Latest Memphis Grizzlies News

    Memphis Grizzlies Franchise Information

    Have a read on below at some quick stats and facts on the Memphis Grizzlies to get you started: 

    Established:1995
    Stadium:FedExForum
    Colours:Beale street blue, Memphis midnight blue, steel gray & gold
    Hall of Famers:Allen Iverson
    Hall of Fame Coaches:Hubie Brown
    Rivals:Los Angeles Clippers, Oklahoma City Thunder & San Antonio Spurs
    Legends:Pau Gasol, Shane Battier, Mike Miller, Rudy Gay, Mike Conley, Zach Randolph, Marc Gasol & Tony Allen
    Retired Numbers:None
    Conference: Western Conference
    Division:Southwest Division
    NBA Championships:None

    Memphis Grizzlies History

    The Memphis Grizzlies joined the NBA in 1995 as an expansion team alongside the Toronto Raptors, originally being the Vancouver Grizzlies. The Grizzlies were hampered by a ruling from the NBA commission that didn’t allow them a top 5 selection in the draft for their first three seasons, due to being able to select bench players from the established teams in their expansion draft prior to their first season. 

    The Grizzlies won their first two NBA games, but followed up with 19 straight loses and later set an NBA single season record of 23 straight loses, which has since been broken. Despite a 15-67 record in their inaugural season, the Grizzlies managed to average 17,183 spectators per home game, 14th best in the league. 

    The Grizzlies did no better of the next five seasons in Vancouver, highlighted by a 8-42 record in the 1998-99 lockout shortened season. The lockout brought not only struggles on the court, but off it also. Average fan attendance decreased by over 2,000 and ownership began losing money and looking for a potential buyer for the franchise. 

    Michael Heisley bought the franchise for $160M, and after originally planning to keep the team in Vancouver, was looking for an American city as a new host, with Memphis finally being selected and approved by the league. The Grizzlies became the first major professional sports franchise based in Memphis and also became the easternmost franchise in the Western Conference. 

    The move to Memphis saw a turn in fortune, with the Atlanta Hawks trading their 3rd pick in the 2001 draft, Pau Gasol. Gasol would lead the Memphis team and end up winning Rookie of the Year. 

    The front-office surrounded Gasol with great role players like Jason Williams, Mike Miller and James Posey and saw the team make the playoffs for the first time in the 2003-04 season, finishing with a 50-32 record. Despite getting swept 4-0 by the San Antonio Spurs in the first round, the 50 wins would be a mark that wasn’t eclipsed until the 2012-13 season. 

    The Grizzlies would make the playoffs the following two seasons, but a Gasol broken foot in the 2006 off-season whilst playing for Spain saw Memphis fall to a league worst 22-60 in the 2006-07 season, being led by rookie forward Rudy Gay. Despite having the worst record, the Grizzlies were only awarded the fourth pick in the 2007 NBA Draft, selected point guard Mike Conley Jr. 

    The 2007-08 season wasn’t starting as planned and saw the front office trade Gasol to the Los Angeles Lakers for a selection of picks and players, including the rights to Pau’s younger brother Marc Gasol, who was playing in Spain. The team again finished with a 22-60 record. 

    The 2009 offseason is one that Grizzlies’ fans don’t like to look back on, selecting center Hasheem Thabeet with the second pick in the 2009 NBA Draft, ahead of future MVPs James Harden (3rd) and Steph Curry (7th). The team would also sign Allen Iverson as a free agent, who would only play three games before leaving the team for ‘personal reasons’. 

    However, Memphis did acquire Zach Randolph, who combined with Gay, Gasol, Conley and free agent defensive stopper Tony Allen, would lead the Grizzlies to their most successful period in franchise history, touted as the ‘Grit and Grind’ era. 

    The team played hard-nosed defence and often got under the skin of opponents, leading the league in steals and making the playoffs in 2011 after four unsuccessful seasons. Finishing as the 8-seed in the West, they played the 1-seed Spurs, whom they defeated in six games, the first series win in franchise history. Memphis would lose in a hard-fought seven game series to the Oklahoma City Thunder. 

    The following season saw the team make the playoffs again, losing to the Los Angeles Clippers seven games in the first round, starting a vicious rivalry between the two teams, who both played with a chip on their shoulder. 

    The 2012-13 season was the best in franchise history, finishing with a 56-26 record. Gasol won Defensive Player of the Year and the team avenged the previous year’s loss to the Clippers, defeating them in six games in the opening round of the playoffs. 

    Memphis would then go on to beat the one-seed Oklahoma City Thunder in the second round, making the Western Conference Finals for the first and only time in franchise history. Memphis would go on to lose to long time foes, the San Antonio Spurs. 

    The team would make the playoffs the next four seasons, only getting out of the first round once, and the Grit and Grind era came to an end in 2017 when both Randolph and Allen left in free agency. Memphis would go on to have their worst season since 2007-08, having a 19 game losing streak and finishing with the 22-60 record. 

    The last two members of the franchise’s best era were moved on with Gasol being traded to the Toronto Raptors during the 2019 season and Conley being traded in the 2019 off-season, with the franchise looking towards the future. The team is now led by the fourth pick in the 2018 Draft, Jaren Jackson Jr and second pick in the 2019 Draft and 2020 Rookie of the Year Ja Morant. 

    Morant led the team to the eighth best record in the West before COVID-19 suspended the 2019-20 season. After play returned in the Orlando Bubble, the team went 2-6 with Jackson Jr only playing three games before being sidelined with injury. 

    Memphis finished the eight seeding games in ninth spot in the West, qualifying for the eight vs nine play-in game against the Portland Trail Blazers. The Grizzlies would lose to Dame Lillard and the Blazers in the play-in game and be eliminated from playoff contention. 

    Given the play of Morant and the Grizzlies in the 2020 Bubble, there were some expectations that they could go one better and reach the playoffs. It was a long and tough season for the team, finishing ninth in the West and qualifying for the Play-In Tournament for the second straight season.

    Facing the Spurs in an elimination 9 v 10 Play-In game, Memphis needed 20+ points from Morant, Jonas Valanciunas and Dillon Brooks in order to win by four points and keep their season alive. They then faced the Warriors, on the road, in the eighth-seed Play-In game and won in overtime behind 35 points from Morant.

    They then faced the Jazz, who had the best record in the league, in the opening round. A Game One victory gave the Grizzlies hope of an upset, but Donovan Mitchell returned from injury for the Jazz in Game Two and Memphis failed to win another game, losing 4-1. While they lost in five games, Ja Morant’s 47 point outburst in Game Two shows the star that he is and how bright the future is for Memphis.

    It was a solid year for the Memphis Grizzlies in 2021-22 as they finished in second place of the Western Conference. At the same time Ja Morant further established himself as a future star in the National Basketball Association.

    Expert 2022-23 Picks & Preview on Memphis Grizzlies

    If you are a fan of the Memphis Grizzlies, then you know that the only thing that matters right now is how they are expected to perform in the 2022-23 season. Do the Memphis Grizzlies have the star power to make it all the way to the playoffs and win The Finals in 2023?

    Have a read on below at SportsTips expert picks & preview on the Memphis Grizzlies:

    Front Office

    Taylor Jenkins is the head coach of the Memphis Grizzlies, and this upcoming 2022-23 National Basketball Association season will be his fourth season in charge of the franchise. He has been coaching in the league for four years overall and over the course of his coaching career he has made the playoffs two times. His overall record in the regular season currently sits at 128-99. While his overall playoff record is currently sitting at 7-10, as he has led the Memphis Grizzlies to the playoffs for two straight seasons. 

    Zachary Kleiman is the general manager of the Memphis Grizzlies and he has held that position within the franchise since 2019. He has worked his way up through the organization since being hired in 2015. This upcoming 2022-23 National Basketball Association season will be his fourth season as the decision maker for the franchise. He is the reigning NBA Executive of the Year award winner. 

    Key Players

    Ja Morant is the best player on this team’s roster and he is sure to make a huge impact during the 2022-23 National Basketball Association season. This upcoming season will be his fourth season in the National Basketball Association. Last season he put up some impressive numbers despite missing a large chunk of the year as he averaged around 27 points per game. He set up his teammates as well as he averaged around seven assists per game. He also managed to do some work on the boards as he averaged around six rebounds per game. He is one of the best scorers and passing guards in the entire league. 

    The second key player on this roster is Jaren Jackson Jr. and this upcoming season will be his fifth season in the National Basketball Association. Last season he put up some impressive numbers as he averaged around 16 points per game. He set up his teammates as well as he averaged around one assist per game. He also managed to do some work on the boards as he averaged around six rebounds per game.

    Breakout Player

    Kenny Lofton Jr. will be the breakout player on this team’s roster and he is sure to make a huge impact during the 2022-23 National Basketball Association season. He went undrafted in the 2022 National Basketball Association Draft. This upcoming season will be his rookie season in the National Basketball Association after attending Louisiana Tech. Last season he put up some impressive numbers as he averaged around sixteen and a half points per game in his final year in college. 

    He set up his teammates as well as he averaged around three assists per game. He also managed to do some work on the boards as he averaged around 11 rebounds per game. He put in some work on the defensive end of the court as well, averaging around three and a half steals per game and one block per game. His list of accolades is impressive as he is a former first and third team all Conference USA player and freshman of the year.

    Memphis Grizzlies Betting & Odds Preview 2022-23

    The Memphis Grizzlies campaign during the 2021-22 National Basketball Association season went about as you would’ve expected. They finished the year with a record of 56-26 and in first place of the Southwest Division.  

    There is a lot of optimism surrounding the franchise heading into the 2022-23 National Basketball Association season. If they want to improve or keep up their current level of play they will certainly need a ton of production from their stars over the course of the 2022-23 National Basketball Association season. The most important thing in any season is how a team starts out of the gate, and then how they look when the all-star break approaches. 

    In the National Basketball Association, a lot can change over a single off-season. It will be interesting to see how their offseason moves translate onto the basketball court over the course of the 2022-23 National Basketball Association season. Based on their odds to win some hardware headed into the season it is clear how the oddsmakers in Las Vegas feel about them heading into the year. 

    Their odds to bring home the Southwest Division championship this season currently sit at +110 heading into the 2022-23 National Basketball Association season, which puts them first in the Southwest Division out of five teams. 

    While their odds to win the Western Conference currently sit at +1000 heading into the 2022-23 National Basketball Association season, which puts them sixth in the Western Conference out of 15 teams. Their overall odds to bring home the championship are currently sitting at +2000 heading into the 2022-23 season, as they rank 11th out of all 30 teams in the National Basketball Association.

    Memphis Grizzlies FAQs

    Still got some burning questions about the Memphis Grizzlies? Well, we have answered some of the most common questions people have, hopefully you will find the answer you are looking for below! 

    Where do the Memphis Grizzlies play?

    The Memphis Grizzlies play their home games at the FedExForum. 

    Who owns the Memphis Grizzlies?

    Robert Pera is the owner of the Memphis Grizzlies. 

    Have the Memphis Grizzlies won an NBA Championship?

    The Memphis Grizzlies have won 0 NBA championships. 

    Who is the Memphis Grizzlies coach?

    Taylor Jenkins is the head coach of the Memphis Grizzlies. Jenkins was hired following the 2018-19 season, after being an assistant coach at the Milwaukee Bucks.

    Do the Memphis Grizzlies play tonight?

    Are you wondering if the Memphis Grizzlies are playing tonight? Well, SportsTips has all the details you need about upcoming Memphis Grizzlies games! Make sure you check this page at the top for all the details you are looking for.

    What is the Memphis Grizzlies record?

    The Memphis Grizzlies  had a 56-26 win-loss record for the 2021-22 NBA season. 

    Did the Memphis Grizzlies win last night?

    Fans of the Memphis Grizzlies are all wanting to know if they won the game last night. You can find more information in relation to the team’s recent form in games on the page at the top.

    How much are the Memphis Grizzlies worth?

    According to Forbes Magazine, the Memphis Grizzlies  are worth $1.5 billion. 

    Who do the Memphis Grizzlies play tonight?

    Like a lot of things in the NBA, things change pretty quickly. So, if you are looking for more information about who the Memphis Grizzlies play tonight, you have come to the right place. We have all this information for you in detail, you can find these details for upcoming games at the top of the page.

    How to watch the Memphis Grizzlies?

    You can watch the Memphis Grizzlies on TV channels like ESPN, ABC, TNT, NBA TV or Fox Sports Southeast, or subscribe to NBA League Pass.

    Will the Memphis Grizzlies make the playoffs this year?

    The Memphis Grizzlies did make the playoffs in the 2021-22 season after finishing 2nd in the West with a 56-26 record. 

    Will the Memphis Grizzlies get the 1st pick in the NBA Draft?

    The Memphis Grizzlies did not receive the 1st pick in the 2022 NBA draft. 

    When do the Memphis Grizzlies play?

    Memphis Grizzlies fans are always looking for more information about when their team plays the next game. For all the information you have been craving and more, be sure to check the top of this page. Here at SportsTips we list all the information you need like the tip off time, location of the game and the all important NBA odds.

    Where did the Memphis Grizzlies finish the season?

    The Memphis Grizzlies finished the 2021-22 NBA season in 2nd place in the Western Conference. 

    How many games did the Memphis Grizzlies win?

    The Memphis Grizzlies won 56 games during the 2021-22 NBA season.