A ticked off Marc Gasol got more than just a hard pill to swallow after sitting out the fourth quarter in a Sunday night loss against the Brooklyn Nets. Memphis Grizzlies head coach David Fizdale rolled with the hot unit and kept Gasol on the bench, never seeing more than the 28 minutes he had seen thus far after collecting 18 points on a mere 6-of-17 shooting night.
The Grizzlies found themselves down 14 after being outscored 32-18 in the third quarter in spite of a tied halftime score at 47.
“We had just been playing so bad up to that point. That group was the only group that could get anything going so I just rolled with it,” Fizdale said, according to Ronald Tillery of The Commercial Appeal. “It’s a long season — 82 games. We were struggling, so I was just seeing if that group could keep the momentum going but it didn’t work. Not much has been working so I took a gamble on it.”
David Fizdale rolled the dice on a lineup consisting of Ben McLemore, Tyreke Evans, James Ennis, JaMychal Green, and Deyonta Davis during the last period, one responsible for cutting the Grizzlies’ deficit to 82-77 with eight minutes remaining in the game — close, but no cigar.
The man at the helm was going with the hot hand, and one can't blame his desperation after the Grizzlies have now lost eight games in a row, now getting worse with the absence of floor general Mike Conley.
“We’ll address it if it needs to be addressed but it was a pretty simple decision what I did,” Fizdale said. “It’s nothing against him,” Fizdale said. “I’m trying to win a game. I’m desperate. I took a risk. Sometimes when you take a risk you may (upset) a player or two. That’s part of this position. I can own the decision and I have my reasons why. Winning is my only priority.”
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