Well that felt good.
It seemed for a moment there the Grizzlies doomed themselves. Doomed themselves to repeat the outcome from their last outing. Against the Trailblazers, Memphis lead the entire way… before falling apart in the final quarter and overtime.
As last night’s game neared it’s climax it seemed we were in for a repeat. Thank the hoops gods that wasn’t the case.
The Grizzlies snapped their five game losing streak in Barclays. They did so on the back of the entire team too—six guys hit double figures last night.
Amidst a season full of bad loses, games like this help to show it’s not a total loss. There are building blocks out there hooping, and plenty to get excited about. Both for the rest of this season… And for the championship run next.
Cool Hand Luke
Hope I’m not speaking for everyone when I say this… But last night’s game? That was the game we were all waiting for from Luke Kennard.
And boy did he deliver.
Not only that, he’s damn near the reason the Grizzlies were able to win in Barclays. Starting at guard, ‘Nardo’ exploded for Memphis. And boy did they need every bit of him.
He poured in 25 PTS (a season high), 2 REB, and 7 AST. Oh yeah—that was on 72.7/66.7/100.0 shooting splits too. Knocking down six of his nine treys in the game.
Absurd, that is.
In fact, Kennard is on pace to have another absurd shooting season. As of now, can you guess where he sits league wide when it comes to 3PT%? That’s with a min. of 82 3-pointers made.
He’s second in the league.
There’s a chance that Kennard overtakes Grayson Allen for first place spot by season’s end. If he does that? That would be three seasons in a row that he would’ve led the league in 3PT%.
Three seasons. In. A. Row.
If Luke is able to make that happen? Well it’ll be time to change the calculus about who the ‘best shooter’ in the league is.
Count Em’—200 Wins
200 wins. Regardless of what you think of him… 200 wins is a big deal for a coach. And Taylor Jenkins is no different.
In fact with win 200? Well that puts TJ in firm position behind Lionel Hollins for most wins in franchise history. And that’s a big deal.
You may not like him. You may not like his rotations at times. You may not like his in-game adjustments or his game plans. You may not like how he fills out his staff.
Well guess what?
It doesn’t matter. Because 200 wins is a big freaking deal. That’s undeniable. You think you can find another coach capable of amassing that type of record? In the time that Jenkins has? Be my guest.
My guess is no. And to that I say congrats TJ. You’ve earned all 200.
Anything, Everywhere, All At Once
Vince Williams Jr. continued his season akin to ‘The Tazmanian Devil’ doing a bit of it all against the Nets. He remains a true Swiss-army knife for this team and one that does a literal bit of everything for the Grizzlies.
Last night wasn’t any different. And that was in what I would call a down night for the ‘Flying V’.
Vince posted 11 PTS, 5 REB, 6 AST, and 2 STL.
Like I said. A little bit of everything. What was even more evident last night though? The command that Vince has taken of this team.
In the absence of Ja Morant, Marcus Smart, Desmond Bane, and most recently Jaren Jackson Jr… Memphis has needed someone to step up. Enter Vince. The last few games have shown the leadership the young man has in him.
In the absence of the team’s stars… It’s been their diamond in the rough that has stepped up.
His per game averages over the last four games? Those are 12.8 PTS, 5.3 REB, 4.8 AST, 1.3 STL, and 1.5 BLK. Those numbers are all higher than his season averages as of now. Well minues the rebounds, but there’s hardly a difference there (5.6).
Vince has had his hands in the cookie jar everywhere as it were. Which… If he’s not ‘The Tazmanian Devil’ he may be more akin to ‘The Cookie Monster’. And either way, he’s proving that he’s a core part of this rotation moving forward.
Photo Credit: (Frank Franklin II/AP Photo)