With Zach Randolph being out for the next couple of weeks due to an injury, Coach Lionel Hollins and the Memphis Grizzlies have acquired 6'10, 255lb forward Marreese Speights from the Philadelphia 76ers. Just a couple games into the season, Marreese is already proving his ability on the court by scoring and holding up to the defense, including his game high 17 points last week against a tough Grizzlies loss to the Los Angeles Lakers.
The trade did not come without controversy as word around the NBA and with coaches was that Speights would not be a good team player because of his work ethics. Speights recently told sports writer Ron Tillery of commercialappeal.com ,"Everybody always say I'm lazy and all of that," Speights said. "But
they didn't say that my first two years. It's crazy that in my third
year when coach (Doug) Collins came (to Philadelphia) that all of that
started coming up. I can't change the past. The only thing I can affect
is my future."
With his new addition to the Grizzlies lineup, Marreese will definitely have to get a feel for other key players (Rudy Gay , Marc Gasol, Mike Conley) and find his niche on the court. Becoming a member of the Grizzlies team is sort of a second chance for him as he found himself barred off the court in Philadelphia, having some shaky ground with coach Dave Collins. and didnt play in any games before the trade. Last year, he averaged 5.4 points per game and has already seen improvement during two games with the Grizzlies up to 8.5 points per game.
Speights knows this is his opportunity to prove that he is the player needed on the team and definitely capable of getting the job done. Coincidentally, the same player who he is playing for know, Zach Randolph, faced similar issues when he joined the Grizzlies back in 2009 from the New York Knicks. Nobody believed in Zach and viewed him as trouble; however, all those issues were dispelled when Zach, now known as ZBO, showed the world that he has what it takes, including getting the Grizzlies back in the playoff spotlight during last years season.
He continues to tell Tillery that "Going through that (in Philadelphia) made me realize that everything can't be gold all of the time," Speights said. "Me and coach (Collins) have a good relationship off the court. But on the court we really couldn't get it together. I've got a fresh start here so I'm not worried about Philly anymore. ... (The Griz) need me and I need them. I'm excited to be here."
So far I am impressed with Speights. He is proving to have star power on the court. The fans cheer him on and his energy and hard play will definitely keep us as contenders. Welcome to Memphis Marreese, I dont think they could have picked a better player.
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| Marreese Speights (courtesy ESPN.com) |
With his new addition to the Grizzlies lineup, Marreese will definitely have to get a feel for other key players (Rudy Gay , Marc Gasol, Mike Conley) and find his niche on the court. Becoming a member of the Grizzlies team is sort of a second chance for him as he found himself barred off the court in Philadelphia, having some shaky ground with coach Dave Collins. and didnt play in any games before the trade. Last year, he averaged 5.4 points per game and has already seen improvement during two games with the Grizzlies up to 8.5 points per game.
Speights knows this is his opportunity to prove that he is the player needed on the team and definitely capable of getting the job done. Coincidentally, the same player who he is playing for know, Zach Randolph, faced similar issues when he joined the Grizzlies back in 2009 from the New York Knicks. Nobody believed in Zach and viewed him as trouble; however, all those issues were dispelled when Zach, now known as ZBO, showed the world that he has what it takes, including getting the Grizzlies back in the playoff spotlight during last years season.
He continues to tell Tillery that "Going through that (in Philadelphia) made me realize that everything can't be gold all of the time," Speights said. "Me and coach (Collins) have a good relationship off the court. But on the court we really couldn't get it together. I've got a fresh start here so I'm not worried about Philly anymore. ... (The Griz) need me and I need them. I'm excited to be here."
So far I am impressed with Speights. He is proving to have star power on the court. The fans cheer him on and his energy and hard play will definitely keep us as contenders. Welcome to Memphis Marreese, I dont think they could have picked a better player.
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