The Memphis Grizzlies are one of the few NBA teams that have never played in the Finals. Since the franchise joined the NBA in 1995, the Grizzlies—who used to be the Vancouver Grizzlies—have compiled a record of 824-1,161.
With just 10 playoff appearances in franchise history, it isn't too difficult to gloss over the Grizzlies' history of successful teams. However, there's one Grizzlies club which really stands out, and that's the 2012-13 squad.
Coached by Lionel Hollins, the 2012-13 Grizzlies began the season 14-6. The team was initially led in scoring by Rudy Gay, who averaged 17.2 points, but Memphis chose to trade him to the Toronto Raptors in January.
The Grizzlies got Austin Daye and Tayshaun Prince from the Detroit Pistons as part of the three-team trade. Plenty of the roster, from an overall standpoint, was built through their NBA Draft moves (both selections and trades).
Zach Randolph held down the fort with averages of 15.4 points and 11.2 rebounds, while Mike Conley (14.6) and Marc Gasol (14.1) rounded out the top three scorers for the Grizzlies after Gay was dealt.
This particular Memphis team practically defined the Grit ‘n' Grind era. The Grizzlies averaged only 93.4 points per game. That was 27th in the NBA. However, Memphis was the stingiest defense in the league and it wasn't even close. Led by Tony Allen and Gasol, the Grizzlies gave up only 89.3 points a night.
Memphis finished the season with an impressive record of 56-26. They were set to be the No. 5 seed in the 2013 playoffs out West.
First up for the Grizzlies was the ultra-talented Los Angeles Clippers squad, led by Chris Paul, Blake Griffin and DeAndre Jordan.
The Clippers had home-court advantage in the series and took care of business in Game 1, winning by a final score of 112-91. Paul had 23 points to lead the way for L.A., while Jerryd Bayless scored 19 for Memphis.
Game 2 was a similar story and outcome for the Grizzlies. Despite getting 28 points from Conley, Memphis lost 93-91.
Everyone expected the Grizzlies to play better at home in Games 3 and 4. However, what happened after Game 2 wasn't predicted by anyone.
Memphis won Game 3 in front of their rowdy crowd. Randolph was a monster with 27 points and 11 rebounds. The Clippers simply had zero answers for Z-Bo.
Game 4 was more of the same for the Grizzlies. This time, they won in blowout fashion, topping the Clippers by a final count of 104-83. Gasol and Conley both had 24 points in the big Game 4 win.
So now the series was headed back to Los Angeles. Whichever team won two more games was going to the Western Conference semi-finals. Since they were at Staples Center, the Clippers were confident they would get back on the right track in Game 5.
The Grizzlies, however, had different plans for L.A. Behind their suffocating defense, Memphis held the Clippers to just 93 points at home and the Grizzlies stole Game 5 to take a 3-2 series lead. Randolph finished with 25 points and 11 boards and Gasol was a fellow beast in the paint, as the Spaniard racked up 21 points and eight rebounds.
Memphis was now one win away from completing the 0-2 comeback. The team had all the momentum on its side and Grizzlies supporters were very excited heading into Game 6.
The FedEx Forum was roaring from start to finish and the Grizzlies crushed the Clippers, 118-105, to send Lob City home. Randolph posted 23 points, five rebounds and four assists in the closeout game. The lefty feasted in the four straight wins against the Clippers.
Next up for the Grizzlies was the Oklahoma City Thunder, except this was an OKC team without superstar point guard Russell Westbrook, who was injured. So Memphis really only had to game plan for fellow superstar Kevin Durant.
The Thunder won Game 1 of the series at home behind 35 points and 15 rebounds from Durant, but the Grizzlies weren't discouraged since they only lost by two points. Hollins knew exactly which adjustments he had to make as a coach moving forward.
The Grizzlies took Game 2, 99-93, and never looked back. Memphis won four straight games to advance to the Western Conference Finals for the first time in franchise history. It was a big, big moment for Hollins and Co.
Gasol was the MVP of the series. He averaged 19.4 points and 8.4 rebounds.
The 2013 Western Conference Finals saw the Grizzlies take on the mighty San Antonio Spurs, who were led by Hall of Famers Tim Duncan, Manu Ginobili, Tony Parker and head coach Gregg Popovich. The Spurs also had a young guy by the name of Kawhi Leonard.
The Grizzlies, as they always did, played hard in this series, but the Spurs were just the better team. San Antonio swept Memphis in four games to advance to the Finals.
The Grizzlies' magical and best NBA season in franchise history was over, but it will surely never be forgotten by fans.
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