On Thursday night, the Memphis Grizzlies took a couple of more steps in their rebuild, selecting Murray State guard Ja Morant with the second overall pick and then taking Gonzaga forward Brandon Clarke with the 21st pick, which they acquired in a trade with the Oklahoma City Thunder.
Morant and Clarke will now join second-year big man Jaren Jackson Jr. as the Grizzlies' primary young core heading into the 2019-20 campaign, and it not only marks the dawn of a new era, but it represents a major change in philosophy.
This is a Memphis franchise that recently made its living off of pounding opponents into oblivion with a monstrous frontcourt of Marc Gasol and Zach Randolph and tough, physical wing defenders like Tony Allen.
Sure, there was Mike Conley, who was probably the player who employed the most finesse of the group, but the Grizzlies' way of beating teams was holding them to under 100 points (and frequently under 90) and letting Gasol and Randolph go to work in the low post.
There was no Lob City here; it was all traditional, smashmouth basketball, a style of play that Grizzlies fans affectionately dubbed “Grit ‘n' Grind.”
While Memphis was certainly a likeable club, its lack of perimeter shooting and overall scoring talent in general prevented it from ever getting over the hump, as teams like the San Antonio Spurs, Thunder and Golden State Warriors would regularly bounce the Grizzlies in the playoffs, almost solely due to the fact that Memphis didn't have enough firepower.
But now, with the Grizzlies choosing to build around an athletic core of Jackson, Morant and Clarke, they are essentially acknowledging that their previous scheme was not going to ever win them a title, and they are going from a slow, plodding squad that was the bane of ESPN, ABC and TNT to a young, exciting team that casual fans might actually enjoy watching.
Of course, Memphis is still a significant work in progress, as the Grizzlies have a long way to go before they can be labeled playoff contenders or even a top up-and-coming team. But the direction in which they are moving is encouraging.
After all, Jackson had a terrific rookie year before being shut down, averaging 13.8 points per game while shooting 50.6 percent from the floor, 35.9 percent from 3-point range and 76.9 percent from the free-throw line while drawing comparisons to Kevin Garnett in the process.
Now, the Grizzlies have added the consensus best guard in the draft in Morant, plus an incredibly athletic forward in Clarke who registered 16.9 points, 8.6 rebounds and 3.2 blocks per game during his sophomore year at Gonzaga, making 68.7 percent of his field goal attempts.
For a team that was about as exciting as wheat bread over the last couple of years, this sudden injection of youth and athleticism is absolutely a sight for sore eyes in Memphis.
Plus, with the Western Conference not nearly as daunting as it once was, there will be an opening for a new team to rise over the next few seasons. While the Sacramento Kings may be on the verge of becoming that club, don't discount the Grizzlies if they keep making wise and forward-thinking decisions like these.
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