MEMPHIS – In the NBA, playoff series are all about adjustments.
Offensive schemes are tweaked and defensive tactics are altered based on performances and previous outcomes. Even lineups and playing rotations can change from game to game.
In the aftermath of consecutive blowout road losses at top-seeded Oklahoma City, the Grizzlies believe the biggest adjustment they’ll benefit from most is a change of scenery.
“The message to the team was very short,” Grizzlies interim coach Tuomas Iisalo revealed as the Grizzlies departed Oklahoma City in a hole that seems much deeper than a 2-0 series deficit. “Let’s get on the plane as soon as possible and get home. They took care of their business. Now, it’s time for us to take care of our business at home.”
The Grizzlies retreat to Memphis seeking answers for a multitude of problems in a series the Thunder have dominated in historic fashion. By forcing turnovers, controlling the boards and piling up transition points, Oklahoma City has won the first two games by a combined 70 points.
The math and metrics would suggest the Grizzlies have very little chance to rally back against a Thunder team that has now beaten them 11 straight times. That stretch includes having won all six meetings the teams have played in the regular season and playoffs this year by double digits.
Still, the Grizzlies believe this series is far from over. They’re banking on at least two things to help them recover and respond when the series shifts to FedExForum for Game 3 on Thursday.
The goal is to build on their effort from the latter stages of Game 2, when the Grizzlies won the third quarter 27-20 and essentially played the Thunder evenly in the second half. It was the most encouraging stretch the Grizzlies have shown after trailing by as much as 30 in the first half Sunday in Game 1 and falling behind by 20 in the first half Tuesday.
Avoiding OKC’s initial onslaught in Game 3 is vital for the Grizzlies, who are confident that their home crowd and FedExForum energy will help deliver a needed boost from the outset.
“It’s a series; you can’t get too high or too low about anything,” said Grizzlies All-Star forward Jaren Jackson Jr., who bounced back from a sluggish Game 1 performance with a team-high 26 points in Game 2. “You’ve got to go home, ride the wave of the crowd and homecourt, have that confidence and that swag. No matter what happened (in OKC), we still would have had to do that at home. So, the mentality is aggression and go straight forward.”
The Grizzlies certainly can’t regress into habits that have haunted them against an OKC swarming defense that has contributed to the best regular-season net rating in NBA history. Protecting the ball has been a challenge against the Thunder, who through two games have scored 49 points off 39 Memphis turnovers. The Grizzlies are shooting just 38.4-percent from the field overall and have missed 49 of their 65 attempts from 3-point range in the series.
It’s not difficult to take inventory of what’s amiss.
“It’s not only the turnovers, it’s the possession game,” Iisalo pointed out. “We’ve had issues with offensive rebounding. This is causing way too much pressure on our shot quality. They are very active on the ball. This is something we have to fix. It takes cooperation. They controlled the offensive boards and generated turnovers. Too many times, we can’t get into our stuff.”
The Grizzlies found a bit of a breakthrough in the third quarter Tuesday, when Ja Morant pushed the pace, aggressively attacked the paint and found the range on his perimeter shot. Jackson also had his most impactful spurt, scoring 13 of his 26 points by clearing out one side of the floor and exploiting mismatches when Oklahoma City defended him with smaller players.
Most importantly, Memphis only committed two turnovers in that quarter. The solutions are obvious in describing what went right in the only period the Grizzlies have won in the series.
“We got a little more flow, and the ball-movement was more effective,” Morant said. “Passes were on time and on target, guys were stepping into it with rhythm and knocking down shots. We also started getting defensive stops and rebounds. We built some energy and kept it rolling.”
So, is that the blueprint for Game 3?
“It worked,” Morant continued. “So, yeah.”
Iisalo views it the same way.
But against OKC, the Grizzlies simply can’t back their way into the game.
“The difference was we really started competing in the third quarter and basically played them to a tie after that,” Iisalo said. “Against a team of this caliber, we need it for the whole 48 minutes, right from the get-go, and not take any steps back.”
The biggest Game 3 adjustment demands a sense of urgency from the outset.
Execution feeds off the energy. Just ask the Thunder.
“That’s two times in a row now when they came out and hit us first,” Grizzlies guard Desmond Bane assessed. “So, we’ve got to hit first at home. It’s just our fight. I thought our fight was there (in the second half). And when you have that, you have a chance.”
Despite tremendous odds and obstacles, the Grizzlies believe they’re far from finished in this series. Finally home for the next two games, it’s now or never to truly get started.