Grizzlies Fail To Make The Playoffs For Fourth Straight Season

As sad as it is to say, the Memphis Grizzlies will unfortunately miss the playoffs for the 4th consecutive season, even though they will win between 30 and 35 games. It is hard to root against Ja Morant given his story and he is one of the young faces of the NBA for years to come, but he alone cannot carry the Grizzlies to the playoffs in a stacked Western Conference.

Jaren Jackson Jr. being out to start the season also will hurt the Grizzlies chances at making the playoffs because a lot of new faces and younger players will start to get playing experience as a result. Brandon Clarke and Jontay Porter are two young frontcourt options for the Grizzlies who will get a lot of playing time early in the year, but they are not solidified players yet to be able to pick up the scoring load Jaren Jackson Jr. leaves behind. 

At full strength, this Memphis Grizzlies team could be very interesting, but missing their second-best player will hinder this team’s ability to overcome adversity early on in the season. Missing the playoffs and getting experience for other young players though may not be the worst thing for the Memphis Grizzlies. 

Being able to get more experience for Ja Morant as the leader of this team and get other guys like De’Anthony Melton and Brandon Clarke involved in bigger roles could help the Grizzlies long-term as they build their core of the future. Not to mention, another lottery pick could be exactly what Memphis needs to come back down the road and be a legit playoff threat like they have known to be a few years back. 

A record of 32-40, or at best 35-37, seems realistic for this year’s Memphis Grizzlies team, ultimately leading to them missing the playoffs in the Western Conference for the fourth straight season.