(Text/L.A. Van Cidy)
The Los Angeles Lakers eliminated the Memphis Grizzlies in the first round in 2023, creating the sixth black seven miracle in history (the first five were the '87 Supersonics, '89 Warriors, '91 Warriors, '98 Knicks and '10 Spurs), which is also the only time in NBA history that black seven is the same year.
Enough discussion about the Lakers, let's turn our attention to the supporting role - the Memphis Grizzlies. The team was second in the West two years in a row, lost to the Golden State Warriors in the second round one year, and lost to the Lakers in the first round one year. One of the two opponents is a three-team team, and the other is a basket team, which is also fresh. Objectively speaking, this year's Lakers have the level of the top four in the West after the Wei Shao trade, so the Black Seven miracle is acceptable and cannot erase the strength of the Grizzlies.
However, considering Morant's regular season claim that "there are no opponents in the West" and his youth, this team seems to have a clear ceiling. Maybe a playoff regular, but unable to make it to the top.
On closer inspection, this grizzly bear team has many shortcomings and is full of structural crises:
The star Morant determines the upper limit of the Grizzlies, and "No Mo Bear" supports the lower limit of the Grizzlies, which is the more interesting part of the Grizzlies.
Morant's offensive skills are gorgeous, dribbling and break-through practical fancy. In addition to slam dunks, the technique of pulling rods, picking baskets, finding boards, and throwing is very good, and throwing is even more a sinking and defensive dismantling artifact. The pass is not bad, pushing fast attack and passing from behind is a must.
The disadvantages are also obvious: the shooting bias is in one motion, which is to avoid blocking to increase the projection assault. His shooting is erratic, easily affected by mood swings, and is often thrown by opponents, affecting his ability to cut points. The control of the field is a shortcoming, and there are flaws in handling individual scoring and driving the whole team, which is why the team needs "no bears". He also worked on and off the court, such as being banned for eight games due to the live show gun, and injuring his right wrist on the court because of a show dunk.
Morant's shortcomings limit the team's ceiling.
"No Mo Bear" is because the Grizzlies players are well equipped and the bench is very concentrated. The addition of Melton and Lee Kyle in the offseason did not affect the depth of the team. The guard line has Bane, Tyus Jones, Kennard, the forward line has Dillon Brooks, Clark and Roddy, the center has Adams and Tillman, and the 3J Jr. Jaren Jackson and Aldama are free from the 4th and 5th positions. Jones, who has a steady style of play, is the main blocking and demolition tactics combined with Bane and Kennard to run cover, forming a "no Mo Bear" offensive system, playing very smoothly as a team, which is the reason why No Mo Bear has a good record. Even if Clark and Adams are reimbursed and Morant is suspended for the rest of the game, the Grizzlies can still take second place in the West.
The Grizzlies are a team that is top defensively (110.7 in defensive efficiency, 3rd in the league) and top offensive (114.7 in offensive efficiency, 11th in the league).
The defensive end is rich in resources and opposing feet. 3J is already DPOY, and there are defensive titans such as Dillon, Bane, Adams, and Clark, with strong physical confrontation, and only a few points such as Morant and Kennard that need to be protected. They have a rich defensive system, Adams can squat and defend when he is online, or he can change the center without changing defenses; When Adams is not on board, he can make unlimited defenses. So when facing the Warriors in the playoffs, it can cut Adams' playing time to match the Warriors' three-point firepower. This season meeting the Lakers is "back time", because the Lakers value attacking the basket, and the Grizzlies protect the basket for the powerful Adams season reimbursement.
Offense is the bottleneck of the Grizzlies, and although the Grizzlies offense is at the top level of the league, the offensive system is too simple and rough.
Their three-point shooting (35.1% shooting, 22nd in the league), and the team only has two reliable three-point shooters (plus Aldama), which worsens the team's offensive space. Due to the lack of three-point ability, the Grizzlies can't continue their firepower when they need to grab points, as can be seen in the two-round series of playing the Warriors and Lakers. Grizzlies teammates watched Bane shoot three-point shots still fresh in their memory, the Warriors three-point team needless to say, although the Lakers three-point is not good, but Reeves, Hachimura and Russell have erupted one after another to continue the firepower making the Grizzlies defenseless.
The Grizzlies do not have many positional solutions on the offensive end, and even if the "no Mo Bear" blocks and decompasses, the system is not much high-end, which weakens its ceiling.
The Grizzlies' offense relies on two sharp weapons: the secondary offense and the fast-break counterattack (15.4 points for the second time, 6th in the league; 18 points for the fast break, 2nd in the league). It is not easy for them to win the league's first-class offensive efficiency with these two sharp weapons, but it also causes some flaws.
The second offense requires a good hand who grabs the front board. The regular season relies on Adams, a front-board maniac, and Adams is on the bandwagon, his squat defense may be named, and the playoffs will only have to cut time (especially against the Warriors). Hard games and playoffs have to rely on the faster moving 3J, Clark and Tillman, but their front-board ability is not as good as Adams, which affects the quality of the second attack. Last season there was Adams, and the Grizzlies were first in the league in both the front board and the secondary offense. This season due to Adams' injury, the Grizzlies have declined in front and secondary offense. Last season's series playing the Warriors, because Adams was named by Curry to cut time, the Grizzlies front board is similar to the Warriors, and it is difficult to win.
A fast attack is best fought back defensively, but if you can't prevent it, you won't have this opportunity. If you just rely on pushing fast, with the Grizzlies' lack of three-point play, it is difficult to easily output on the offensive end, relying on breaking into the interior, and the Lakers and Warriors both use contraction (or joint defense), allowing the Grizzlies to break through everywhere and eventually swallow the bitter fruit of failure.
In short, the Grizzlies' simple and rough style of play is difficult to hit the ceiling in a hard battle.
Grizzlies coach Jenkins and Lakers coach Hamm are Bucks Budenholzer disciples, the tactics are in line with the Grizzlies player configuration, the locker room atmosphere is acceptable, the protection of players is good, and there are also the common problems of Buden's coaches - poor command and table substitution.
Of course, Jenkins really doesn't have much to do, Morant's shortcomings are there, young players lack experience and are not necessarily "promising", and need Grizzlies management to operate to impact upward.