Missing the services of Jaren Jackson Jr., Luke Kennard, and John Konchar, the Grizzlies began the game starting Jordan Goodwin, Ziaire Williams, Vince Williams Jr., Santi Aldama, and Trey Jemison. This game marked the second time this group started a game this season with the other being against the Milwaukee Bucks last month.
With both teams missing a plethora of key players, the beginning of the game related to that as both teams began shooting 2-8 and the Blazers leading 7-5 when the first media timeout came at the 6:48 mark. The rough shooting mostly continued for the rest of the first quarter which ended with the Grizzlies breaking a 17-17 tie with a 4-0 run to end the quarter leading 21-17.
The scoring picked up to begin the second quarter as the shots began to fall for both teams and the Blazers more than doubled their scoring output from the first quarter less than midway through the second as they led 37-35. Despite the better shooting from the Grizzlies, the turnovers were their downfall for the rest of the quarter as Portland led 51-45 at the half.
The Blazers immediately began the second half extending their lead to double-digits as they went on an 11-4 run to lead 62-49 three minutes into the third quarter. Outside of a spurt where the Grizzlies cut a 16-point deficit down to six, the Blazers rolled the rest of the third quarter to lead 91-72 heading to the fourth quarter.
Portland continued to pour it on the Grizzlies in the fourth quarter as they led by as many as 33 points on their way to a 122-92 win. The Blazers had six players score in double figures. Meanwhile, the Grizzlies had no starter to score in double figures and being led by three double-digit bench scorers with Jake LaRavia leading the way with 21 points.
In a game that wasn’t fun to watch here’s the main takeaway:
Consistency is Key for Ziaire
Ziaire Williams is arguably the most polarizing player on the Grizzlies roster among the organization and fanbase. He was selected with the 10th overall pick in the 2021 NBA Draft out of Stanford as a player the organization believed to be a huge part of the future and a potential core piece next to Ja Morant and Jaren Jackson Jr.
However, playing in his third season with the team this season, he was the topic of trade discussions because of his underwhelming performance. He showed promise during his rookie season, especially during the second half of that season when he was a mainstay starter while Dillon Brooks was injured but that momentum was slowed due to his own injury problems during his second season last year.
Entering his third season this season Ziaire’s expectations were clear, it was time to show he could be a part of the core going forward or it was time to move on. Due to his inconsistencies with his play for the majority of this season and the emergence of Vince Williams Jr. and GG Jackson II, Ziaire has become an afterthought with his future in doubt.
Now, with his Grizzlies’ tenure in doubt going forward, Ziaire has begun to show some consistency in his play after returning from his recent hand injury that kept him out of the lineup for eight games. Beginning with the Grizzlies’ last game before the All-Star break against the Milwaukee Bucks when he scored a career-high 27 points, Ziaire Williams had consistently performed well over the Grizzlies’ last four games entering last night’s matchup.
While he shot 46% over that four-game span averaging almost 15 points, his movement off the ball improved as well as his point-of-attack defense. He even joked about how he and Vince Williams Jr. would argue (in a good way) about who would guard the best player on the other team when they were on the floor together after a matchup against James, Harden, Paul George, Kawhi Leonard, and the LA Clippers last week.
After his 9-point, 5-rebound performance on 40% shooting against the Portland Trail Blazers, Ziaire is continuing to find some consistency within the flow of his game. Although it wasn’t the greatest of performances considering the circumstances of the roster right now and the final result, Ziaire continued to show that he could carve out a role in the NBA in this short stint of games.
Start/Stop/Continue
START GG Jackson. The time has come to see what he can do as a starter, especially with the season being what it is now. Exposing him to as many different potential roles as possible can only do good for his future.
Coming Up
The Grizzlies remain home for a second night of a back-to-back against the Portland Trail Blazers tonight at 7 PM CST. This matchup will mark the fourth and final matchup between the teams this season. After last night’s matchup, the Blazers lead the season series 2-1.
Final Quote
“We have to bounce back, this was embarrassing.” – Taylor Jenkins