Memphis Grizzlies - Franchise players in each NBA Team – NBA Feature Part 11
Memphis Grizzlies – Zach Randolph
This is team which nobody wants to play – the dark horses of the NBA.
In a team having the likes of Rudy g*y, Marc Gasol and Zach Randolph, it is very difficult of pick one player.
Rudy g*y has averaged near 20 points per season ever since his rookie season, is a solid rebounder with great defensive abilities, and last season he proved his pedigree as a clutch perimeter shooter.
Marc Gasol is also one of the best centres in the league. He is a beast on the defense, can set up tight screens on both ends of the floor and there ain’t a better inside the paint passer than him around. He has been a consistent
double-double threat for the last two seasons and in the last one, he effectively became the alpha Gasol in the league.
My inclination is however towards Zach Randolph.
Back in the 2010-11 season when Memphis Grizzlies qualified for the Western Conference Finals at the eighth spot, nobody gave them a chance to go past the mighty San Antonio Spurs in the first round.
The Grizzlies however did the impossible, flushing the team with the best record in the regular season 4-2 and then took on a resurgent Oklahoma City Thunder in the Western Conference Semis. OKC were given a run for their money
during the entire series and it was eventually the brilliance of one Kevin Durant which separated the two sides.
The spectacular feat of success Grizzlies achieved that season was mainly due to the efforts of one player – Zach Randolph, the man who Durant branded as the best power forward in the league midway through the series between the
two teams.
Randolph averaged 17.3 points and 9.3 boards through that regular season and then went to average 22.2 points and 10.8 rebounds in the 13 playoff games to orchestrate one of the most successful Grizzlies seasons.
He got injured last off season and played more of a third fiddle to g*y and Gasol, getting reduced minutes of the bench from coach Lionel Hollins. The Grizzlies did very well in the regular season, qualifying for the playoffs as
fifth seeds, but with Randolph not fully in the game, they never had that sort of an impact against the Los Angeles Clippers in the first round, which they lost in seven games.
For me, one thing became very clear after that series that g*y and Gasol might be superstars in their own right, but when it comes to carrying and leading the franchise Z-Bo remains the best option, and he should at all times be
the floor general and the leader of the front court.
Randolph is one who should carry the franchise into the future.
Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this article do not represent Bettor.com’s editorial policy.
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