Among the ten best defenses in the League over the past two seasons, Memphis currently points to a pitiful 30th place in the “Defensive Rating”. A rank unworthy of Grizzlies who finished with the second best record of last season and who still want to reach the heights this year!
If the absence of Jaren Jackson Jr. can partially explain this very clear decline, it would seem above all that the troops of Tennessee have not yet decided to roll up their sleeves and do the work on this side of the floor. Starting with a cruel lack of communication between each link in the defense.
“These are our habits, it is with them that we still have trouble in these first six games”Taylor Jenkins recently explained in the Commercial Appeal. “We manage to defend well in sequences, but 48 minutes from start to finish, we have to do better, on defense in transition, or simply on one-on-one and on our rotations. »
Having allowed their opponents to score 120 or more points in 4 of their first 6 outings of the year, the Grizzlies are clearly off on the wrong foot. Which also seems to be in their habits, they who had a difficult start last season, with 9 wins and 10 losses from the start…
“We have to defend much better than that if we want to win as much as we want to do”
“It’s all our fault”regretted Ja Morant after the second consecutive defeat in Salt Lake City. “We didn’t communicate, we didn’t make the right rotations, and we gave them wide open shots. »
Not yet on the same wavelength, it’s sizzling for the Grizz! What is most surprising in the end is that, despite the continuity in a workforce that has changed little in the offseason, the Memphis collective has lost its defensive automatisms. The departures of De’Anthony Melton, who was the team’s best interceptor, and Kyle Anderson are to be taken into account. Just like the absence of young Ziaire Williams whose upcoming return should strengthen the group…
“We play well, we share the ball, and we get out fast and we run. But we have to defend much better than that if we want to win as much as we want to do.”concludes Desmond Bane.
| Shots | Bounces | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Players | GM | Minimum | Shots | 3 points | LF | Off | Def | Early | pd | bp | Int | CT | party | Points |
| Ja Morant | 6 | 32.6 | 55.0 | 56.0 | 85.7 | 1.3 | 3.2 | 4.5 | 6.3 | 3.3 | 0.7 | 0.5 | 2.2 | 33.3 |
| Desmond Bane | 6 | 33.0 | 44.1 | 44.6 | 84.6 | 0.5 | 4.2 | 4.7 | 5.0 | 2.2 | 0.8 | 0.5 | 2.7 | 24.2 |
| Dillon Brooks | 4 | 27.4 | 39.3 | 40.0 | 60.0 | 0.3 | 1.8 | 2.0 | 2.0 | 1.8 | 0.8 | 0.0 | 2.8 | 16.0 |
| Tyus Jones | 7 | 25.6 | 46.3 | 38.9 | 37.5 | 0.4 | 1.9 | 2.3 | 4.3 | 1.6 | 0.7 | 0.1 | 0.6 | 13.3 |
| Santi Aldama | 7 | 29.5 | 43.1 | 25.0 | 70.6 | 2.0 | 4.1 | 6.1 | 1.0 | 0.7 | 0.7 | 1.1 | 2.9 | 9.7 |
| Brandon Clarke | 7 | 17.2 | 65.9 | 0.0 | 64.7 | 1.0 | 2.7 | 3.7 | 1.4 | 1.1 | 0.4 | 0.6 | 2.4 | 9.3 |
| John Konchar | 6 | 27.3 | 43.6 | 38.5 | 50.0 | 1.3 | 3.8 | 5.2 | 0.5 | 0.5 | 1.8 | 0.3 | 1.7 | 7.5 |
| Jake Laravia | 5 | 18.2 | 52.2 | 60.0 | 100.0 | 1.2 | 2.8 | 4.0 | 0.4 | 0.4 | 0.4 | 0.4 | 3.4 | 7.2 |
| steven adams | 7 | 25.9 | 55.2 | 0.0 | 22.2 | 3.9 | 6.1 | 10.0 | 2.0 | 2.3 | 0.7 | 1.4 | 2.6 | 5.1 |
| David Roddy | 7 | 20.1 | 28.3 | 16.0 | 100.0 | 1.0 | 2.4 | 3.4 | 0.9 | 0.7 | 0.7 | 0.4 | 2.0 | 4.9 |
| Xavier Tillman, Sr. | 5 | 11.9 | 55.6 | 33.3 | 28.6 | 1.6 | 1.8 | 3.4 | 0.6 | 0.8 | 0.0 | 0.4 | 0.6 | 4.6 |
| Kenny Lofton, Jr. | 3 | 4.7 | 44.4 | 0.0 | 33.3 | 0.3 | 0.3 | 0.7 | 0.3 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 1.0 | 3.0 |
| Kennedy Chandler | 4 | 8.9 | 33.3 | 0.0 | 25.0 | 0.0 | 0.3 | 0.3 | 1.5 | 1.0 | 0.0 | 0.5 | 0.5 | 1.8 |
| Vincent Williams, Jr. | 2 | 5.5 | 20.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.5 | 1.0 | 1.5 | 0.5 | 0.0 | 0.5 | 0.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 |
