Another Report about Warrick's Improvements

The Commercial Appeal has another article about Warrick's development over the summer.

Not much new information in the article, just further details about Warrick's workouts this summer.

There's also talk about Warrick's position as a tweener between the two forward spots. The big question will be whether he can guard small forwards on the perimeter. While he's thrived at power forward during the preseason, there may not be much future there with Gasol's return in a couple of months.

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Cardinal is Back

Reports from the Grizzlies' camps say Cardinal's knee injury midway through the preseason wasn't a lapse related to his injury last season, and he should be ready to go when the regular season begins Wednesday.

Contribution from Cardinal will b huge, not only because of the loss of Gasol, but also because he's another asset that the Grizz couldn't count on last year that can mkae up for the losses of Battier, Wright, and Jackson.

Commercial Appeal Link

ESPN Previews the Grizz Season

ESPN.com's contributors have given their predictions for the Grizz this year. In about three sentences each, the contributors pretty much all said the same thing: Pau's absense will prevent the Grizz from making the playoffs. Analysts also mention the loss of veteren players (for nothing in return), and the potential retirement of Jerry West as setbacks for the team.

Personally, I think it's too early to tell if the additions of Rudy Gay and Swift will make up for the loss of Battier and Wright. If they do, that will only leave Bobby Jackson's loss as significant, and I'm ready to grant that the addition of Atkins and Lowry behind Stoudemire won't make up for that loss.

Only Greg Anthony seems positive about the Grizz' chances.

On the other end, Chris Broussard says that the Grizz only won last year with 'smoke and mirrors', and Chris Sheridan ads this: 'Memo to Brian Davis: If your purchase of the team goes through, see what you can get for Pau Gasol. He's already fulfilled his career goal of winning a World Championship for Spain. The Grizz are just his day job.'

Not sure either of these 'critiques' have much meaning, but they sound catchy.

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Grizz Donate $$$

According to the Commercial Appeal, the Grizzlies just donated a quarter of a million to local charities. The article quotes states that the Grizzlies are one of the most charitable sports teams and the article goes on to list the local charities to which the Grizzlies have donated.

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Stern Hasn't Seen Complete Davis Proposal

According to the Commercial Appeal, Davis hasn't submitted his complete proposal to purchase the Grizz from Majority owner Michael Heisley yet.

Davis has been somewhat quite since his not so quite press conference this summer where he announced his intentions to purchase.

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Grizz Redesign Homepage

Check out the new look:

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Gasol also a bust

According to CNNSI's predictive equation's Gasol will also have a bad year due to his broken foot.

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But rookie Rudy Gay will benefit from Gasol's absense.

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E Jones to drop off this season

It seems that all predictions about the Grizzlies are about how they won't be as good this year as they were last.

Kelly Dwyer at CNNSI says that Eddie Jones will have a drop off in his production this season. The last two seasons have seen a significant drop-off in Eddie's production, but it wouldn't be surprising if there was a further drop-off this season, though I wouldn't bet on a significant drop-off from last years 11 ppg average.

Dwyer also said the Grizz were thin at the guard position. I'm not sure how having Stoudemire, Atkins, Jones, Miller, D Jones, and Lowry who can effectively all play at least one guard position makes them 'desperate for guard help'.

Miller alone can play 30 plus minutes at the two guard, but he won't have to while sharing minutes with E Jones who should be about to play at least 20 better than adequately. While D Jones hasn't proven to be consistent for an entire season, he can make up for Miller's defensive deficiencies and contribute off the bench.

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Wells returns to practice

According to Insidehoops, former Grizz forward Bonzi Wells who left the team on a bad note practiced with the Rockets for the first time since joining the team this summer. He was out for personal reasons.


"Bonzi Wells returned to the Rockets' practice court Tuesday. When he will be ready to be on the court for a regular-season game, however, is as unclear as why he left in the first place." Houston Chronicle

"Wells practiced with the Rockets for the first time since he was excused from practices last Friday, then missed three days of practices and Sunday's game and shootaround. Wells would not say why he needed time off, saying only that the reasons were "personal." But he said he would be ready to play by the Rockets' Nov. 1 season opener at Utah." Houston Chronicle

Grizz defeat 92-82

The Grizzlies won their last preseason game, again with 5 players in double figures. Gay led the team with 16 and D Jones added 15 and 9 rebounds.

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Grizz on the decline

According to Paul Forrester at CNNSI, the Grizz are one of two teams that won't be as good this year as they were last year.

Forrester cites Gasol's injury and the youth movement as the major reasons for the decline. However, he also states that the Grizz are the most underrated team.

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Bulls defeat Grizz 87-84

Miller scored 23 though he was 1-7 from 3. Jake had 5 fouls and 2 points. Gay and Stoudemire also shot poorly, but according the Commercial Appeal, the team improved.

CA Link

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Warrick and Roberts impress team

The Commercial Appeal has an article stating the Warrick and Roberts have been the most impressive in this years camp. Warrick has improved his offense and aggressiveness from his rookie campaign while Roberts has continued to show his desire to rebound every ball.

Also, apparently Fratello refers to Hakim Warrick as 'Hak'.

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Kinsey and Harrington battle for last spot

The Commercial Appeal has an article about the battle for the Grizz's last roster spot between guards, Kinsey and Harrington. Barring injury neither will see much playing time behind the guards that the Grizz already have, so it makes me wonder, why spend a guaranteed minimum on these players rather than waiting for an injury, when players who are just as good will be out on the market?

The only explanation I see is to keep someone who is familiar with the plays and has been practicing with the team as a backup. I still can't help but think someone will be available if there's a serious injury, just as Atkins was availalbe last year.

Also the article mentioned that Swift is out again with a knee injury. Hopefully, this is just preventative and he'll be ready when the season starts.

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Burks Arrested

Former Grizz third string Point guard Antonio Burks was arrested for not paying a speeding ticket in Memphis suburb, Germantown.

He was recently released by the Heat after playing with them during training camp.

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Stoudemire Knee?

Here's another article about Musselman's arrest. At the bottom, it mentions that Stoudemire missed Saturday's game because the coaching staff saw 'no reason' to play him two days in a row. It also says the team has been silent about Stoudemire's knee since training camp began, but that he'll play in the last two Grizz preseason games, which are back to back.

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Musselman Arrested for Drunk Driving

Former Grizzlies Assistant Coach Eric Musselman was arrested for drunk driving after a preseason win. He's apologized, and rmains the Kings' Head Coach.

I thought he was being groomed to takeover for Fratello, but he left Memphis this summer. Perhaps leaving Memphis drove him to the bottle.

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Griz lose 112 - 89 to Magic

The Grizz lost big to the Magic. Few Grizzlies actually played in the game. Mostly rookies and younger players played with Jake, Atkins, and Swift. The young guys had a rough game.

Commercial Appeal

Official Site

Gasol Commercial

CA article about Grizz win over Heat

The Commercial Appeal has published its review of the Grizz win over the Heat. Highlights include Swifts warm reception after a year with the Rockets and fewer turnovers than in their previous games.

Also, Fratello would like to see Gay decrease his 3 point attempts and increase his free throw attempts.

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Posey, Williams have moved on

Insidehoops reports this about former Grizz, Williams and Posey:

"When the Heat won the NBA championship last summer, guard Jason Williams had a message for anyone with the Memphis Grizzlies responsible for trading him. "Bonzi Wells [now with Houston], James Posey and I are not cancers! We're not cancers!" Williams said in a delirious Heat locker room. Williams (knee) won't play in tonight's preseason game against the Grizzlies, but Posey returns as a champion. He remembers being traded away with Williams to Miami around the same time Wells was sent to Sacramento in 2005." South Florida Sun-Sentinel

"I heard a lot of things and really didn't know where they were coming from," Posey said. "I'm secure with myself and how I approached things. I wasn't a problem on the team, so to hear things like I was hearing was shocking. It was frustrating. It was something that I couldn't control so you suck it up and move on. It is good to go back as a champion." South Florida Sun-Sentinel

Scouting Reports from CNNSI: Grizzlies

CNNSI has released scouting reports from NBA scouts from around the league.

They comment on a variety of players, but in my opinion, give too much attention to Brian Cardinal.

On snippet reminds that the Grizzlies were 17 - 10 when Stoudimire was injured. I'm not sure how schedule strength played into that stat, but it's sad to consider the impact Stoudimire could've had.

Miller's defense is also called into question. It will be interesting to see if he's used as trade bait since the Grizz have a lot of depth with D Jones, E Jones, and Gay all commanding time in addition to Miller at the 2 guard/3 forward position. The Grizz have always been unique in that they've been 2 or 3 deep at most positions since their 2nd or 3rd year in Memphis. It would be great to see some of the depth traded for one or two stronger players.

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CNNSI Predicts Grizz will finish 12th

CNNSI has released its season preview where it predicts the Grizz will finish 12th in the West.

Most sports writers have written off the Grizzlies because of Gasol's injury, and their position in the most competitive division. However, it's hard to imagine that they'll finish below the Warriors, Hornets, and Kings.

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Grizz beat Heat 96 - 95

The Grizz have beat the Heat. Again, they had 5 players in double figures. Gay, Jake, and Swift all returned from minor injuries, but Miller and Cardinal were still absent.

This could mean Cardinal's injury is more serious than originally thought.

Fratello Worried about Grizzlies' Defense

There's an interesting article in the Commercial Appeal about the Grizzlies' defense. It describes the Grizzlies' style of defense last season which depended on the savy of Battier, Jackson and Wright, all of whom have moved on, as well as a solid team effort.

This year, while there's increased athleticism, the team isn't in sync as it was last year. Similarly, there are questions about whether the young guys will listen to Fratello in the last year of his contract.

The Grizz will have Swift's shot blocking which it didn't have from anyone last year, which will help with it's interior defense.

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Gasol wants another championship

There's a fluff piece on Grizzlies.com about how after winning a World Championship with Spain this summer, Gasol is more motivated to win an NBA championship with the Grizzlies.

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Gasol's Healing on Schedule

According to the Commercial Appeal, Gasol's foot is healing on schedule. He's able to perform light workouts, but it's still going to be at leat a couple of months.

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Lowry can get to the basket

There's another article this morning about Lowry's ability to get get to the basket.

It will be interesting to see if he's able to command enough minutes behind Chucky and Damon to make an impact during the regular season. At their age and skill level, it's not impossible. Still, after Troy Bell, Dantay Jones and others have spent the beginning of their careers waiting to break out behind Grizzly veterans, it's hard to imagine that we'll see Lowry reach his potential.

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Notes from the CA

The Commercial Appeal is reporting that Gay and Jake are returning to practice. Also, Miller can now where shoes!

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Gasol ranked 8th

ESPN has Gasol as the 8th best player in the NBA last season based on his stats:

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Notes from the Game

The Commercial Appeal also updated with notes from the game. Gay's injury doesn't seem to be serious, and he should be back for Friday's game along with Swift and Cardinal.

Poor free throw shooting hurt the Griz in their loss:

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CA article about loss to Bulls

The Commercial Appeal has an article up about the loss. Mostly, it talks about the positive play from Warrick, Johnson, and Roberts in the paint. It will be interesting to see if that play carries over to the regular season when playing time becomes scarce.

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Gay out with bruised chest

According to CNNSI, Gay missed Monday's game with a bruised chest.

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/basketball/nba/recaps/2006/10/16/21710_recap.html

Griz lose to Bulls 87-78

With 5 players in double figures and Pau, Gay, Cardinal, Miller, Jake, and Swift sitting, the Griz lose their 4th preseason game.

Warrick had a solid game and Johnson had a double-double. Jones on the other hand didn't score in 25 minutes.

Jerry West to Retire

Peter Vescey is reporting in his NY Post column that Jerry West will retire now that Michael Heisley is selling the Grizzlies. His article doesn't offer much insight to the reasons and states that no announcement will be made soon. Vescey references 'a source', but doesn't provide much evidence or detail.

Basically, Vescey just adds to the speculations that are already being made.

Injuries to veterans muddling Griz camp

The Memphis Commerical Appeal has another report from training camp today here:

http://www.commercialappeal.com/mca/grizzlies/article/0,1426,MCA_475_5069675,00.html

Highlights from this article include:

• Stromile is heeling, probably won't play Friday, but should be back soon.
• Jake and Cardinal's knees are flaring.
• Miller should be back shortly from having his big tonail removed.
• Fratello is still set on speeding up the offense

What's most concerning is that Cardinal doesn't seem to be as ready as he thought he would be. If Cardinal is in and out of the line up like last season, he'll largely be a non-factor.

This is the first I've heard of Jake's injury so hopefully it's nothing serious.