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By Sam Amico / The Amico Report

GRIZ SHOWING THEIR TEETH

Nobody in the NBA plays team basketball better than the Memphis Grizzlies.

The Grizzlies are young. They can be maddening to their fans. They often treat defense like a bad case of the flu, and they probably aren’t playoff-bound.

But they share the ball, and they seem to enjoy doing it.

Other than Pau Gasol, they don’t really have a player who cares about how many shots he takes. And that’s not intended to rip Gasol. If you’re the Grizzlies, you NEED him to take most of the shots -- as Gasol is the one player on Memphis who can get the job done one-on-one.

Nor are the Grizzlies horrendous on defense. Just last week I watched them erase a 24-point deficit against Cleveland to come back and win in double overtime. A couple nights later, they won in Boston.

In the Cleveland game, I remember yelling at the television set, begging Memphis coach Hubie Brown to switch to a zone defense. Brown did, and the Grizzlies forced the poor Cavaliers into tons of bad shots and countless turnovers. (Based on that, I’ll be applying for the Orlando coaching vacancy next week).

Offensively, few can match the Grizzlies’ unselfishness. And remember, we’re talking about a team that has Jason Williams for a starting point guard. Then again, this is the NEW Jason Williams -- the one who no longer feels that any pass not thrown from behind his back or between his legs is a boring one.

My favorite Grizzly, though, is Shane Battier. He’s sort of a younger version of the Lakers’ Rick Fox. Like Fox, Battier only wants to do what it takes to win. And like Fox, Battier is a pesky defender, as Battier is the best in the league at taking charges.

Unlike Fox, Battier has some underrated athletic ability and proficient offensive skills.

I also like what I’ve seen from shooting guard Mike Miller, who can do a little bit of everything -- shoot from the perimeter, drive to the basket, and fill in admirably for Williams at point guard.

Or how about Stromile Swift? It’s been a breakout year for the third-year big man, a forward who has found a home in Brown’s equal-opportunity offense. Swift is long and lean, and is making a living off other people’s missed shots.

All of this leads me to believe swingman Bonzi Wells will eventually stop being a head case and start focusing on basketball -- and you guessed it, begin to develop a team-first attitude under Brown. Wells was acquired from Portland for Wesley Person in a deal that I expect to be a steal for the Grizzlies.

Wells is the ultimate slasher, and his ability to create something out of nothing is the one aspect Memphis’ offense has been lacking. The only thing he needs to do now is keep quiet and listen to Brown. Otherwise, he’ll become just another J.R. Rider.

Other names you should know on Memphis’ roster: Backup point guard Earl Watson, swingman James Posey, center Lorenzen Wright, and all-out hustling forward Bo Outlaw. Each is more productive than experts predicted, mostly because each relies on his teammates.

No, the Grizzlies don’t have that one superstar who will sell lots of jerseys. No, you won’t get the chance to see them play on national TV very often. And no, the market in which they play isn’t exactly an NBA hotbed.

But if you love basketball, you’ll love watching them play anyway.

MORE ON MEMPHIS

-- The Grizzlies also gave up a first-round pick in 2004 in the Wells deal, and that’s not so bad, considering they already have talented youngsters such as Troy Bell and Dahntay Jones waiting for minutes on the bench.

-- Then again, if Wells turns into a pro’s pro, Jones may be the odd man out, as Memphis has a glut of talented swingmen (Battier, Posey, Wells, and Miller).

-- Hold those angry e-mail Utah and Seattle fans. Both of those teams are also playing team ball in the truest sense. So are the Lakers, especially on the occasions when Kobe Bryant decides its in his best interest not to hog the ball.

RANDOM STUFF

-- Let me be the first to say that Sacramento center/forward Brad Miller had better be selected to the All-Star team this season. Miller has been scoring and rebounding like a madman, and he’s been doing it consistently. At this rate, people will be comparing his game to that of Indiana’s Jermaine O’Neal (without the shotblocking, of course).

-- I still like the Cavaliers, even though I called them a “bad” team. They kind of remind me of the old Phi Slama Jama teams at the University of Houston that featured Akeem Olajuwon, Clyde Drexler, Larry “Mr. Mean” Micheaux, and Benny Anders. Problem is, with the exception of Jason Kapono and occasionally, J.R. Bremer, the poor Cavaliers just cannot shoot from the outside.

-- Here’s something else to think about: The youthful Cavs also aren’t much older than that University of Houston team was in its prime. I used to hate it when people would say a great college team could be a bad pro team (the Clippers always seemed to be the victim of these comparisons) -- but today, I think some of those great college teams COULD beat an NBA team. The reason? Some of today’s NBA teams are AS young as those college teams from the 1980s and early ’90s.

-- Could you imagine if the Cavaliers still had Andre Miller or Earl Boykins at point guard (Miller was traded for Darius Miles, Boykins was waived)? My guess is they wouldn’t have been swept by the Nuggets, the team Miller and Boykins both play for now.

-- Dallas’ Steve Nash and Antoine Walker each shot 4-of-18 from the floor in a recent game, and the Mavericks still won (Nov. 29 against Minnesota). They also did it without Dirk Nowitzki! I’m not sure if that says more about the Mavs’ depth, or the Timberwolves’ lack of it.

-- Speaking of the Mavericks, rookie swingman Josh Howard has been extremely underrated, and right now, you’d have to consider him for the All-Rookie team. That says a lot when you consider Dallas already has Walker, Nowitzki, Michael Finley, Eduardo Najera, and so on and so on.

-- On to the Clippers … Mark Jaric is a fine NBA player, but he sure isn’t the answer at point guard. Jaric reminds me a lot of former Golden State super sub Sarunas Marcilinous, meaning Jaric would be a nice backup at both guard spots. But nothing more.

-- Having said that, I love Clippers backup forward Bobby Simmons. He forces nothing, letting the game come to him and hustling at all times. He’s only averaging about five points per game, but he leads the Clippers in free-throw shooting at 87 percent.

-- Don’t you just love the fact that Philadelphia has been one of the rare teams that has stuck with its core group of Allen Iverson, Aaron McKie, and Eric Snow (and to a lesser degree, Derrick Coleman)? I wouldn’t be the least bit surprised to the 76ers sneak up on some people in the playoffs, especially if scoring machine Glenn Robinson can get healthy, and motivated.

-- Another prediction: The Toronto Raptors will make some noise in the playoffs. In other words, I’m back on the Jalen Rose bandwagon. To be honest, the trade for Rose has completely renewed my interest in this team. Before he came on board, the Raptors pretty much put me to sleep. Even with Vince Carter.

-- OK, I gotta run. But I promise that I’ll get back to printing your comments and questions next week. So keep those e-mails coming! Even if I don’t print them, I love reading ‘em. Enjoy the games.

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