to old to stop learning.

To Trade or Not To Trade...That is the Question

Whether tis nobler in the mind
to suffer The slings and arrows
of outrageous records,
Or to take arms
against a sea of troubles,
And by opposing - end them?
Hamlet, Act III

Okay, William Shakespeare never wrote that exactly but the feeling expressed in Hamlet's soliloquy does have some relevance to today's Memphis Grizzlies. Almost no one believes that with the #5 and #28 picks the team can change the struggles that have beset this franchise since their last winning season. Is a trade up or down in the draft going to help shuffle things enough to change the outlook, if not the actual record, of the team?

What about the players currently on the team? Are they to be immune from the exorcism of the devils haunting the franchise? Are they the sole reason for the team's unbearable current state? They are the most convenient scapegoats but who should take the fall for the current state of the franchise? Did the current roster have anything to do with the carousel of coaches (Lowe, Brown, Fratello and Iavaroni not to mention Hollins and Barone) over the last 6+ seasons? Should the players shoulder the blame for the rather bizarre behavior and decisions of Jerry West? Not that this matters now because it appears something must be done beyond adding two or three more rookies (#5, #28 and Marc Gasol) to the mix. Trading is the most obvious remedy.

Devoutly to be wish'd. To lose, to sleep;
To sleep, perchance to dream: ay, there's the rub;
For in that sleep what dreams of trades may come
Hamlet, Act I

More paraphrasing but indeed what dreams may come from a draft day trade?

Memphis has declared they are going to rebuild with youth. Michael Heisley said the team wants to build around their core of Conley, Lowry, Crittenton, Gay and Warrick (upon further prodding he also said that Darko is in that mix). Heisley also said that this doesn't mean that these players are going to stay with the Grizzlies. They could be used as pieces in a deal to bring in someone else that furthers the growth of the team. This seems logical since three of those players are considered point guards. So Memphis will use these players as their building blocks but those blocks may not be in the final design of the team. Trading seems to be the simplest way to build with these players but not have all of them be a part of the future.

Mike Conley and Kyle Lowry are reported to be attending the Grizzlies Draft Party on Thursday night. It would appear that the team is committed to keeping that duo together until one separates himself from the other. The problem is that those two players appear to be the most desirable pieces in a trade. There is a fine line here between clearly establishing one player as the starter and diminsihing the value of the other. If the team is committed to one player then trading the other before his value drops makes sense. I just have a hard time seeing the Grizzlies inviting both players to the draft party only to trade one of them that night. Surely the Grizzlies wouldn't make such a faux pas as to invite a player to the draft party only to trade him during the event. The Grizzlies can't be that thoughtless of a young man's feelings. Can they?

So does that make Javaris Crittenton the odd man out? Could the player that the Grizzlies wanted from the Lakers be gone fewer than 6 months later? It seems unlikely that the team would give up on the 19 yr old (he won't turn 20 until December 31st) that quickly. Of course, it seemed inconceivable that the Grizzlies would give up on the Conley-Gasol pairing after only 15 starts together too. Yet that is exactly what the team did on Jan 29th. So is anyone safe with this franchise?

Mike Miller just made a major contribution to St. Judes Children's Hospital. Doesn't that gesture imply that he is going to remain in the city for at least a little longer despite Heisley not mentioning him as a player that the team is going to build around? Maybe, Maybe not. No Grizzlies player has been rumored to be on the block more than Mike Miller. Of course, without a viable alternative to replace Mike Miller in the starting lineup after Juan Carlos Navarro signed with FC Barcelona it would be a long shot to suppose Miller is traded on draft night. Then again the opportunity to draft a Eric Gordon or Danillo Gallinari may make such a trade more plausible. Miller's salary is a tad expensive for what he brings to the court but doesn't the team need someone who can bring veteran leadership to the team?

Alas! poor Warrick. I knew him
a fellow of infinite jest, of most excellent fancy; he hath borne me on his back a thousand times; and now, how abhorred in my imagination it is!
Hamlet, Act V

Now I don't abhor the time Hakim has spent in Memphis but at 26 Warrick is on the cusp of youth on a rebuilding team. His trade value would seem high (and that appears to be the only reason the Grizzlies drafted him anyway). The Grizzlies have brought in twice as many big men as guards for workouts this summer. That is a message that can't be ignored.

What could Hakim, the dreaded tweener, bring on the open market? Draft picks involve a high risk already. Would a proven veteran capable of scoring in double figures on any night be enough or too much to move up a few spots in the lottery? Wouldn't someone like Hakim be worth a mid to late lottery pick by himself? Remember that Chicago swapped picks #2 and 4 with Portland and only received Victor Kryapa in exchange just two years ago. Could Hakim and the 28th pick move the Grizzlies into the lottery?

One thing is known. Memphis is looking to create some excitement around this draft. They want to be players and create a buzz. This should be a very exciting draft to watch for the Memphis Grizzlies and their fans. Trades involve uncertainty and risk but they also could be the type of activity that gets people excited about future prospects.

Tis now the very witching time of night,
When churchyards yawn and hell itself breathes out
players to this world: now could I drink hot blood,
And do such business, as the day
Would quake to look on.
Hamlet, Act III

Back in School: The Chris Wallace Interview - Part 4

This is the 4th part of the exclusive interview Chris Wallace gave 3 Shades of Blue on Friday, June 6th. Part 1 discussed his introduction to the NBA up to his first draft. Part 2 dealt with the draft process and how it has developed. Part 3 dealt with the character and intangible issues of the drafting process.

As in the Michael Heisley interview in April, we are presenting the interview in it's entirety and not taking excerpts out to forward any agenda or point of view. We at 3 Shades of Blue hope everyone enjoys the interview and trust our readers to draw whatever conclusions they want from it.

3SOB: When you are thinking of drafting a player does marketability come into play in the decision to draft that player?
CW: That would if he was a definitive rain maker. I think there are very few players in the NBA that really sell tickets. I think the great ones sell tickets but there aren't many of them. I think the local aspect is over-rated. You guys had Lorenzen Wright here and that guard (Antonio Burks) but it didn't spike attendance a great deal. I remember in Boston we had Dana Baros for a number of years who played at Boston College. He was a great player and a great guy but people didn't turn out just to see him play. They didn't turn out to the Clippers to see Bo Kimble. So that's a little over-stated. So if you find me a player that is a great player who's going to help us win and be a box office draw that's the best but to try and manufacture one, maybe you think this kid has a personality or a flair that will make people come to the games or his team went to the NCAA tournament, that generally doesn't hold out.

3SOB: Would you draft someone either who couldn't or wouldn't work out for the Grizzlies?
CW: Yes. Definitely in this draft because players are all known commodities now. They played on big time college teams or were High School Superstars, you have the physical examinations from the Orlando camp, I have no problem at all doing that.

There is a little bit of a sense of security really in doing that because if the guy doesn't come in because he thinks he is going to go ahead of you or he has an attractive spot behind me that he is happy with even if it drops him a few spots, maybe he has a good relationship with a team, and they are giving him a guaranteed. So the guy might be saying 'wow, I am guaranteed to go 8, 9 or 10 without doing any more workouts. Sure I may end up going as high as 5 but I could hurt my stock in the next couple of weeks and not end up 8, 9 or 10 too. Things might not go right so let me take the sure thing now. So if we know a guy isn't coming in because he is already guaranteed a spot then we can have a great sense of security because the other team has already done the work. They've signed off on him on and off the court or they wouldn't have given him the guarantee. So we can piggy-back on their work without ever having done it.

3SOB: but if he doesn't come in do you feel there is any additional work required because of that?
CW: Oh we're still putting the work in. We're making the calls, countless calls on all these players to anyone we can think of. We're talking to anyone with a valid opinion of him. We're talking to coaches, opposing coaches, conference players, so we have a handle on these players. We check them out. While you haven't met them they are highly regarded and you should know from your research that these are decent quality individuals you wouldn't mind having on your team.

3SOB: You've been in the business for 20 some odd years, what do you feel was your biggest mistake in the draft and what did you learn from it?
CW: Well, it is another thing too that I have to qualify, and I'm not absolving responsibility, but it is hard to say what a person's record is because you don't know how many picks they actually made. Their team has a record. Once you've been on the inside of this business it's like being in congress. Sometimes you have a hand on legislation being passed and sometimes you don't. So you don't know but of the things I have done that I can safely say that I was responsible, I would say my biggest drafting mistake would be selecting Kedrick Brown and I will tell you why because I am a great believer in learning from your mistakes.

One, we made a commitment to him early on and asked him to shut it down. I'm very much against commitments. I've been involved in a number of commitments, some have worked out and some haven't. But when you make a commitment, I don't think it is as common now but it did happen alot in the NBA, it precludes all other possibilities. And all the other information may come.

Mike Heisley has a great saying. I asked him, "Mike, you've been very successful, how do you go about decision making? Mike said I don't make a big decision until you have to." Now we don't have to make this decision until the night of the draft. You don't even have to make that decision the day of the draft. You can wait until 10 seconds before you pick if you like. Theirs a guy named Stu Inman, he's passed away but he was the 1st General Manager of the Trailblazers and was the GM when they won the championship, who said "let the draft come to you." So if you sit back, and theirs no need in most cases, why ask a player to shut it down?

So one we made a commitment. I was very close to his college coach. He'd fed me some pretty good players and he was pushing him. Then I went and watched him play. He was a very physical kid. The best junior college kid in the country, but what I didn't take into consideration was the commitment and not checking him out against other players in that environment. These junior college's, like I mentioned before, aren't as strong as they used to be. The game has changed. Kids are now going to prep schools and maintaining their full four years of eligibility. You see virtually no big time junior college players any more that impact the final 16 teams in the NCAA tournament any more or even making an impact in the NBA. Look around the NBA, how many guys are major players that were JUCO? Shawn Marion, Nick Van Exel was one but he's not in the league anymore. I'm hard pressed to think of any.

So I had a guy that was a junior college player but that isn't what you think it is when you break it down. I passed on Richard Jefferson. He's obviously very good right now. He's been a high level player for a long time. Now Richard was a big time high school player. That does mean something. Those players over the years have succeeded in the NBA at a very high level. So here's a guy that played in the National Championship game, I believe Arizona made it that year, was a top 10 high school player versus a player who was a sleeper. I don' think he was first team all-state coming out of high school. He goes to a junior college and becomes a legitimate JUCO star. It's like law school. You have someone coming out of an Ivy league school going for a job in a blue chip firm versus someone from a mail order law school you know.

It's just different. There's a different pedigree, different credentials. So there is a safety net and a much larger margin for error. And in the final thing, it's that 6 to 5 ratio that we talked about before. If you looked at it on no other basis, if Kedrick really hit it how much better would he be than Richard Jefferson? There is no way in hell he's going to be 2 to 1 or 3 to 1 better than Richard. If all that had worked out for him it would be that 6 to 5 ratio. So if that's the case, why not cover your downside and go for a little bit more of a sure thing? If you take the sure thing then you may give up a little bit of the upside but the upside isn't that great to override the sureness of the sure thing. Okay?

3SOB: I have to ask you this, it was reported that you were confused about how the lottery actually worked, if they used ping pong balls. How is it that with your experience you don't know how the lottery actually works?
CW: Well I'd never been backstage before. I'd been back when they explained these things and they had combinations on the wall. I didn't know exactly how they came up with the combinations whether they used ping pong balls or what. This year I went to the drawing and I saw how it happened. Which is kind of ridiculous. Where they are drawing 4 ping pong balls and that gives you one of the 1000 combinations. There's only 14 balls to give you the combination. I had always heard of this ping pong balls but I wasn't sure where the combinations came from until I sat back in that room.

And that is really not a pleasant experience. You're stuck there for over an hour after the drawing is done. They take all of your communication devices before you enter the room. So your stuck there until the lottery results are revealed.

3SOB: Kind of getting away a little bit from the draft, another question I have to ask is we're going to come out of the draft with 2 more players...
CW: We may come out of the draft with 2 or 3 or even none. Who knows how we will utilize those assets? The most likely way is we exercise 5 and 28 but you don't know what will happen.

3SOB: Well either way we are most likely going to end up short of 13 players at the end of the draft. When do you start looking at the players to fill out the roster for next year?
CW: We're evaluating right now. We have been evaluating players all along. After the draft we will have a good idea of who we want to invite back to work out. We will look to fill out the roster in July although we aren't adverse to not having the roster completed by July. Sometimes there are some gems that can drop down in the form of veteran free agents.

In Boston we signed Eric Strickland who helped us win 3 or 4 games. We picked him up the day the season started. I remember that. We picked him up at the airport and I took him to our house and watched the game on TV. He was playing by the 2nd game. That 3 or 4 games may not sound like much but that made the difference in Boston having home court advantage in the first round and that series went to a deciding game. So those wins made the difference between playing that game in Boston or on the road. So if the roster is finalized in July that is fine. If not then we'll keep looking for something to come up that we don't expect.

3SOB: Along those lines, we have a dwindling season ticket base in Memphis. Do you feel pressure to shake up the roster to get people interested again?
CW: We always like to do something big. We don't want to go out and do the same things we did last year. Sure we'd like to do a Kevin Garnett type deal but it isn't very often those deals come along. So we have to keep building the team, showing improvement, maintaining and improving the assets we have and bring more talent into the roster. It a very simple process. The players we have will continue to grow. The young players are people we are excited about down the road. We may take bits and pieces of those players and trade them away for other pieces however. The idea is to continue to develop as a team every day.

3SOB: Way off topic now but I would be remiss if I didn't ask, I know you saw the article last week quoting Mr. Heisley in a way that sounded like you were being blamed for the Gasol trade fallout. I don't know if you read his rebuttal in the CA or our blog. Do you feel like you are on thin ice right now or are you secure in your job?
CW: I saw the article but I haven't seen the rebuttal but I will say this, everybody job in the NBA from the coaches to the front office is on thin ice. You're always as good as your last pick. You don't see many 5-6 year plans anymore in pro sports. The timetable is much shorter. You saw coaches this year in the playoffs get fired. Owners have paid an exorbitant amount of money to own these teams. The are very much operating in the public spotlight. Other than politics there are very few endeavors that put you in the spotlight like sports teams. Fans don't have a tremendous amount of patience. The consumer just doesn't have that kind of patience so you have to do things or they will find someone else to do the job. That is just the facts of life in the NBA. That is our occupational hazard.

3SOB: Are you worried right now that other GM's think you can be had in a deal? That you can be taken advantage of?
CW: No because in the NBA we don't have to say yes to a proposal. We don't have to say yes. Basically you know all the repercussions of a deal so there are almost no secrets. You know the financial data at the time. That's all out in the open. You know how the math works out. You have a pretty good idea of the talent quotient. Nobody really knows the ramifications. The deal may look pretty good at the time. Now over time maybe you have a winner or a loser in a transaction. Some people get hurt. Some players decline but it is not like you are selling someone real estate. It's not like commercial real estate or used cars. You know a lot about these players. You know the financial situation. You don't know what the future holds however. It's a little bit more difficult than that.

That concluded the interview. 3 Shades of Blue wants to thank Chris for his time and openness in helping our readers understand a little bit more of the inner workings of the draft and how he perceives his job. This interview was far less contentious than the Heisley interview despite some difficult questions. Chris is a likable man that you want success for, not only because he runs our favorite team but because you feel an empathy toward Chris. He is the type of person you want success for. With some big workouts this week and the important draft less than three weeks away we appreciate him taking the time to meet with us.

Back in School: The Chris Wallace Interview - Part 3

This is the 3rd part of the exclusive interview Chris Wallace gave 3 Shades of Blue on Friday, June 6th. Part 1 discussed his introduction to the NBA up to his first draft. Part 2 dealt with the draft process and how it has developed.

As in the Michael Heisley interview in April, we are presenting the interview in its entirety and not taking excerpts out to forward any agenda or point of view. We at 3 Shades of Blue hope everyone enjoys the interview and trust our readers to draw whatever conclusions they want from it.

3SOB: Are there certain things about a player's background or play that is a red flag for the you and the Grizzlies? I assume with the preponderance of knowledge about the players games that this backgrounds take greater prevalence.
CW: This is much more important. Some of the things which are red flags are obvious such as substance abuse. You obviously have to be very concerned about that. A police record. If young person is aiming for a pro basketball career and trying to be a good citizen then why do you have rap sheet? But the biggest red flag in my opinion is not having a passion for the game. That it's not an over-riding concern for him. Being a well-rounded person is great for society. The world needs them. What we need is guys that are obsessed with getting better. They have a real passion. They have somewhat of a tunnel vision.

College coaches have more control over kids these players than we do. They are the gate keepers to these kids getting into the NBA. They basically don't have any choice but to get with the program. They also go to school and that takes up a lot of their time. So when they come to us and they sign that contract, They own us in a way. You can't just get rid of people if you want to win. Trades aren't automatic if you make a mistake. Plus they have a lot more free time and money in their pocket than they did when they were in college. We've got them for 3+ hours a day. They are on break for the other 20+ hours. No study halls. No classes they have to attend. Sure there are programs put on by the NBA but they have their money and feel like they've arrived. So if a player comes in with problems just being in the NBA isn't going to be a panacea for their problems. It exacerbates those other problems. So that is why you have to be careful who you get involved with.

At this time of year, so many people have a vested interests in the player going high. Their agent, their college coaches it's good for their programs after all. So people are reluctant to really unload on a kid negatively when you talk to people unless you really know them. And players have had issues in the past. They understand what they did was wrong and being in the NBA, they're motivated to become a great player, they won't do this and that but being in the NBA isn't some magic balm rubbed on their shoulders. It doesn't work that way. And then the outside people who have had such influence over the years, their high school coach, their AAU coach, family members, their college coach, whatever, once these guys are getting paid that impact lessens. So if you have an issue it's not like you can call the college coach to help you solve it. Maybe their mother will but basically you're on your own.

3SOB: The next question builds on this issue, everyone has a red flag. So once you have associated the players red flags how do you sort them to determine who you draft?
CW: There are almost no perfect players. There's either something in the background, injuries, size, a certain matchup they didn't fair well against in college. There's something that you can point to as a negative.

3SOB: So how do you determine I'm going to ignore this red flags and not ignore that one?
CW: That's a good question. It's a bit of a moving target. You give greater allowance for better talent. First of all you look at a player. I'm not concerned if someone says he can play or he can't play to be honest with you. We're trying to have a team that can go far in the playoffs to get a title. That's what this exercise is all about. We're looking for players projected to be of that caliber. That can be rotation players. The Celtics and Lakers in the heydays had non-entities at the end of their benches. That's not what you anticipate but to be a rotation player, if you look at those players, at the top of the page is physical ability. Do they have the athleticism, the size, the matchup at his position because there are very few long term productive tweeners or in between size players in the NBA.

Then you get into the skills. Do they have the outside shot? Can the guy rebound? It's not just athleticism. The basketball component comes into it too. So you check that off. If you got both of those boxes, the size, the appropriate athleticism, the physical makeup, the skill set then I like to resonate to the productivity. There are virtually no players that I can think of that are valuable players that weren't productive at whatever level they are at. Nobody is going to be averaging 1 or 2 points per game for the Memphis Tigers is going to suddenly be able to play in the NBA. A rotation player on a big time team is going to have to produce to climb up the ladder. There's a resume there. So you look at the statistics of them. The statistics can sometimes make liars out of you but after you look at the physical profile, look at what they did as part of a team.

And if at all possible you want somebody from winning programs although there are exceptions to that. Rodney Stuckey is an example. Rodney's a very good player in Detroit but he was on a losing team at Eastern Washington in a very small conference. I think it was the Big Sky and the coach got fired so obviously the administration wasn't happy. There are always exceptions to that rule. It's when you get into the intangibles that all those questions become a concern. Is he a quality person, how's his basketball IQ, have there ever been any issues off the court and then the big one with me is does he like to play? As the Patriots say if it's a football player, how important is football to his life? Well how important is basketball?

So when all that lines up then we really got something. Most cases it doesn't all line up. So now you have to take out the negatives and evaluate how egregious are the negatives. There's no exact formula for that. Some cases you say 'okay I understand why this happened.' Maybe this system didn't use him to the best advantage but to be great that whole tower has to line up.

One other thing to, the great players, you don't have to study, watch film, spend hours on the work to figure out who is going to be great. Those players stand out. I think you should be able to tell within 10-15 minutes. I watched Kobe Bryant play and I could tell after 2-3 times up the court that this guy is going to be special. Kevin Garnett when he was young, Alonzo Mourning. These guys stand out so noticeable from their peers, even to the casual fan.

3SOB: I guess I don't have that eye because I remember the Nike Hoop Summit a couple of years ago when Saer Sene stood out to me. I remember thinking once this guys figures things out he is going to be dominant.
CW: See now you have a big if. Is he going to figure that out? That is the problem. Will he learn offense and how to play? It seems simple to master basketball when you watch from the outside. You get a coach and shoot free throws over and over you will get better. But at this level of competition despite all the good intentions, sometimes you just don't get any better. And I have found that if you don't have a good feel for the game early on then you probably aren't going to develop that later on.

See it's different than in football. In football you can be a great physical specimen and you passed the ability to play the position then you're probably going to be pretty good. In our game it is a little more difficult. It's not enough to have that one skill, like shot blocking. You still have to, if you want stay on the court along time, to be able to add value. The guys who can produce in this league hit all of the bases. You have to be someone who doesn't consistently make mistakes. There is a whole feel for the game aspect that is a skill.

to be continued...

Back in School: The Chris Wallace Interview - Part 2

This is the continuation of an interview Chris Wallace gave exclusively to 3 Shades of Blue. The first part of the interview began with his Blue Ribbon Basketball Digest up to the point he made his first real pick in the draft.

As in the Michael Heisley interview in April, we are presenting the interview in it's entirety and not taking excerpts out to forward any agenda or point of view. We at 3 Shades of Blue hope everyone enjoys the interview and trust our readers to draw whatever conclusions they want from it.

3SOB: So you would say your first hand picked player was Kevin Gamble. Now he ended up playing for the Celtics didn't he? Was he there when you were there?
CW: He played for the Celtics, Kings, the Miami Heat. He was a journeyman but he had a good career though. Now I did a total of three years with them with the amount of traveling I did and responsibilities growing. Then I went to the Denver Nuggets. I lasted there 8 months. Jon Spoelstra took me to the Nuggets with him when became President of the team. He got fired 3 months into a 4 year contract.

3SOB: Was there a change of ownership or what?
CW: No. He came in with new ownership and there was a controversy about a player that got signed, Blair Rasmussen. He was signed to a very hefty salary at the time for a center especially at his level. The General Manager said Jon had signed and Jon said the General Manager did it and it became a kind of hot potato. And he ended up getting fired. So I had just moved out there. I had no contract. I don't know anyone. Lasted eight months there before they brought in a new management team and I got fired. Then I went back to West Virginia and did some work on my magazine and did some work on basketball litigation and I worked for the Clippers and New York for two years on a part time basis out of West Virginia.

The Knicks situation was different because I talked them into, in 1991 or 92 at the beginning of European scouting, sending me to Europe to scout every European and American player playing abroad for 3 weeks. So I got a 3 week trip out of it. It was in Denver, the most important thing I did there, I took my first European trip. I scouted Toni Kukoc when I was there. So with that experience and what I had before it really sparked an interest in international scouting which has become a passion. Then in December of 1993 I went to the Miami Heat.

3SOB: Now when you went to Miami you are no longer just that guy somebody hired. You went there as a major player.
CW: Well I didn't really go there as a major player. I mean everyone involved is a major player because it's not that big. Even a team with the most extensive staff is still a small number of people. It's just a small world and the impetus to make a pick can come from any part of that. Scouts drive it. General Managers drive it. Coaches can come in and drive it. It's really hard to explain unless you've been in it but often there is not a clear cut pipeline like there is in other businesses.

Certain companies may have a research department come up with something and it gets moved to the top, then accounting people come and so on and it's a well defined process. We have all the names in the draft, or virtually all the names - some get added on along the way, then the lives of these players inside the personnel department kind of take a life of their own. This year the General Manager may drive it a bit, another year some guy from the scouts like an international scout might be particularly excited about a player and he drives it. So the ideas and the momentum for the choices come from all over the organization.

3SOB: Well do the Grizzlies have an extensive scouting group?
CW: Yeah we do and you have to understand the difference between our endeavor and football or baseball. You don't have the volume of players these other sports do. For example, baseball has a draft that involves college players as well as high school players that we don't have anymore in the NBA. Baseball also doesn't have an international draft I believe. So the Red Sox, Dodgers and Braves are in fierce competition in places like the Dominican Republic and Venezuela for the next great 15 year old shortstop. So that takes a tremendous amount of manpower with the farm clubs and all. To get ready for some 60 round draft with college and high school players and then stay ahead of the competition in Latin America and the volume of signings of 15 and 16 year olds signing hundreds of them and hope you uncover that next one or two gems.

So there's no way one person would have the familiarity to assess that talent pool and be able to make a decision. In football there obviously more players than even in baseball much less basketball. In football there is only about 13-14 games to judge players in. There is no AAU football. Some players may not even play for 2-3 years too. Players like Willie Parker for the Steelers. He's a star running back now but only gained like 4-500 yards his whole college career. He wasn't even a starter. That's not happening in the NBA. Some guy who's a very minor player and doesn't even start until maybe his last year and doesn't have numbers goes on to become a starter on an NBA team isn't going to happen.

So these other sports don't have the benefit of common competition that we have in the NBA. See these guys play AAU ball. Now we can't go watch them now but you hear about who the best guys are. You know who the best guys are in Memphis, Baltimore and Detroit. These kids rise to the top of the draft. Anyone who looks at the 2008 draft, if you read the internet and read the publications you knew who these guys were since they were 15 or 16 years old. They were separated from their peers. So the top guys in basketball tend to stay in the top. In football picking the top high school guys is more difficult because they may not make it in college. So these other sports have a much larger task as far as the numbers are concerned and they don't get to see the players compete that often.

You know if you went out and tried to scout football games you would find it difficult to see many games. I mean they play some on Thursdays now and maybe you can find a way to see 2 games in person on Saturday but you can't take in many games. We can see games from November all the way through the NCAA tournament almost every night. Thanks to TV we see a lot more in the way of competition with inter-sectional games and pre-season tournaments, post season tournaments so the guys we are looking at go up against each other more often than in football.

We only draft 60 players. Every year there are probably 75 or 80 players that can go in that 60. These other sports you are looking at hundreds. So what I'm getting at is we don't have, or I don't think we have, as arduous a task to see these players. This is where the mechanics of the job take place. You know who the guys are in this game. I mean you can just go off of mock drafts from the beginning of the college season on. You may not have them in the same order but you would have 2/3rds of the lottery. I mean everyone knew O J Mayo was going inside the lottery. Derick Rose, Beasley. They are out there early.

And what also has happened which makes the job easier is the dispersion of this talent. There aren't many NBA players who didn't come from high profile Division 1 schools. The junior college player has virtually dried up. There are almost no small college players of any significance. The historic black schools just aren't putting the players out they used to. The Willis Reed's, the Earl Monroe's, the Bobby Dandridge's. It just doesn't happen anymore. I don't know if there are any NAIA ball players in the league anymore. Maybe Devon George might be an NAIA player. That's like 1 guy out of 400 something players. The Juco players or players coming out of JUCO to Division 1 schools, that has come to a halt. So what we are dealing with is basically big time high school players who came out of the BCS conferences with minor exceptions and the high level European players. So you don't have to go out and beat the bushes like you used to do. We're not trying to outfox the experts for the next great player out of Uzbekistan. These are all known players.

So our object is not discovery. It is catagorizing. Getting those known players in the right order. Now that's no small feat. If you look back at past drafts you'll see that a lot of times the names are all upside down. Every team in the NBA has blown many drafts. Partly because it is an inexact science at best and more I think because of the decision making and the outside stimulas in the process more than people just don't know talent. So my point is having more people, a large group, doesn't neccessarily lend to a better result. Take the top 10 and there are at most 12-13 players being considered for those spots. Everybody knows who they are. The most casual fan can name them because outside of Gallinari they are all branded players. Now the trick is getting them in the right order.

Since I've been in the NBA, which is more than 20 years, there has never been so much manpower devoted to talent aquisition as there is now. More travel, greater use of technology yet the end result is not any better than it was 20 years ago.

to be continued...Part 3

Back in School: The Chris Wallace Interview - Part 1

This is the first of a multi part interview conducted with Chris Wallace on Friday, June 6th.

Chris Wallace is approaching his one year anniversary as Vice-President and General Manager of the Memphis Grizzlies basketball team. It has been a turbulent year to put it mildly. Chris was the handpicked successor of Jerry West. If that isn't troubling enough, Chris took over a team that had failed to make the playoffs for the first time after 3 successive trips, had the star player reportedly unhappy and requesting a trade and had just lost out on the opportunity to draft a franchise player in the upcoming draft. One year later the team again failed to make the playoffs, the star player is gone in a highly controversial trade and the owner seems to be intent on cutting costs while possibly expressing displeasure with Wallace's performance.

So with all of this surrounding him Chris agreed to sit down with 3 Shades of Blue to discuss his views on the draft and how to appraise players starting from his days writing the acclaimed Blue Ribbon College Basketball Digest up to the present. Chris was very open and informative.

As in the Michael Heisley interview in April, we are presenting the interview in it's entirety and not taking excerpts out to forward any agenda or point of view. We at 3 Shades of Blue hope everyone enjoys the interview and trust our readers to draw whatever conclusions they want from it.

3SOB: What got you started writing the Blue Ribbon Basketball Digest?
CW: I didn't have anything else to do at the time. I had no career path that I was on. I liked basketball...alot. I liked the idea. I could write a little bit. I'm not really a writer but I can organize facts and so I just got this crazy notion one day reading a Smith & Streets basketball magazine. Which was really a harebrained idea because I had never worked for a publication. never did any writing on the school newspaper in high school. I knew nothing about marketing, advertising.

Anytime a new magazine it is usually launched from editors from the Washington Post or the like. They get funding. There is a prototype and there is probably a 24 month period before it is brought out. Mine was out in about 5 months. So it was quite an interesting endeavor.

3SOB: How did you know who to write about?
CW: I knew the college teams alright. I got the information, put my opinions in, did some research and away we went.

3SOB: So it was kind of like starting a blog in that way.
CW: Well you have to realize it was very difficult. There are over 300 teams out there. You have to get the schedules together. You have to get basic information from the schools and research from people. So it was quite an endeavor. Let's put it this way, I have no desire to be involved in a magazine again. After that I'm burned out.

3SOB: Well how many years did you do it?
CW: I don't even know the exact number. Let me think about it. I started in 1981. Probably the last time I ever touched it was in 1997-98. I did it completely up until 1996. About 15 years. Then I just read some stories and edited it.

3SOB: And from there you went to scouting right?
CW: I was scouting and doing that at the same time. I'm working for the Miami Heat in office. I'm like the 3rd person in the front office after Lewis Chavell and Billy Cunningham and the owner and part-owner of the team. It wasn't an extensive operation like you seen now. There was a very small number of people. So I did that and at night and on the weekends I am doing my magazine. I just about drove myself crazy doing that.

3SOB: So you started with Miami?
CW: No, I started with the Portland Trailblazers. That was in 1986. I worked for several teams before Miami. I was with the Portland Trailblazers before Paul Allen owned the team.

3SOB: What did it entail being a scout back in 1986?
CW: My first job with them was to do research on players, background stuff. It's amazing the little twists of fate that happen in life. I would never have been hired by the Portland Trailblazers, maybe not the NBA, if it wasn't for the controversial draft back in 1986. So many of the players had problems of the court like Len Bias, Chris Washburn, William Bedford and Roy Tarpley. The Portland Trailblazers that year drafted Walter Berry out of St. Johns. There was a tremendous dissatisfaction within the organization with that pick the day after the draft when they first met Walter and had a news conference with him. Tremendous dissatisfaction. So they were looking for something different and I got hired. So their misfortune and the misfortune of others became my good fortune because they were looking for something different. If Walter Berry had been great there wouldn't have been that motivation to try something different. And I got hired by a guy named Jon Spoelstra. He's the father of Eric Spoelstra who just got hired as the Head Coach of the Miami Heat.

Jon's role was similar to what Andy Dolich's was in that he was in charge of all the business. He ran everything but basketball operations. He eventually became the #2 stock holder because the owners kept giving him stock. He started to feel empowered. He called me and said I want to try something different. I knew his name because he was buying 30 books of mine a year. And I didn't just do the magazine as far as editing; I also went to the post office and took the orders down. He was buying 30. Now back then there were no computers so I had a shoe box with people's names so I knew who he was buying 30. I knew his name. So 5 minutes into the conversation back in December taking his order he says 'I'm going to try something a little different and I want you to come work for us. I had never even considered working in the NBA.

What I didn't realize was, at the time I knew nothing about the inner workings of an NBA team, the business guy doesn't hire basketball people. He just went out and did this and told the basketball guys later about it. Maybe that would never happen again so I was quite fortunate.

3SOB: So you started in 1986 and the first draft you were involved in was 1987 then. Who did Portland take that year and how much input did you have?
CW: Well they mainly wanted me for the background. I did extensive reports on a wide variety of people. I went out and saw some games but back then I wasn't making a whole lot of money, about $9000. They just wanted the background so when I went to college games on my own and had to pay for them. I did a big report on Ronnie Murphy out of Jacksonville. About him on the non-basketball side of it. It was quite extensive and critical but they went ahead and drafted him anyway. He didn't pan out. Which helped me inside the organization.

So we had a 1st round pick in Ronnie Murphy and that didn't work out. In the early second they had a SEC parlay with Ernie White from Tennessee [sic] and Nikita Wilson from LSU. Now the draft lasted 7 rounds back then. So once you got past the 2nd round people really weren't that obsessed about the draft. So [the person] running the draft left the room and told me 'I have some things to do. If I don't get back make the pick.' There was just me, the secretary and a phone line to New York. The pick came up and I took Kevin Gamble out of Iowa who ended up playing for 10 or so years.

So the GM came back about the middle of the 4th round and asked if I made a pick. I said 'yeah I took Kevin Gamble' and he said 'Oh great.'

to be continued...Part 2