by Lee Deltoro
I do not like Memphis Grizzlies basketball. I know that makes me a heretic. I refuse to care. I do not want to hear about the beautiful struggle that is Courtney Lee’s jumper, or what these long-suffering fans deserve. Yes, Z-Bo was a knucklehead, and now he's not. I’m more concerned that he is an example of someone coasting from "natural talent". It's not as if increasing your vertical leap is some mythical path, the secrets of which died out with the last alchemists. Get in the gym. Work. Tony Allen is a great one-way player. But why extol him over Monta Ellis? He has all the physical tools to be a great scorer as well, but he refused to put in the time it takes to do so. Marc Gasol is from Spain and he has an older brother. Mike Conley is slightly better than you thought he was. Memphis basketball is where ideological adversaries find common ground. Blue collar work ethic meets alt-culture cynicism.
Half the celebration of Grizzlies basketball is ironic. There is a whole generation that loves the subversion of the mainstream. "I am a breakfast defector" seems akin to "Go Grizz!" Since “Pace and space” are the words of the day, they instead flock to “grit and grind”. What’s interesting is that the same pundits who love Memphis today also loved Phoenix’s free-flowing offense 6 years ago. All hail D’Antoni! They constantly bemoaned the Lakers lack of outside shooting and slowness of pace. Before they were analytics darlings, the plodding Spurs were loathed for their lack of entertainment value. These people embrace today’s different, no matter how similar it is to what we’ve seen before.
