The Memphis Grizzlies emerged as a surprise superpower in the West last season, finishing with the second most wins in the conference and pushing the eventual champion Golden State Warriors to a tough six-game series in the second round that included Ja Morant missing the final three games with an injury. With the Warriors seemingly falling off this year, the West feels wide open, and the Grizzlies may be poised to seize it.
The Grizzlies did ‘The Wave’ on the bench while blowing out the Bucks
Memphis was beating the Bucks so badly the bench started doing ‘The Wave’
Ricky O'Donnell has covered basketball at all levels for more than a decade at SB Nation. He’s currently the Associate Director of Programming.
If Memphis does eventually run the West this year, their win over the Milwaukee Bucks, 142-101, on Thursday night will be remembered as their first warning shot.
The Grizzlies smacked the Bucks from the opening tip, and took a 29-point lead into halftime. Morant didn’t play at all in the fourth quarter and still finished with a triple-double. Memphis didn’t just win big — they were having fun while doing it. With the game in hand late in the fourth quarter, cameras caught the Grizzlies bench standing up and doing the wave alongside the crowd. Watch the video here:
That’s about as disrespectful as it gets. This Memphis team doesn’t hide from talking trash or savoring their success, and right now it feels like they can back all of it up.
The Grizzlies have now won seven straight games and nine of their last 10. This win moved them into first place in the Western Conference at 19-9 overall. Memphis has gone on this great run despite Desmond Bane being out with a toe sprain. When Morant, Bane, and Jaren Jackson Jr. all get on the floor at the same time, Memphis really might have the right mix to run to the NBA Finals.
The Grizzlies just never stop having fun. Before the game against the Bucks, Memphis was dancing in the hallways.
It’s almost impossible to whoop the Bucks like that, but Memphis did it. They’re going to win, and then they’re going to rub it in your face. Right now, everyone else in the West is looking up at the Grizzlies. For such a young team just starting to scratch the surface of its potential, this could be the first sign of big things to come.
See More:
