The Mind of Mullin: POSTGAME: GRIZZLIES

Tuesday, November 4, 2008

POSTGAME: GRIZZLIES - 11/03/08

MVW: Andris Biedrins

The Good
Andris Biedrins: 36 min, 8-14 fg, 0-0 ft, 22 reb, 16 pts

The Bad
Stephen Jackson: 44 min, 6-21 fg, 5 to
Corey Maggette: 31 min, 4-16 fg, 0-5 3pt, 1 reb
3-20 3pt
12 pts in the 4th quarter

The Ugly
Al Harrington: 34 min, 3-15 fg, 6 pts

Best and Worst +/-
Brandan Wright: +4
Anthony Randolph: +3
Al Harrington: -19
Stephen Jackson: -12

Team Statistics
Warriors : Grizzlies
pts - 79 : 90
fg - 33-96 (.344) : 36-78 (.462)
ft - 10-14 (.714) : 14-21 (.667)
3p - 3-20 (.150) : 4-9 (.444)
reb - 48 : 47
oreb - 17 : 11
ast - 15 : 22
to - 12 : 15
stl - 7 : 7
bs - 4 : 5
fast break pts - 13 : 18
pts in paint - 50 : 46

Box Score
Highlights

Notes

Judging by the previous three games, I thought this was going to be a sure win
Barnett's keys to the game: mind your own business; shut scorers down early; involve Biedrins in the 1st Quarter
Inactive List: Ellis, Morrow, Hendrix, and Williams; Surprise Activation: Rob Kurz
defensively, Warriors could not stop Gasol 1 on 1 - I'm surprised Nellie didn't play more Turiaf; he is much much better than I anticipated
DeMarcus Nelson did a fine job whoever he was guarding; came alive offensively in the 2nd quarter; when he started heating up, his teammates recognized it, got him the ball and he went to work against the smaller guards
did a fairly good job on Mayo and Gay
Conley and Mayo guarding Jackson and having trouble early; Grizzlies double later and take him out of the equation
Darrell Arthur starting and effective; wish Randolph would see the same playing time; this routine is going to get old really quick in his eyes and I see Randloph souring on the team quickly if Nelson doesn't let him get some quality minutes on occassion.
Harrington missing layups and taking bad shots as usual - has no conscience when it comes to shot selection and knowing his limitations - too bad he had his worst game of the season verses a team that may have been willing to trade one of it's guards for him.
Gasol is pretty good; active, huge, skilled, smart; dominating the bigs - Nellie inserts Turiaf for a short time and Gasol turns over the ball a few times - puzzled by Nellies' substitution pattern.
Jackson having a field day; Grizzlies did a great job doubling him and forcing mistakes later
Nelson can't shoot from the perimeter; forcing the issue; CJ comes in with a little more success; Warriors PG's are weak - give Williams another shot
Warriors shooting poorly early but still in the game; never came out of the team-wide shooting slump; only 12 points in final quarter - would have been a 9 point quarter if it weren't for the Belinelli's late game swish from 3 point land; too little too late
35% shooting in the 1st Quarter; thought it couldn't get worse
Harrington rebounding well, but not shooting well - keeps shooting; if only Nellie new when to stop using him on his off nights
Biedrins unable to get involved early because of foul trouble; as soon as he sits, the deficit grows; 2 'MVW' in a row for the lone bright spot of this agonizing game
whole team looks flat, especially the starters (except Biedrins); tired from the last game of the road trip? - all players that averaged above or near 40 minutes played poorly; need role players to step up and Nelson to look to the bench for offense - tinker with it and don't overwork the vets - More Belinelli at PG, more Randolph and Wright instead of Harrington, more Turiaf alongside Biedrins, how about some Williams when offense is sputtering (surround him with a defensive lineup of Jackson, Azubuike, Turiaf, and Biedrins)
Corey Maggette went to the locker room in the 2nd Quarter with slight hamstring pull but returned
Belinelli in early but ineffective and underutilized; did not shoot a jumper; drove in once but missed contested layup; pulled off the floor after a missed defensive assignment; inserted when game out of reach after no one could score in the 4th and immediately drains a 3
Turiaf slows down Gasol; Doubleteamed, Jax steals and rails in a 3
Brandan Wright stuffs Gay
Nelson finishing well; good defense; feed the beast
Maggette's fadeaway 18 footer made me throw up; 4-16 fg; also lazy on the boards
Jackson plays 44 min in a loss while the young players miss development opportunities once again
This team has shown that it can beat some quality teams, but this won't happen until Don Nelson makes a commitment to play Wright, Belinelli, Williams, and Randolph more. Vets are already showing signs of fatigue and its only the 4th game of the season
Warriors should have an assistant coach focus on substitutions so Nellie optimizes his player's minutes and production
Warriors just got beat by a so-so team playing three rookies substantial minutes - Gasol, Mayo, and Arthur; Nellie needs to wake up