MEMPHIS – At one point, reality set in that Monty Williams was out of options.
The Detroit coach had tried everything. The Pistons had rotated four different defenders on Desmond Bane, and the Grizzlies’ prolific guard had a counter for each matchup.
When the Pistons tried to pick Bane up fullcourt to wear him down, he only seemed to get stronger and more aggressive. Then, they began trapping Bane with two defenders once he crossed midcourt to initiate the Grizzlies’ offense. That failed, too, when Bane switched from unstoppable scorer to unselfish playmaker and dished out assists.
Ultimately, 49 points later from Bane, Williams was resigned to the reality a growing number of coaches and defenders are accepting: There are no answers when Bane is on his game.
“Being uncomfortable is the only way to grow,” Bane said amid a scoring binge that includes his career-high scoring effort in Wednesday’s win at Detroit. “So being put in different positions to try to help the team win has been great for me so far. It’s a blessing. It’s a sign of respect.”
Through 20 games this season, Bane has carried the offense as the primary threat while two-time NBA All-Star Ja Morant serves his 25-game suspension to open the season. The enormous focus normally reserved for Morant on opposing scouting reports has instead shifted to Bane as the top priority to limit when facing the Grizzlies.
As the calendar flipped to December, with Morant eligible to return in five games, Bane and the Grizzlies have strung together their most encouraging stretch of the season at an ideal time. In three games this month, Bane is averaging an explosive level of production at 35.3 points, 6.0 assists, 4.7 rebounds, 1.7 blocks and 1.3 steals in 33 minutes a contest.
Those contributions barely tell the story of Bane’s efficiency during this stretch. The 6-foot-6 shooting guard is knocking down 58.8 percent of his shots overall from the field, including 55 percent on 3-pointers, while also drilling 83.3 percent from the free-throw line.
That stint of profound play comes as the Grizzlies (6-14) have worked to dig themselves out of a huge hole to start the season. Entering Friday’s game against the Western Conference-leading Timberwolves, the Grizzlies have won three of their past four games to spark some momentum.
The uptick has coincided with power forward Jaren Jackson Jr. posting consecutive games with a season-high 37 points and nine rebounds in Saturday’s loss in Phoenix followed by 24 points and four blocks in Wednesday’s win at Detroit. The Grizzlies are also building some chemistry and consistency deeper in the rotation, where Vince Williams Jr., Jaylen Nowell and Santi Aldama have solidified a reserve core that has given the team a needed boost off the bench.
But Bane has set the tone, especially in key moments of recent games as the Grizzlies either attempted to rally from a deficit or pushed ahead to secure a win. The past two games provide evidence of Bane’s breakout ability as a certified All-Star candidate.
On Saturday in Phoenix, Bane scored 20 of his 27 points in the fourth quarter to mark the first time this season a Grizzlies player accounted for that many points in a single period. The comeback from a 16-point deficit ultimately fell short in the 116-109 setback, which was their lone loss in the past four games.
A similar effort from Bane was needed Wednesday in Detroit, where he took over with 19 points in the third period to help tie the game. Memphis then went on a 23-9 run to open the fourth quarter and eventually pull away for the 116-102 victory.
What Williams and Suns coach Frank Vogel witnessed the past two games against Memphis is a player who has blossomed under difficult circumstances into an elite talent in this league.
“That’s what you’re seeing with him now, and you see it night after night,” Vogel said of Bane. “He’s a guy that when you plan a game plan for him, there’s a lot that goes into trying to slow him down because he can do it all. So, I’m very impressed with how he’s developed as a player.”
Bane’s rapid development over his first three years in the league has him among a select group of performers this season. He’s one of only five NBA players currently averaging at least 25 points, five assists, three made 3-pointers and a steal per game this season.
What stands out most about Bane’s game this season is his increased ability to score at all three levels – shooting from beyond the arc, operating in mid-range and relentlessly attacking the basket. And beyond that, as has been the case during a remarkable start to December, has been Bane’s competitiveness on both ends of the floor, where he’s an improved perimeter defender.
That’s where coaches such as Vogel see the value in Bane’s overall play. Once Morant returns, Memphis will boast arguably the league’s most dominant backcourt tandem.
“Obviously, when they were really surging with Ja the last couple of years, Bane was really an underrated piece to their success,” Vogel said of Bane’s impact on a Grizzlies team that finished second in the West standings each of the previous two seasons. “He’s really a big-time, big-time player who can do it all offensively. And he’s a dog defensively, too. He’s great at playing off someone like Ja, and he’s also someone you can put the ball in his hands and go for 30 a night.”
As the numbers show, Bane’s month-over-month progress has been phenomenal. But getting the Grizzlies on track overall is the main priority following their 0-6 start to the season.
“We’ve shown in the past that we can get going and run off seven, eight, nine, 10 wins in a row,” Bane said. “We have a recipe (for success), and we just have to stick to it and be disciplined.”
Bane knows the workload might decrease for him individually as the Grizzlies get back players who have been injured in recent weeks. In addition to Morant on course to make his season debut on Dec. 19, Memphis is also hopeful of having veteran guard Marcus Smart (foot) and sharpshooter Luke Kennard (knee) back around that mid-December timeframe, too.
Until then, Bane believes he’s built to keep up his recent torrent pace of production.
“These are reps I probably wouldn’t be getting nearly as much if Ja is on the floor, because he usually takes the bulk of the attention from defensive game plans,” Bane pointed out. “I’m usually the beneficiary of that, but things have switched up a little bit, and it’s been great.”
Another offshoot would be for Bane to garner increasing All-Star attention when the ballot process begins later this month. Multiple coaches have said the West is filled with top talent, particularly at the guard spots this season.
The Grizzlies’ overall improvement from here will only strengthen Bane’s candidacy for his first potential All-Star Game, which will be played in his home state of Indiana in February. For now, the challenging work continues at a pace almost as relentless as Bane’s recent scoring binge.
After facing Devin Booker in Phoenix last week, there’s Friday’s marquee showdown at Bane’s position when Anthony Edwards leads the Timberwolves into FedExForum for the second time in three weeks.
Edwards, who made his first All-Star appearance last season, was the No. 1 pick in the 2020 draft. Bane was taken 29 spots later as the No. 30 and final pick of that year’s first round.
Re-draft that class now based on how things have turned out, and it’s a lock Bane would join Edwards in the top half of the lottery.
Bane has doubled down in the past two games on what he’s established the past two months.
He’s worthy of the NBA’s full attention and every opponent’s complete respect.