Frat's Boys
What better story for the blog to come out of hibernation that to mention the Memphis Grizzlies (get it? Grizzlies....bears.....hibernation?! Never mind). Mike Fratello's boys are turning some heads, yet some still think they're flying under the radar.
If the playoffs started today (which would be really weird, since it's December), the Griz would have the 4th seed in the Western (read: dominant, more powerful) conference, and would have home court advantage for the 1st round. Egads. Heck, they are actually tied for 2nd best record in the West, but the best record belongs to the perennial powerhouse Spurs, with whom the Grizz are cursed to share a division.
I distinctly remember their first season here. I owned an 11-game "power pack," and my buddies joked that we just wanted to see one win. That's all we wanted. We finally did, but all year we wanted to be excited about our new NBA franchise, but it was so very hard. We inherited the Bad News Bears, and there didn't seem to be any sun on the horizon (anybody remember the name "Big Country"??).
So now, we're in the 2005-06 season. Mike Fratello coached his 82nd game recently in Memphis (the equivalent of a regular season), and attained an impressive 51-31 record in that span. Not bad for a team plagued by a late-season meltdown, injuries, and some locker room discord. ESPN has us 3rd in their current power rankings. THIRD!! Over at NBA.com, Scottie Pippen says to watch out for us and warns against underestimating the Grizz. Suddenly, it's fun to be a Grizzlies fan. I was there during the lows, and now it's time to enjoy the highs.
Now, I'm a realist. I'm not expecting to be attending an NBA Championship parade in June. But currently we have a record-setting mark of futility in the playoffs, and winning a round or two of games would do this team, and this city, lots of good. Making the Playoffs is great (of course, 16 out of 30 teams make it), but winning in the playoffs is even better, and that's something that we haven't experienced yet. Yet.
If the playoffs started today (which would be really weird, since it's December), the Griz would have the 4th seed in the Western (read: dominant, more powerful) conference, and would have home court advantage for the 1st round. Egads. Heck, they are actually tied for 2nd best record in the West, but the best record belongs to the perennial powerhouse Spurs, with whom the Grizz are cursed to share a division.
I distinctly remember their first season here. I owned an 11-game "power pack," and my buddies joked that we just wanted to see one win. That's all we wanted. We finally did, but all year we wanted to be excited about our new NBA franchise, but it was so very hard. We inherited the Bad News Bears, and there didn't seem to be any sun on the horizon (anybody remember the name "Big Country"??).
So now, we're in the 2005-06 season. Mike Fratello coached his 82nd game recently in Memphis (the equivalent of a regular season), and attained an impressive 51-31 record in that span. Not bad for a team plagued by a late-season meltdown, injuries, and some locker room discord. ESPN has us 3rd in their current power rankings. THIRD!! Over at NBA.com, Scottie Pippen says to watch out for us and warns against underestimating the Grizz. Suddenly, it's fun to be a Grizzlies fan. I was there during the lows, and now it's time to enjoy the highs.
Now, I'm a realist. I'm not expecting to be attending an NBA Championship parade in June. But currently we have a record-setting mark of futility in the playoffs, and winning a round or two of games would do this team, and this city, lots of good. Making the Playoffs is great (of course, 16 out of 30 teams make it), but winning in the playoffs is even better, and that's something that we haven't experienced yet. Yet.
posted by Eric C at 9:11 AM
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