MEMPHIS – Brandon Clarke can be forgiven for his tardiness.
“My bad, guys,” the Grizzlies veteran forward said as he saw a handful of reporters gathered around his locker Wednesday night in Minnesota. “It’s been a while since I’ve done this.”
After slowly getting dressed initially, Clarke hastily tossed on his socks and shoes, tied up his dreadlocks and turned to face questions for his first postgame media session in nine months.
Not even Clarke was certain how big of a storyline his latest comeback from an injury would be on a night the severely shorthanded Grizzlies notched just their second victory of the season against a team with a winning record.
But considering the turbulent journey one of the team’s longest-tenured players has been on the past few seasons, Clarke’s presence on the court wouldn’t be overshadowed.
One of the most uplifting moments of a challenging Grizzlies season coincided with Memphis securing a potentially pivotal victory in Wednesday’s 116-110 road win over the Timberwolves. Clarke’s season debut in Minnesota came exactly eight months after he last played on March 19 and suffered a right knee injury that ultimately required offseason surgery.
Clarke started at center on Wednesday and finished with six points, three offensive rebounds, an assist and a steal in just under 17 minutes to officially open his seventh NBA season. He displayed moments of rust from the layoff as well as signs of his signature relentless energy.
The performance was less about production and more about Clarke’s overall presence. With Achillis and knee injuries ending or derailing parts of his past three seasons, Clarke’s return was a welcomed sight on a night Memphis was missing seven players to injuries or absences.
“It feels good, and I’m just glad to be back out there with my teammates, glad we got the win,” Clarke said of working his way back into the lineup. “It’s definitely been a while since I played, so it felt a little crazy almost. It was still fun, though. I had a blast playing, so it’s 1-0 this year.”
Clarke flashed a smile as he referenced the team being unbeaten since his return. The fact is, no NBA team has made such a drastic turnaround in the midst of this season. After losing 11 of its first 15 games, Memphis has since won nine of 12 to pull to within a game of the .500 mark.
The Grizzlies (13-14) can even their record with a home win Saturday against the Wizards (4-20), who will arrive in FedExForum with the league’s worst overall record. The Grizzlies have regained traction largely by finding success on the road.
In sweeping this week’s two-game trip against the Clippers and T’wolves, Memphis improved to 7-7 on the road and is one of only 12 NBA teams with .500 or better records away from home. Defense and depth have been the primary keys throughout the turnaround, with the Grizzlies ranked third in the NBA in defensive rating and sixth in net rating since Nov. 17.
The improvement has come even as Memphis copes with multiple absences of key players, which currently includes catalyst Ja Morant (ankle) and dominant center Zach Edey (ankle).
“I would just say it’s a natural progression based on how guys have been working on a daily basis,” coach Tuomas Iisalo assessed of the recent growth and development overall. “We’ve had difficulties earlier in the season. We’ve had some losses. We also took a very hard look at what we can do better, and then we just locked in and started working on it.”
Injures forced several role players to take on larger responsibilities that created adjustment challenges. For instance, the Grizzlies employed their eight different – and easily most unorthodox – lineup of the season in Minnesota. That opening unit consisted of Cedric Coward and Jaylen Wells in the backcourt, with Santi Aldama, Jaren Jackson Jr. and Clarke up front.
“It was a really weird lineup,” Clarke said of the starting unit. “And I don’t think anybody saw that was going to happen. But we won, so it’s all good.”
The constant tweaks, changes and adjustments have forged a level of resilience.
“The difficulty was there was a lot of instability of who was in the games and who was not in the games,” Iisalo continued. “And then guys got thrown into roles they’ve never maybe played before in their careers. That takes time. Changes don’t happen that fast. You need time to develop that comfort, and our guys have done a great job. This has been an extremely fast turnaround in terms of the process and I’m extremely proud of the guys, the way they work.”
Few players embody that work ethic and resolve quite as resoundingly as Clarke.
Only Morant and Jackson have been impact players for Memphis as long as Clarke, who was taken in the first round of the 2019 NBA Draft that also delivered Morant as the No. 2 pick.
Clarke’s next step is to build on his debut by gradually improving his conditioning and rhythm. He’ll move forward with faith and confidence that he can reestablish himself as a key contributor for the Grizzlies.
His immediate goals are simple.
“Just keep playing basketball,” Clarke declared. “I’m kind of used to just expecting nothing else. I can jump higher than I did last year, according to the trainers. I’m feeling good. Just keep working and everything is going to come together nicely.”
Clarke knows at least one thing for a fact now.
His perseverance is newsworthy.