Memphis morphing

No cigar yet, but West's rebuilding project getting closer

John Hollinger, SI.com

Grizzlies at a Glance Head coach: Hubie Brown 2002-03: 28-54 2002-03 Stats Key Additions PG Troy Bell (draft) SF Dahntay Jones (draft) SF James Posey (Rockets) Key Losses PF Mike Batiste (Greece) Projected Lineup Starters Reserves PG  J. Williams E. Watson SG  M. Miller W. Person SF  J. Posey S. Battier PF  P. Gasol R. Humphrey C  L. Wright S. Swift

Across two countries and eight seasons, the Memphis Grizzlies have been synonymous with losing. Last year they dropped their first 13 games en route to a 28-54 wipeout. Here's the punchline: They shattered the franchise record for victories.

The good news is that Memphis played better in the second half of the season, going 14-19 in its final 33 games. The Grizzlies responded to the coaching of Hubie Brown, who was surprisingly recruited out of the TNT booth after almost a two-decade absence. Jason Williams especially benefited, but Shane Battier and Stromile Swift also showed improvement. Memphis brings every significant player back from that team and added two-first round draft choices and free agent James Posey to the mix.

General manager Jerry West enters the second year of his rebuilding project in Memphis, and things are still on course. He's built up the roster to the point that the Grizzlies are at least two deep at every spot except center, and are three deep at the guards. But the lack of a superstar and a big man continues to hold the team back.

Backcourt depth. As mentioned above, the Grizzlies go at least two deep on the perimeter. At point guard, it's more like four deep. Starter Jason Williams radically cut down on his turnovers under Brown and generally played like less of a knucklehead, although his aversion to defense continues. Three quality players compete for backup time behind him. The best is Earl Watson, a strong defender who showed an improved jumper in his second season and has the capability to play both guard spots. Rookie Troy Bell impressed in pre-draft workouts and should also see playing time, especially if the Grizzlies run and press to take advantage of their depth. Meanwhile, veteran Brevin Knight will be around to clean up the mess if the youngsters falter.

It's a similar story on the wings. The Grizzlies added James Posey to a rotation that already included Mike Miller, Shane Battier, Wesley Person and first-round draft pick Dahntay Jones. Miller is a deadly shooter who cost them two starters in a midseason trade, but his development since winning the 2000 Rookie of the Year has been disappointing. He's still just 22, but needs to get tougher and round out his game to deliver on his considerable promise. Miller is a weak defender, which is why the Grizzlies added Posey -- he's a weak shooter, but can handle the opponents' toughest perimeter player each night.

Battier, meanwhile, enters his third season somewhat in limbo despite two very solid seasons to start his career. He was pressed into duty as a shooting guard as a rookie, but now the Grizzlies' personnel situation has changed and he'll be forced into action as a power forward at times. The Grizzlies also have sharpshooter Person and first-round pick Jones to turn to, and Watson can take turns at shooting guard, too. They will have even more options if guard Michael Dickerson can recover from a serious groin injury that has sidelined him since 2001, when he averaged 16 points a game, but his return is still in serious doubt.

Frontcourt depth. No team in the league needs to trade a guard for a center worse than the Grizzlies. While they have four point guards who would crack most teams' rotations, they don't have a legitimate center on the entire roster. As a result, Memphis was a terrible defensive team last season and can look forward to another year of getting destroyed on the boards and in the paint.

Memphis' best frontcourt player is Pau Gasol, a seven-footer who can score in bunches but is utterly devoid of the strength needed to battle with NBA frontcourt players at the defensive end. Gasol is a capable shot-blocker, and the Grizzlies could live with his lack of muscle if they had a bruiser to pair him with.

Unfortunately, they're severely lacking in that department and instead will go another year with Lorenzen Wright and Stromile Swift pretending to be centers. Wright is undersized at 240 pounds and is more of an offensive center than a low-post banger. At 6-foot-9, 225 pounds, Swift is barely big enough for power forward, let alone center, and accompanies his lack of size with a bounty of mental errors that frequently land him in Hubie's doghouse. Swift is a heck of an athlete and would make a great power forward if Memphis could find a real center, but that's the team's life story.

Beyond those three, there's really nobody qualified to play in the frontcourt. Undersized Ryan Humphrey and 7-foot-2 Cezary Trybanski are next on the depth chart, but both players were unmitigated disasters in their rookie seasons. Out of sheer desperation, Battier may end up as Gasol's backup at power forward.

Magnifying the frontcourt problems is the fact that the starting guards (Williams and Miller) can't stay in front of anything that moves faster than a slug. The frequent penetration they give up puts additional strain on Memphis' already overmatched big men.

Has Jerry West lost his touch? West came into the job in Memphis firmly entrenched as the NBA's top talent evaluator. His role in building the Lakers into three-time champions, from plucking Kobe Bryant and Shaquille O'Neal to filling in the other pieces through clever drafts and signings, is beyond dispute.

But his track record in Memphis thus far has been a mixed bag. Last year's trade of Drew Gooden and Gordan Giricek for Miller helped Orlando a lot more than it did the Grizzlies, and was doubly odd considering he proclaimed Gooden the Rookie of the Year after the draft. Additionally, his offseason pickups failed to address the glaring weaknesses in Memphis' front line. Instead, he drafted two perimeter players and gave Posey a pocketful (four years, $24 million) in free agency.

West has had his bright moments in Memphis -- luring Brown out of retirement, signing Watson for peanuts -- and the rebuilding project still appears to be on schedule. But he'll need to accomplish much more to live up to his sterling reputation.

They're getting there. The Grizzlies are going to set a franchise record for wins again this year, but that's hardly an accomplishment. The real question is when or if they'll ever make the playoffs, and this year's Western Conference looks tough enough to ensure that it won't happen in 2004.

John Hollinger covers basketball for SI.com and is the author of Pro Basketball Prospectus. Click here to send him a question or comment.