2024-2025 NBA Season Thread • Page 282

But why

 

jesus

 

So it’s a bad move but the last month or two also have been awful

 

thats crazy. right before playoffs.

 

The timing is stupid. I don’t think it’s indefensible but it’s stupid.

 

Not an avid Grizzlies watcher but I feel like he doesn’t get the best out of that roster. Also they have a pretty bad record against .500 teams


If this was in the summer I doubt anyone would care or question it tbh

 

Right. This is all correct. Doubt most national media and non Memphis fans will get that and Taylor will surely get great offers this summer and I’m happy for him in advance. But at some point all the talk about how we’re so well run (Ja debacles aside and injury woes aside) and draft and develop well and we’re a smart team with a deep young core rings hollow if the results arent there. Big difference between 2nd in the west and wherever we end up sliding to when we find the bottom—5th, 6th?

I do wonder if Kleiman is on the hot seat himself. I hope not, as I think he’s probably the smartest GM we could reasonably expect to convince to work in Memphis. But this does have a little bit of a feeling of “fire him to protect myself.”

It just sucks this close to the playoffs, because it’s not like it’s going to suddenly make Ja healthy and ready to suit up today or undo Clarkes season ending injury or something. And all the guys in the locker room seem to really like and respect Taylor. But I don’t think it’s catastrophic either.

 

Here is Memphis's current top 5 in total minutes played this year: JJJ, Bane, Jaylen Wells, Scotty Pippen, Jr., and Santi Aldama.

And they are the 5th seed in the West. With a 2nd round draft pick playing the third most minutes and a converted two-way guy at number four.

When your ostensible best player isn't available, and then doesn't play like a best player when available, this is what happens. Not sure how any of this is Jenkins' fault. I'd say this is a pretty fantastic result given Ja's availability and performance issues.

 

I’m definitely speaking as a non-Grizz fan who doesn’t follow them closely, but I feel like navigating all those injuries the last couple seasons should buy him more time now. And it’s not like they’ve been super healthy this year. Also, they’re still a fairly young team overall. It’s really hard to have to constantly change your rotations and scheming because guys are always out. The fact that he has kept them competitive and the “next man up” typically comes in and performs well makes me think he’s a really good coach and they might regret bailing on him.

 

Ja isn’t our best player, JJJ is. It’s been true for a sec but Ja has even said it out loud this season himself or close enough: “it’s Jaren’s team” or similar. I agree that the whole Ja deal is a frustrating mystery that’s not Taylor’s fault. But he’s not the whole team. It’s also worth noting that we did fuck all besides trade away Morris at the deadline—that isn’t on Taylor either.

Some of the decisions about how the rotations align have frustrated me but I’m a dude at home who doesn’t really know shit even though I watch at least some of almost every Grizzlies games, toddler willing. And then there have been nights like last night where we just melt for no apparent reason. Maybe some of that is on the coach maybe it isn’t—but you can’t fire the players. (Unfair example against a team of OKCs caliber but there are many many other examples too.)

Aldama and Wells are good players. Pippen has shown flashes but yeah you don’t want him as a top five guy

 

And to be clear: I definitely agree that, as Swoos said, we very well may regret bailing on Jenkins—maybe pretty damn soon. Just also understand why this happened and it’s not as out of the blue as it seems. The fact that April starts next wk is the only truly out of the blue part of it

 

Grizz have a really good assistant coach, if he gets the reigns he might end up with the job full time. I don’t think they do this so late into the season unless they have confidence in the replacement.

 

Yeah Tuomar is certainly the interim and probably just the next coach

 

My other concern would be, if he is so well-liked in the locker room, how will the players respond to him being fired while they’re a 5 seed 10 games before the playoffs start? I know they’ve been struggling recently but players likely still believe they can turn it on when playoffs start.

 

I think we are saying the same thing essentially. But the fact that JJJ, not Ja, is currently your best player is the problem. Ja is being paid like he is your best player. And he used to be! He was top 10 in MVP voting two years in a row. JJJ is great, but he is not an MVP-caliber player. So having a player of JJJ's caliber be your best player is not a recipe for success in the West. Ja needs to be that dude, and he is just isn't anymore it seems.

Which is a shame, because Jenkins has legitimately gotten awesome stuff out of Scotty, Santi, and Jaylen this season. If Ja was even like 90% of his old self and more consistently available, this team would be a real problem.

 

The timing of it is what's incredibly weird. I won't pretend to know anything about the Grizzlies organization, but firing your coach this close to the playoffs as the #5 seed in a brutal conference is probably not good!

 

Yeah, this outcomes seems somewhat inevitable in hindsight given that they fired Jenkins' whole staff before the season and installed this dude to "revamp" the offense.

But I would be surprised if this isn't the first instance of a coach being fired so late in the season when his team is top 10 in both offensive and defensive rating according to cleaning the glass lol.

 

Right. I am afraid this is gonna make it worse—but also like, if we’re already getting beat by double digits by every decent team we play can it be that much worse?

 

I am sure you’re correct about this being the first instance. Our defensive rating has gotten so much worse in the last couple months though. Like you divide up the season in chunks, the most recent chunk from late Jan or so on has been so bad.

I think where I’ve settled on this is they should’ve done this a month ago if they were gonna do it

 

Oh supposedly Ja and Taylor’s relationship has been quite bad for some time too but idk how much truth there is there

 

It’s not what you want

 

Wonder if the Sixers will look at Jenkins in the offseason if they move on from Nurse.

(I have zero idea if they should or will move on from Nurse even though this season has been quite bad.)

 

these Ball men good lord