5 reasons the Memphis Grizzlies can still win without Mike Conley

3) Return of Grit-and-Grind

David Fizdale has increased the pace for the Memphis Grizzlies. They are not the same grind-it-out team they were before. Both Marc Gasol and Zach Randolph are taking more jumpers and Randolph sacrificed minutes to come off the bench, too, so the Grizzlies could have a stretch-4.

When teams are at a talent deficit, though, they inevitably have to slow the pace down and limit possessions.

Memphis is still 28th in pace at 95.2 possessions per game, so this is still a slow-ish team. They just play a more modern style with Fizdale. The Grizzlies are fourth in defensive rating according to NBA.com, giving up 100.2 points per 100 possessions, so Memphis is still quite efficient on the defensive end of the floor.  And they still have elements of this Grit-and-Grind style the Grizzlies made famous for so long. While everyone else embraced 3-pointers and sped up, Memphis slowed down.

Their 3-point attempts per game are up, from 18.5 to 25.3. That number may shrink and the Grizzlies may return to this grind-it-out style.

With Memphis’ defense, that could still be very effective in the long run.