From Wikipedia, the
free encyclopedia
The Memphis Grizzlies (formerly the Vancouver
Grizzlies) are a National
Basketball Association (NBA) team based in Memphis,
Tennessee. The Grizzlies' current head coach
is Mike
Fratello and the team is owned by Michael
Heisley. Jerry
West serves as the team's President of Basketball
Operations.
Home arenas
- GM
Place (1995-2001)
- Pyramid
Arena (2001-2004)
- FedEx
Forum (2004-present)
Franchise history
The Vancouver Grizzlies, along with
the Toronto
Raptors, became an NBA franchise in 1995. Both
teams were the first NBA teams to play in Canada
since 1946–47's Toronto
Huskies. The Grizzlies were initially composed
of players taken from other teams via an expansion
draft and the Grizzlies' first draft
pick, Bryant
Reeves. The Grizzlies finished with the worst
win/loss record in the NBA in 1995–96 season, as
is typical for an expansion team. In 1996, the Grizzlies
drafted Shareef
Abdur-Rahim as the 3rd overall pick. The Grizzlies
continued to struggle, however, again finishing
with the worst record in the NBA.
In 1997, the Grizzlies drafted Antonio
Daniels with the 4th pick. The team saw some
improvement as it finished in 6th place. The Grizzlies
were back in last place after the 1998–99 season,
however, despite drafting guard Mike
Bibby with the second overall pick in the NBA
Draft during the offseason. In the lockout-shortened
season that followed, the Grizzlies would only win
8 games.
After the NBA lockout,
the attendance at Grizzlies games began to drop,
and the team ownership began to lose money. After
six years in Vancouver, the franchise moved to Memphis
in 2001.
After relocating to Memphis for
the 2001–02 season, the team hired former Los
Angeles Laker and Hall of Famer Jerry
West as general manager in 2002, who later received
the 2003–04 NBA
Executive of the Year Award. In the 2002 NBA
Draft, the Grizzlies drafted Pau
Gasol as the 3rd overall pick, who won the Rookie
of the Year Award and is widely considered to be
the team's best player. During the 2002–03 season,
Hubie
Brown was hired to coach the Grizzlies. Brown
won the NBA
Coach of the Year Award in the next season when
the Grizzlies made the NBA playoffs for the first
time in team history in the spring of 2004 as the
sixth seed in the Western Conference.
Hubie Brown stepped down as head
coach during the 2004–05 season. At the time, the
Grizzlies had a losing record. West hired TNT
analyst and former coach Mike Fratello to replace
Brown. The Grizzlies' record improved and the team
advanced to the postseason
for the second consecutive season. The Grizzlies
had an active 2005 offseason in which they revamped
the team and added veteran talent. While the Grizzlies
lost Bonzi
Wells, Jason
Williams, Stromile
Swift, and James
Posey, they acquired Damon
Stoudamire, Bobby
Jackson, and Eddie
Jones.
Trivia
On the team's original franchise
application to the NBA, the team name was listed
as the Vancouver Mounties. The government of Canada
took exception to the name, however, claiming that
the name was trademarked, prompting the change to
the current name.
The Grizzlies were the first NBA
team to have a website, which was created in 1995
by Bob Kerstein, Chief Information Officer of the
Grizzlies at the time.
As of 2005, the Grizzlies are the
only team representing Memphis,
Tennessee in the United
States four major sports leagues (NBA,
NFL,
MLB,
NHL).
In an ironic twist for a city shunned
by major league sports for decades, the Vancouver
Grizzlies and Charlotte
Hornets both applied with the NBA to relocate
to Memphis
on the same day, March
26, 2001
(The Hornets would go on to move to New
Orleans).
Pau
Gasol of the Memphis Grizzlies in action.
All-Stars players
Notable former players
Retired numbers:
None
Current players
External links
;)
