GT: Hornets @ Grizzlies Fri Dec 12th 8PM EST

[Braggins]

This loss was somehow good and horrible at the same time.

[Liver_Pooty]

This loss was somehow good and horrible at the same time.

I don't mind the loss.

Only reason I hate it is that we play tomorrow night. Back to back after we played our guts out? Eh, not a good sign.

[EwingSweatsALot]

Missed you guys tonight, haha.

I was babysitting my nephew and apparently there are still places where cell service is not possible. Somehow I was able to take my frustration, but also happiness out on twitter.

Kemba played really well, we rarely lose when he plays and shoots that way.

Al sucked. Gasol swallowed him up way too many times for a guy who is considered to have the best post moves in the game. He would also shoot over Manut Bol standing on top of Gheorge Mueresan standing on top of Mark Eaton. He is more times than not completely one tracked on what he wants to do and nothing will change it. To the point he just takes absurd shots from absurd angles.

End game rotations seemed weird once again. If Memphis can play TA down the stretch we can play MKG. They have no more offense than we do.

MKG also has to start getting more minutes, maybe it is Clifford getting his sea legs back.

For all Neal did good to keep us in it he was really horrible down the stretch in the 4th and the two OTs. He will shoot you out of games even quicker than he will keep you in them. The only reason he wasn't a bigger goat is because he kept getting fouled on ridiculous stupid shots that were only out done by the stupidity of the fouls that were committed on him. No way Memphis should have fouled him on those three plays they did in the last 12 minutes or so.

On VCs three. Do you take Al out (put in Biyombo or Marv to defend the 3 better) and sacrifice rebounding and hope Game 6 of the 2013 Finals doesn't happen to you or do you leave him in and have what happened to you tonight. One of those damned if you do and damned if you don't

Al plays better and this game never gets to OT.

Encouraging game even though we lost. We played very hard and had a chance to put away a playoff team in the West. We played well so can't be too angry about the result, but just some head scratching things went on.

Lets get a W tomorrow night and move on.

[yosemiteben]

We take Memphis, one of the hottest teams in the league, to double OT in Memphis and people are bitching? Ok.

[Eoghan]

We take Memphis, one of the hottest teams in the league, to double OT in Memphis and people are bitching? Ok.

That's pretty much how I feel about it. There are some issues that need to be addressed but even though I agree with EwingSweatsALot about Al, for the most part I thought he played within himself well tonight.

I can't complain too much when Hendo actually makes positive basketball plays most of the game.

[Braggins]

This loss was somehow good and horrible at the same time.

I don't mind the loss.

Only reason I hate it is that we play tomorrow night. Back to back after we played our guts out? Eh, not a good sign.

Yeah, and considering how well we played tonight I definitely think we would beat Brooklyn if we didn't have such a grinding game tonight. I'm expecting a close possibly ugly game tomorrow.

[Braggins]

We take Memphis, one of the hottest teams in the league, to double OT in Memphis and people are bitching? Ok.

I'm happy with our team, just not the coach.

[fatlever]

another very frustrating 4th quarter due to a stubborn coach and a god awful al jefferson, among other things. kudos for the hornets having a lead in the 4th vs a great team on the road. obviously that is a good sign, but not a new sign. we have played 3 good quarters against a lot of good teams this year.

once again clifford cant seem to find the correct 5-man unit to end the game, a pattern that keeps repeating itself.

neal had a great purple patch in the 3rd and early 4th, but his leash is just way too long. he isnt going to score against tony allen (unless allen does something idiotic like fouling him on a 3). its a horrible matchup for neal, one that most coaches would probably recognize. why not go bigger and put in MKG or lance for neal, to at least get some defense on the other end. tony allen is the closest thing to a shutdown corner in the NBA.

jefferson's inability to defend anyone outside of 5 feet from the rim once again proves to be a massive liability at the end of a game. he was playing 10 feet off gasol, who is one of the best high post centers in the past decade. how on earth does that make sense?

clifford compounded that problem by going with marvin, who cant defend randolph or gasol, which should have been painfully obvious. it took clifford way too long to recognize this error before putting zeller on gasol.

and why keep taking zeller out for marvin on offense? the guards, kemba and neal, needed screens to get free from conley and allen, yet marvin and jefferson are awful screen setters.

where was MKG? who the **** knows?

back to jefferson... when will clifford have the balls to yank him on crucial defensive possessions? the vince carter 3 to end the OT was due to jeffersons inability to defend away from the paint. they needed a 3. clifford made this same mistake at the end of the bucks game on opening night and thankfully they missed. marvin or biz or even max should have been in the game for that play.

our coach keeps making the same errors repeatedly. its getting frustrating.

the team has flaws, and the players need to learn how to close out games, regardless of who is on the floor. but god damn, clifford sure doesnt help sometimes.

great defense from zeller at the end. high five.

[LamarMatic7]

End game rotations seemed weird once again. If Memphis can play TA down the stretch we can play MKG. They have no more offense than we do.

That's a thing of the past though.

First off, running an offense through Gasol on the elbows is way more productive than running it through Al (and they are going to Gasol way more this year. at first sight, it might seem like his and Z-Bo's usage rate is relatively the same as last year, but the difference in touches, per Sports VU, is significant. thus Z-Bo might still get his shots to close possessions but Gasol will be the primary option to get things going, instead of them revolving around multiple Z-Bo post-ups)
Second off, Mike Conley is a wizard at using pick-n-rolls and finding ways to attack in tight spaces.
Third off, they have really improved their wing shooting.

I've always been on this particular Memphis's team bandwagon and placed bets on them winning the West during spring time (it's a pipe dream, but the odds are always very good), but this year it might happen for real if Gasol keeps this up. They've been very good on offense, currently 7th at 106.9 in offensive efficiency. Something like that would have been unimaginable just last year.

[BobsBuddy]

We had this game won twice and because somebody wasn't playing man to man defense we lost it. Wires have it that we are shopping Lance to Nets...I wonder who else? 6-16 now..Must turn things around with a couple of trades. or may end this season at 25-57

[Snidely FC]

I'm still reeling about 2 things:
1. Gary Neal, 90% FT shooter misses one FT that should have salted away a well deserved win in OT.
2. 3 pt lead, 15 secs left in OT, FOUL!!!! Foul until you send them to the line for 2. Why let them get a 3 up???

If we play like we did last night every game we'll win a lot more than we lose.

[Hornet Mania]

If we beat Brooklyn tonight this game will a lot easier to swallow. If we lose in embarrassing fashion, or just because we're dragging, my patience with our coach is going to take another hit. Luckily the Nets are coming off a back-to-back as well, so maybe it will even out.

The biggest mistake, to me, was leaving Al in the game for the 2nd OT and any defensive possessions. I can understand leaving him out their for the first OT, you dabble and experiment with Alfense and if it doesn't work you sit him down. Instead we dabbled, realized Alfense was getting owned by the DPOY and short-list MVP candidate, and continued banging out head against that brick wall for another five crucial minutes. The defensive possessions are self-explanatory, Al can't guard his man and he can't run out to contest the shooter. If he does, once in a blue moon, run out on a shooter he tends to hold his arm straight out and get a cheap foul instead of holding his arms up (like someone who's not a lazy POS on defense) and presenting an obstacle to shoot over.

Almost every coach in the league (even some that are otherwise inept!) would have MKG and Biyombo out there for the crucial defensive possessions at minimum. MKG and Biz should be deployed in every single obvious defensive possession. What's the down side? That's either the main (MKG) or entire (Biz) reason either of them are in the league to start with. Whatever contrived reason Clifford holds onto for leaving Al in for late defensive possession needs to be corrected immediately.