Comparing to the Celtics (or Ridiculousness to Pass the Time)

Two seasons ago, the Memphis Grizzlies and Boston Celtics "fought" to the wire for the title of "worst team in the NBA" in order to garner the best shot at the two "no doubt future superstars" in the draft in the form of Greg Oden and Kevin Durant. Alas, their "efforts" were all for naught, as both finished outside of the top 3 positions in the draft, slated #4 and #5 respectively. As we all know, the Celtics didn't sit idly by, but were very active, as they traded away their younger assets for the services of two veterans -- Ray Allen and Kevin Garnett. Those moves helped them to surround longtime Celtic Paul Pierce with enough talent to not only make the postseason, but to do so with the best record in the NBA and go on to win the NBA Championship this year. However, there was also another key acquisition that spurred the Celtics on to title aspirations. That was the hiring of a new assistant coach.

Enter Tom Thibodeau. In his 18 seasons of being an assistant coach in the NBA, his team has finished in the Top 10 in overall defense 14 times. He is a defensive specialist -- that is what he does. Of course, at the time of his hiring, many wondered if he was simply the "coach in waiting" for Doc Rivers, who was perceived to be a lame duck by many. Any of this sound familiar yet? It sure does to me, in light of the way that many people received the news that Kevin O'Neill was being hired for the purpose of bolstering the Grizzlies' defense. There was rampant talk of the move "undermining Coach Marc Iavaroni" and that O'Neill was just in place to be "the next head coach" once Ivy was let go. Unfortunately for all those people -- some of whom just love to stir up trouble -- the fact is that O'Neill was brought in with Iavaroni's full endorsement. We've gone over that issue before, but it bears repeating as we gear up for the season. Marc Iavaroni wants Kevin O'Neill on his staff. Period. End of discussion.


With that out of the way, I wondered if there were any parallels to the champs that we could draw, besides the coaching labels: Doc Rivers = Marc Iavaroni in the "Supposed Lame Duck" category (vastly overstated IMO); Tom Thibodeau = Kevin O'Neill in the "Hard-nosed Defensive Specialist/Coach-in-waiting" category. Since the first two examples were in the coaching staff, I decided to look at it from the perspective of leadership/attitude. So the next few comparisons are based upon that idea, not position, game type or skillset.

Kevin Garnett = O.J. Mayo

KG (or Mr. Intensity) is the unquestioned emotional leader of the Celtics. He is the guy that gets everyone else fired up and has no issue with getting in someone's face and screaming like a banshee if they aren't as into the game as he wants them to be. Rudy Gay is not that guy. Mike Conley hasn't shown that he will be that guy. I believe that Ovinton J'Anthony Mayo just might be that guy though. He has that certain presence that defies categorization beyond the label of "born leader". If anyone on this young team is going to take that initial step towards being the unquestioned emotional leader, I think that Mayo is the most likely choice.

Paul Pierce = Mike Conley

The Truth leads by example. He's not big on displays of emotion, preferring to let his actions speak for themselves. While KG is raw emotional intensity, Pierce possesses a quiet fury that bubbles just below the surface. In that same manner, Conley isn't a guy that gets into his teammates faces (not yet, anyways), but he carries himself like someone who knows what needs to be done and then goes out and does it. He could prove to be the on-the-court leader that the Grizzlies need as they mature over the season. Only time will tell.

Ray Allen = Rudy Gay

Jesus Shuttlesworth is one of the best 2nd fiddles in the league. The fact that he is a 3rd option for Boston makes him one of the best #3 men in the history of the NBA. While he's not a leader in terms of emotion or an "on-the-floor coach", he is an absolute assassin when the need arises. He puts up big numbers when the team needs a lift and has no issue with the ball being in his hands as the clock winds down to 0.0 with the game on the line. Rudy Gay is a lot like that to this point in his career. Whether it is scoring in bunches throughout the game or hitting deep 3's late in the 4th quarter to bring his team back from the brink of defeat, he has shown himself to be a clutch performer so far in his young career. Like Ray Allen, he is best suited to be the sidekick due to his approach to the game, but what a talent to have as the #2 option.

I could go on and on, making further comparisons like Kendrick Perkins = Marc Gasol/Darko Milicic, but I think we've covered the important parts. This is not to say that the Grizzlies are going to even come close to making the playoffs next season, much less contend for a title, but the makeup in terms of personality and attitude is there for them to show some improvement. If their talent level can reach even 75% of the players I have compared them to, they might just reach Tsunami Status a lot sooner than anyone expects. Wouldn't that be a nice surprise?

Will the Grizzlies Find Leadership? - Part 2

The leaders who work most effectively, it seems to me, never say "I." And that's not because they have trained themselves not to say "I." They don't think "I." They think "we"; they think "team." They understand their job to be to make the team function. They accept responsibility and don't sidestep it, but "we" gets the credit. This is what creates trust, what enables you to get the task done.
Peter Drucker

In the first part of the blog I talked about the need for leadership on the team and how the major front office players are viewed as leaders in my eyes. It wasn't exactly complimentary but I did feel it was honest. In this part I am approaching leadership from the players perspective. While strong management leadership is needed on any team, it is ultimately the players on the court who have to take command. Dwight D. Eisenhower may have been calling the shots during WWII but it still took the soldiers in the field to win the war.

The most dangerous leadership myth is that leaders are born -- that there is a genetic factor to leadership. This myth asserts that people simply either have certain charismatic qualities or not. That's nonsense; in fact, the opposite is true. Leaders are made rather than born.
Warren G. Bennis

So how do you build leadership? Is it a skill you can develop like a hook shot? If so what lessons are the current Grizzlies learning to develop their capacity to be leaders?

This could be one of the largest roadblocks in developing leadership on the team. Most teams consider their point guard to be the team leader but that is difficult to expect right now on the Grizzlies. Kyle Lowry and Mike Conley share duties and both are inexperienced in the NBA. To be the type of leader who can set personal examples that player needs to be on the court when tough times are happening. By rotating players the message is being sent that the staff doesn't have confidence in one player to fill that role. Leaders can't be on the bench in crunch time. Until Memphis establishes who their point guard is and give him the ball for more than half the game leadership won't come from that position.

"Before you are a leader, success is all about growing yourself. When you become a leader, success is all about growing others."
Jack Welch

Rudy Gay has been described as the leader of the team in the past. However I question whether that was really the case. It seemed to me that Rudy Gay was still developing his own game more than elevating the game of those around him. That is not to say that Rudy can't become a leader on this team. He has the personality, the looks and the talent to gain the respect of his teammates. He now must learn how to take those talents to the next level and develop the team to a higher level around him.

Rudy Gay will enter training camp as clearly the best veteran player on the team but just being the best doesn't make you a leader on the team. Rudy is going to have to find a way to implement himself into that role both offensively and defensively. Rudy will need to become a better passer, a better on-court communicator and most importantly a better one on one defender. Players don't lead who don't pass, defend or guide the team. Rudy's individual skills may enable him to be the go-to shooter at the end of games but to reach the next level Rudy needs to make everyone on the team better not just himself. He is only 22 and just starting his 3rd season so there is still hope he can become that type of player.

"If a rhinoceros were to enter this restaurant now, there is no denying he would have great power here. But I should be the first to rise and assure him that he had no authority whatever."
G.K. Chesterton

The only player on the Grizzlies who has a history of being a leader on the court is Antoine Walker. That is a scary thought but it is also true. Antoine Walker was the emotional leader of a Boston Celtice team that reached the Eastern Conference Finals. He was not the leader on the Miami Heat team that won the NBA Championship.

Therein lies the potential and problem of Antoine Walker. At 31 Walker has NBA skills. He has a history of success in the league. He has the ring on his finger. What he doesn't have is respect. Walker is the proverbial bull in the china shop. He has been a whirlwind of controversy at many of his stops. When focused on playing basketball there are few players capable of doing things as well as Walker. The question has always been if basketball is the primary focus of his life.

This is likely Walker final stop if he doesn't show that dedication to the game. On this young team Walker could be a strong influence on the Grizzlies. One can only hope that Walker takes the opportunity to use that influence for the good of the team.

"The task of the leader is to get his people from where they are to where they have not been."
Henry Kissinger

Oventin J'Anthony Mayo has been described as a leader his entire basketball career. He leads by example, working harder than anyone else on the team. He leads by action, being more than willing to set up teammates for success as much wanting to take the shot himself. He leads by his mind, convincing himself that he can be the best by learning from those around him. He exhibits the traits people look for in a leader.

However, he is a 21 yr old rookie in the NBA. Will he be able to connect on a level that others will listen and follow him? O J Mayo was acquired on draft night for that express purpose. Wallace and most of the Grizzlies brass felt O J brought more of the innate ability to lead than Kevin Love or Mike Miller. They are willing to wait for him to grow into that role but they don't feel they will have to wait long. After all OJ Mayo is an adult. He may have just finished his freshman year at USC but he is more mature than many players in the league today (and older than some of his 'veteran' teammates as well). If there is anyone on the team who looks to be the 'natural' leader on the team it is Mayo.

Of course this team's on court leader may come from somewhere else. Darko Milicic, Marc Gasol, Darrell Arthur or even Javaris Crittenton could develop into the player that the team revolves around. One thing is for certain, the team needs to find their leader and fast.

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....

Looking for Leadership

Why do young teams, such as the Memphis Grizzlies, struggle so much? Is it a lack of experience? The need for a "pecking order" to be established amongst the players? The search for a franchise player to carry them? Personally, I think that it is all those things, plus one more thing that helps to remedy many of those problems: leadership.

After reading Adrian Wojnarowski's article on Yahoo! Sports about the Chicago Bulls' players telling interim coach Jim Boylan that F/C Joakim Noah deserved another game off due to his tirade towards an assistant coach, it made things even more apparent that I've been on the right track in pinpointing the Grizzlies primary problem. He also mentions the mistake that Knicks GM/head coach Isiah Thomas made after polling his players about what to do with PG Stephon Marbury after he refused to show up to a game after being told that he would not be starting. The players said that Starbury should be benched for the forseeable future. Thomas responded by playing Marbury 34 minutes in the next game.

One coach responded by allowing his team to do what was best for the team as a whole. The other caved in to a petulant player who has done nothing to make his team better since his arrival. Both the Bulls and Knicks lack leadership right now -- mostly in the form of on-court leadership from a good player capable of making big plays and keeping the team on track during difficult times. Not so coincidentally, the Grizzlies have been looking for a player like that recently, too.

How does a team acquire a leader though? I posed this question on a few different message boards over the past couple of weeks and got a variety of answers, many of which advocated trading for or signing a "proven leader". No one was able to tell me why a player of that caliber would be available through either of those channels. After all, didn't the Bulls sign Ben Wallace hoping that he would be the leader who carried them to postseason success? Perhaps Big Ben just wasn't quite the leader everyone perceived him to be? That's the conclusion I drew....before the signing even took place. But that's a story for another day.

It seems to me that the only way to acquire a "true leader" is by drafting that player. Perhaps you draft a player that makes his teammates better, doesn't get rattled under pressure, is lauded for his "maturity beyond his years" persona, is trusted by the coaching staff and can be counted on to make the right decision 95% of the time. If that player has the potential to be one of the very best at his respective position in the league, then chances are you've got a leader that teammates are going to follow into Hell and back, no matter what he asks of them. Does Memphis have a player like that on their roster? I believe they do, although it might take a couple of years for him to reveal himself. Some things are worth waiting on though.

Links: Leadership, Pranica in the Big Easy, Dance Team

Former NBA player Eddie Johnson (Kings, Suns, SuperSonics, Hornets, Pacers, Nuggets and Rockets -- he's been around) is currently blogging for Hoopshype. His post today is titled "Leaders among players are hard to find." In it, he mentions the Memphis Grizzlies as one of the teams that is foundering due to a lack of leadership among those actually lacing up their sneakers. Here's what he had to say:

Memphis Grizzlies
Pau Gasol needs to play up to his potential and stop trying to jump ship. That attitude will not allow him to lead the team, where he is presumably the best player. The Grizzlies have very good young talent, but like the Bulls will need to find a leader that can allow Marc Iavaroni to have a solid year evaluating his team and at least get them close to the potential he expects.

I'm not in disagreement with his assessment of Memphis being a team in need of on-court leadership -- I just don't think that Pau Gasol will ever be that guy. It's not really what I consider a fault -- it just isn't part of Pau's personality to be that guy and likely never will be. If he were part of the future of the team, I believe that Damon Stoudamire would embrace that role. But he isn't, so he is unlikely to contribute in that way this season unfortunately. In all likelihood, this team won't get its "leader" until Michael Conley is the unquestioned starter. He was the floor general for Ohio State as a freshman in leading them to the NCAA title game and I fully expect him to do the same thing here in Memphis. So get well soon Michael -- we need you out on the floor!

Pete Pranica has a new blog post up today titled "New Orleans in the Morning". It is a heartfelt look at the citizens of N'awlins and the dwindling fanbase capable of supporting the Hornets. As always, it is a fantastic read that I highly recommend.


The big news of the day is that the Grizzlies Dance Team section is finally up and running on Grizzlies.com with new photos and dancer bios. As you may remember, we were fortunate enough to interview two former dance team members and truly appreciate the hard work that these young women do to provide entertainment at the games. You can view those interviews and pictures by following these links: Ashley Nations and Terah Chin.

Website/Blog of the Day: PhDribble

Lead the Way

In a recent Q&A session with Eddie Sefko of the Dallas Morning News, Dallas Mavericks coach Avery Johnson had the following exchange:

What does Dirk Nowitzki have to do this year to improve on an MVP season?

Dirk can get better, and there are some things that Dirk can improve in that may not be basketball-related. It may be leadership-related. Dirk can get better on and off the court. And that's why I've been stretching him. He's the reigning MVP, and if he's not willing to be stretched by his coach, then he never would have improved. So he's willing to be stretched. And his stretching may not be necessarily on the court, but it may be in the area of leadership, and we're willing to help him get better in that area.

In case you didn't catch that, allow me to spell it out for you: Avery Johnson believes that Dirk hasn't been the leader of his team to this point. Here's what Mavericks blogger Tim McMahon had to say in response to this:

Dirk's off-the-charts work ethic sets a tone for this team, but he does not have a take-charge personality. Not sure how that's going to change a decade into his career.

The reason that I bring this up is because I see yet another parallel between Dirk Nowitzki and Pau Gasol. Both players have been recognized as the best players on their respective teams for several seasons and have the stats to back up that claim. While Nowitzki has had more postseason success (arguably due to a far superior supporting cast to this point), their careers have followed similar arcs as two of the premier international players in the NBA today. However, with the levels of success that both of them have achieved, there has been a widespread perception that even though they are the best players on their teams, they are not their team's leader.

I realize that you can lead a team in many different ways. There is the obvious example of being a vocal leader who not only encourages teammates and exhorts them to raise their level of play, but also criticizes them when necessary and is someone who commands the respect of his entire team (example: Steve Nash). Next, there is the clutch leader -- the guy who takes control of a game, demands the ball when a score is needed and relishes pressure (example: Kobe Bryant). Then, there is the consumate leader. He is the player who does both things listed above and finds ways to win games, even if it means letting others take the big shot (example: Michael Jordan, Tim Duncan). There have been times over the past two seasons that Dirk has been either a vocal leader or a clutch leader, but not consistently enough for him to be considered a true leader of his team. When he criticizes his teammates ,it always seems to be in the wrong manner, often by using the media to deliver his statements, which creates problems in the locker room. In the same way, Pau has hit game-winning shots for his team and has encouraged his teammates in tough situations, but has also been quoted in Spanish newspapers (some of questionable repute) asking for a trade or complaining about the supporting cast the front office has provided. These are not the traits of a true consumate leader (you listening Kobe?), because what that does is create disharmony amongst the team, the organization and the fans. By doing things in this manner, Pau and Dirk have undermined their own leadership of their teams.

As ChipC3 said to me earlier today, a team without a leader is like a foot without a big toe. Without the big toe, it is impossible to even maintain balance, much less walk in a straight line. For the Mavericks and Grizzlies to reach the full potential of their respective talent levels, someone will have to step up and captain their ships. O Captain! My Captain!