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Yeesh. That was rough. I'm just going to mentally chalk this one up to us being young and try to forget about it. We unfortunately will have more games like this in the future I fear.

Anyone that has seen me post knows that I want Memphis to retain their top 6 pick. A GS win, is a desired result.

Memphis fans should take nothing from this game because the officials had their prints all over it.

For the first time on the year, Memphis were favorites against a 2-12 team. There was money to be made.

How?

Subtle, hard to notice impact

-One team is allowed to ne more physical, while the other isn't. An undersized front court played well above their season norm because they were allowed that physicality while Jaren fouled out on soft calls in 18mins & Jonas with his size advantage had 2 FT's.

Not so subtle impact with the game still in reach.

-Green fore arms Anderson to the floor in front of the side ref, no call
-Crowder has his 4pt play turned into a foul on the floor for 2 shots on the line

This game was a hard pill to swallow. To lose against a now 3-12 team with injuries all across their roster. It was a gimme on paper. Just not on the court. To Truth's point, this team needs to keep within the top six of the protected pick for next's summer's NBA Draft. That said, I like how this team has been showing the desire to compete every night. They will make mistakes and their chemistry at times will suffer for it. That's part of the growing pains young teams must go through in order to get better in the long term.

SD2042 wrote:This game was a hard pill to swallow. To lose against a now 3-12 team with injuries all across their roster. It was a gimme on paper. Just not on the court. To Truth's point, this team needs to keep within the top six of the protected pick for next's summer's NBA Draft. That said, I like how this team has been showing the desire to compete every night. They will make mistakes and their chemistry at times will suffer for it. That's part of the growing pains young teams must go through in order to get better in the long term.

I'm happy with the result but not the effort & desire the players put forth in this game or the previous one. They showed little fight & continue to fold in games when things sour.

Despite the recent 2 game slump, Memphis still sit 11th in the draft, they're a game & half back of a playoff spot & have yet to face the rest of the bottom of the West having faced all of the teams currently holding a playoff spot, minus the Clippers. Navigating that top 6 pick is going to be tough because Morant was a successful pick & this team already has talent. They've won 5 games in 13 matches, with a new coach, new system, new chemistry as the 2nd youngest team & Jenkins playing all his players to their weaknesses to try & expand/develop their games. Indicated by Jonas on the 3pt line & Jaren in the post. Where Jaren is the better shooter & Jonas, the better post option.

This showing against GS was surprising to say the least but the game didn't have a clean whistle. Officials controlled the paint on both ends with a tight whistle for Memphis & loose whistle for GS.

Coming off a recent rebuilding experience yourself SD, you can probably attest to the effect a bad whistle can have on a young group of players who get frustrated by it... Dillon was the only one fighting through. Jonas face was flush by the 3rd quarter with frustration & 3J who has a reputation of fouling, picked up his 4th foul on what was a clean block, fouling out in just 18 mins, while the GS players who were bodying the bigger Memphis front court, crowding the paint & swiping at the ball all night, never committed any additional contact, everything clean. Like last year, when Green aggressively swiped & dislocated Jonas thumb, with no foul called on the play, though his finger was ripped out of the socket type of clean.

Whole Truth wrote:

SD2042 wrote:This game was a hard pill to swallow. To lose against a now 3-12 team with injuries all across their roster. It was a gimme on paper. Just not on the court. To Truth's point, this team needs to keep within the top six of the protected pick for next's summer's NBA Draft. That said, I like how this team has been showing the desire to compete every night. They will make mistakes and their chemistry at times will suffer for it. That's part of the growing pains young teams must go through in order to get better in the long term.

I'm happy with the result but not the effort & desire the players put forth in this game or the previous one. They showed little fight & continue to fold in games when things sour.

Despite the recent 2 game slump, Memphis still sit 11th in the draft, they're a game & half back of a playoff spot & have yet to face the rest of the bottom of the West having faced all of the teams currently holding a playoff spot, minus the Clippers. Navigating that top 6 pick is going to be tough because Morant was a successful pick & this team already has talent. They've won 5 games in 13 matches, with a new coach, new system, new chemistry as the 2nd youngest team & Jenkins playing all his players to their weaknesses to try & expand/develop their games. Indicated by Jonas on the 3pt line & Jaren in the post. Where Jaren is the better shooter & Jonas, the better post option.

This showing against GS was surprising to say the least but the game didn't have a clean whistle. Officials controlled the paint on both ends with a tight whistle for Memphis & loose whistle for GS.

Coming off a recent rebuilding experience yourself SD, you can probably attest to the effect a bad whistle can have on a young group of players who get frustrated by it... Dillon was the only one fighting through. Jonas face was flush by the 3rd quarter with frustration & 3J who has a reputation of fouling, picked up his 4th foul on what was a clean block, fouling out in just 18 mins, while the GS players who were bodying the bigger Memphis front court, crowding the paint & swiping at the ball all night, never committed any additional contact, everything clean. Like last year, when Green aggressively swiped & dislocated Jonas thumb, with no foul called on the play, though his finger was ripped out of the socket type of clean.

That's the part that makes it so bad. These refs having the tendency to give the vet teams more leeway than your fresh upcoming team. The Grizzlies being the newcomers have to fight for respect from the officials The coach will likely have to pick up on that tab like what Fizdale did back when the Grizzlies was in the playoffs about three years ago. These refs will continue to do it until someone stands up to them. Call it straight or don't call it at all.

With these newcomers, they will see games like this where the refs will choke on their whistles for the vets. What they have to do is go through those pains, but don't lose the perspective of the game itself whichever way it's going.

I will be glad when 3J learns how to stop fouling so much. He's killing his own momentum when he continues to do that. I wonder what will it takes to get him to stop being so foul prone. He has to realize he's a key value to the team's chemistry and strategy on game nights.

SD2042 wrote: That's the part that makes it so bad. These refs having the tendency to give the vet teams more leeway than your fresh upcoming team. The Grizzlies being the newcomers have to fight for respect from the officials The coach will likely have to pick up on that tab like what Fizdale did back when the Grizzlies was in the playoffs about three years ago. These refs will continue to do it until someone stands up to them. Call it straight or don't call it at all.

With these newcomers, they will see games like this where the refs will choke on their whistles for the vets. What they have to do is go through those pains, but don't lose the perspective of the game itself whichever way it's going.

I will be glad when 3J learns how to stop fouling so much. He's killing his own momentum when he continues to do that. I wonder what will it takes to get him to stop being so foul prone. He has to realize he's a key value to the team's chemistry and strategy on game nights.

Jenkins won't argue calls, his priority is development & being top 6. I read besides Wiseman, Memphis have interest in Melo Ball, I kind of hope not. He can't shoot & I don't like his fathers potential influence on the small market team.

With GS being 2-12, not having their stars, I don't think respect (Superstar call) was the issue. Memphis had won 3 straight before losing to a contender in Denver. They were favored to beat the 2-12 Warriors. First time on the year as the clear favorite coming off a 3-1 stretch, only losing to a true contender after beating some quality teams like the Jazz & Spurs. I think, someone dropped money behind GS, a la Donaghy. It doesn't have to be the case but it sure was officiated like it. The Whistle didn't let up for Memphis until the game was out of reach in the 4th. Which is a trick they use to level the foul rate when people check the box score.

Concerning 3J, it's my opinion that he's over thinking his game. The foul trouble is the proverbial monkey on his back.

Whole Truth wrote:

SD2042 wrote: That's the part that makes it so bad. These refs having the tendency to give the vet teams more leeway than your fresh upcoming team. The Grizzlies being the newcomers have to fight for respect from the officials The coach will likely have to pick up on that tab like what Fizdale did back when the Grizzlies was in the playoffs about three years ago. These refs will continue to do it until someone stands up to them. Call it straight or don't call it at all.

With these newcomers, they will see games like this where the refs will choke on their whistles for the vets. What they have to do is go through those pains, but don't lose the perspective of the game itself whichever way it's going.

I will be glad when 3J learns how to stop fouling so much. He's killing his own momentum when he continues to do that. I wonder what will it takes to get him to stop being so foul prone. He has to realize he's a key value to the team's chemistry and strategy on game nights.

Jenkins won't argue calls, his priority is development & being top 6. I read besides Wiseman, Memphis have interest in Melo Ball, I kind of hope not. He can't shoot & I don't like his fathers potential influence on the small market team.

With GS being 2-12, not having their stars, I don't think respect (Superstar call) was the issue. Memphis had won 3 straight before losing to a contender in Denver. They were favored to beat the 2-12 Warriors. First time on the year as the clear favorite coming off a 3-1 stretch, only losing to a true contender after beating some quality teams like the Jazz & Spurs. I think, someone dropped money behind GS, a la Donaghy. It doesn't have to be the case but it sure was officiated like it. The Whistle didn't let up for Memphis until the game was out of reach in the 4th. Which is a trick they use to level the foul rate when people check the box score.

Concerning 3J, it's my opinion that he's over thinking his game. The foul trouble is the proverbial monkey on his back.

I agree. I think JJJ is really in his head. You could see him doing breathing exercises before one of the games that are generally used when you are nervous/anxious. When JJJ is given the ball early and can hit a few shots, he gets comfortable and has a better game. When he isn't given a chance to work the jitters out early I feel like it plagues him the entire game.

VCfor3 wrote:

Whole Truth wrote:

SD2042 wrote: That's the part that makes it so bad. These refs having the tendency to give the vet teams more leeway than your fresh upcoming team. The Grizzlies being the newcomers have to fight for respect from the officials The coach will likely have to pick up on that tab like what Fizdale did back when the Grizzlies was in the playoffs about three years ago. These refs will continue to do it until someone stands up to them. Call it straight or don't call it at all.

With these newcomers, they will see games like this where the refs will choke on their whistles for the vets. What they have to do is go through those pains, but don't lose the perspective of the game itself whichever way it's going.

I will be glad when 3J learns how to stop fouling so much. He's killing his own momentum when he continues to do that. I wonder what will it takes to get him to stop being so foul prone. He has to realize he's a key value to the team's chemistry and strategy on game nights.

Jenkins won't argue calls, his priority is development & being top 6. I read besides Wiseman, Memphis have interest in Melo Ball, I kind of hope not. He can't shoot & I don't like his fathers potential influence on the small market team.

With GS being 2-12, not having their stars, I don't think respect (Superstar call) was the issue. Memphis had won 3 straight before losing to a contender in Denver. They were favored to beat the 2-12 Warriors. First time on the year as the clear favorite coming off a 3-1 stretch, only losing to a true contender after beating some quality teams like the Jazz & Spurs. I think, someone dropped money behind GS, a la Donaghy. It doesn't have to be the case but it sure was officiated like it. The Whistle didn't let up for Memphis until the game was out of reach in the 4th. Which is a trick they use to level the foul rate when people check the box score.

Concerning 3J, it's my opinion that he's over thinking his game. The foul trouble is the proverbial monkey on his back.

I agree. I think JJJ is really in his head. You could see him doing breathing exercises before one of the games that are generally used when you are nervous/anxious. When JJJ is given the ball early and can hit a few shots, he gets comfortable and has a better game. When he isn't given a chance to work the jitters out early I feel like it plagues him the entire game.

In 3J's case, it's pure psychological and very routine. Which supports the ego part of his psychology. Unless his routine follows according to his plan, he gets in an early funk and disputes his game flow. He need to change that up. Although 3J is an integral part of the team, he has to realize that you can't lead a team if you find yourself get trip up by an ego complex that may contribute to critical parts of the game. Just relax and let the game come to you.

VCfor3 wrote:I agree. I think JJJ is really in his head. You could see him doing breathing exercises before one of the games that are generally used when you are nervous/anxious. When JJJ is given the ball early and can hit a few shots, he gets comfortable and has a better game. When he isn't given a chance to work the jitters out early I feel like it plagues him the entire game.

I'm no expert but it's not hard to see his negative body language when he picks up fouls. The looks to the sky, hanging of the head, the sagging of his arms. All signs of frustration & defeat. Instead of thinking the game.. his mind is on not fouling & with every call he gets increasingly dejected. It's sapping his confidence as you allude to in plaguing him.

Jonas went through something similar. He would get fouled more than he fouled but the calls never favored his bland efficient game. Where he once was aggressive defensively, he now raises his hands & keeps them up in innocence 7 seasons later. The last thing Memphis wants is for Jaren to be less aggressive defensively to curb his fouling habits. The annoying part about this is players like Green who yell at the refs get away with blocks where their hands are leaning forward apposed to up, among other physical liberties others don't get the benefit of by not having his "defensive reputation". Where Jaren is picking up a reputation of being foul prone. Which brings me to my next point.

Jaren's 4th foul in this game was a clean block, we don't want him having trouble making the distinction based on what he's being whistled for where it makes him less aggressive like Jonas. I would have liked Jenkins to show some support in questioning the officials especially knowing that Jaren is struggling with the issue. Some reassurance that his block was in fact clean. More clean than anything GS got away with.

With nothing to lose this season my solution would be to take the fouling aspect of the game out of the equation for Jaren, where making the right play would be more in focus than fouling. Don't bench him or take him out of games until he fouls out. Reassurance, refocus. reinforce what he's doing to build his confidence in making the right play.

The raw 19/20yo young big spent all offseason hearing that he's the franchise & when he doesn't live up to those LOFTY expectations … he does what? force.