With his team having lost five of nine, and set to play its fourth game in five nights, Memphis Grizzlies coach Dave Joerger did the sensible thing – he sat his starters for Thursday’s nationally televised contest against the Washington Wizards.
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Working hand in hand with NBA orthodoxy, however, doesn’t always lead to sensible conclusions. Even though the league’s High Priest of Great Ideas has been resting his players for years, the league still commits teams to back-to-back and four-in-five-night scheduling; asking its championship-level players to work in upwards of over 100 exhibition, regular season, and postseason games in an eight-month span.
Then there is the peer pressure from within, which seemed to be the case in Washington as the Wizards smarted following the relatively easy 107-87 win over the self-inflicted shorthand Grizzlies. Lead guard John Wall didn’t exactly tee-off on the Grizzlies in anger after Memphis openly defied the Basketball Gods, but he did seem a little upset following the contest.
From the Associated Press:
''They sit 'em, and I don't know the reason why,'' Wall said. ''I think we're a team that's on the rise, and teams respect us now. And I guess they don't respect us.''
And from CSN Washington’s J. Michael:
"That's how I see it," said John Wall when asked if he felt Memphis disrespected them by trotting out a starting lineup of Beno Udrih, Courtney Lee, Jeff Green, JaMychal Green and Kosta Koufos.
Wall didn’t take out his frustrations on the box score, he finished his night with a 22-point mark next to his name, one that looks rather small in comparison to Kyrie Irving’s explosion in San Antonio on Thursday evening. With the Grizzlies so overmatched, however, Wall only needed to play 28 minutes in the contest, and he added seven rebounds and six assists to his ledger.
The Wizards star needn’t worry about Memphis’ motivation, however. With the Grizzlies’ status as the second seed in the West just about assured, the team was right to take a breather. The squad was coming off of a demoralizing loss to Boston the night before, and with yet another quick turnaround game against the defensively dogged Milwaukee Bucks lined up for Saturday night, time off was imperative.
The Grizzlies did lose the game, which means the team has dropped six of its last 10, but a coach knows when his players are well on their way to an eventual loss even at full strength. The Grizzlies didn’t rest starters against Washington thinking that their reserves would be able to pull out a win against Washington. They thought the loss was inevitable anyway, and made the best of it. Even if the Wizards and flailing just as much as Memphis.
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The Grizzlies are still two games up on the Dwight Howard-less Houston Rockets for the lead in the Southwest, and a game and a half up on the Wes Matthews-less Portland Trail Blazers for the second seed in the West. With that in place, even with just 17 games to go, the team is not out of the woods just yet.
Those Bucks remain a tough out, and the Grizzlies still have two games against the Warriors, a contest against Cleveland, a game against the Spurs, and a game against the Pacers (the hottest team in the NBA right now) to go. They’ll have to play the Clippers, the Trail Blazers, and desperate outfits from Dallas, Oklahoma City and New Orleans. A contest against the rapidly-improving Utah Jazz awaits them, and they’ll have the suitably angry Washington Wizards to roll up against on April 4.
The time for rest is now. Or, Thursday, rather.
Washington? Take it easy, guys. Let’s focus on more important stuff, like who can run the fastest.
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Kelly Dwyer is an editor for Ball Don't Lie on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at KDonhoops@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!
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