On
paper, it seemed reasonable for Vancouver fans to be optimistic about their
Grizzlies in 2000-2001. Mike Bibby has steadily improved over the course
of his brief NBA career and is very respectable at the point. Mike Dickerson
quickly proved to be a shooting guard who could score and do lots of things.
And Shareef Abdur-Rahim, well, everyone finally knows who he is (one of
the few consistent 20-point--10-rebound guys of the last few years). Othella
Harrington has talent. And Bryant Reeves is, well, he's big (actually,
see comment about his recent success below), and, well, did we mention
they've got Shareef?
These
guys have combined to create a solid unit that can perform consistently.
Consistently
lousy, that is.
The
team was happy to draft rookie forward Stromile Swift last summer. Thus
far, Stromile's NBA rookie season has been anything but swift. He's barely
played. Swift was the 2nd player picked in the draft, and is just 20 years
old. He only gathered a season and a half of college experience at Louisiana
State University before going pro, and his lack of experience has been
blaring. When he's not dunking, he's been lost on the court.
Swift
does have potential, so all is not lost. Most rookies don't step in right
away and produce. But at number two in the draft, the Grizzlies were hoping
for a more immediate impact.
Of
course, there is only so much he can do with just 12 minutes per game of
court time. Recently Swift has begun starting games at the power forward
spot, and had his best game against Denver on Jan 17th, where in 26 minutes
he scored a career-high 15 points.
Swift
won't even be playing in next month's All-Star weekend Rookie game. That
will help motivate him even more to prove himself, at least in the near
future.
The
Grizzlies did play a terrific game against the Lakers recently, and a "terrible,
terrible, terrible call by three - I can't use another word other than
gutless or coward." (officials) - according to coach Sidney Lowe - prevented
them from winning. They can still feel good about the effort, at least.
Shareef
has made it reasonably clear that he wouldn't mind being traded away. Only
some success might change his mind.
To
shake things up, Coach Lowe keeps everyone guessing as to what the starting
lineup may be. It's been changing every few games.
On
a very positive note for Vancouver, Bryant Reeves has produced nicely recently.
Reeves has started three games in a row and averaged 19 points and 11 rebounds
in that time.
Keep
an eye on how Stromile handles his increased minutes, how Grant Long plays
after coming back from injury (thumb), and if Bryant Reeves can continue
playing like people knew he could ever since his rookie season. Don't give
up hope, Vancouver fans. On paper the team is still respectable. Perhaps
it'll begin translating to the court.
