La Bomba Posted December 16, 2009 Report Share Posted December 16, 2009 Grizzlies coach Lionel Hollins arrived in Houston for a road game about six weeks ago, looking to shake up his roster in search of a stopper to the team's misery. There was no sensible remedy at that time with former Griz guard Allen Iverson away to deal with a personal issue and partly AWOL because of his displeasure over not starting. So the Grizzlies went out and lost to the Rockets that night, and their record fell to 1-8. Rudy Gay had been talking about instigating a players-only meeting for days. O.J. Mayo tossed the thought around in his head, too. It wasn't until Hollins challenged his players to stop delaying the inevitable that the Grizzlies got over the hump. They convened in a room, watched video of their play and proceeded to engage in honest dialogue. The Griz are 9-6 since then, and visit Atlanta tonight playing inspired basketball. That mid-November day is what every player in the Grizzlies' locker room identifies as a definite turning point of the season. "After the first nine games we understood that we had to hold each other accountable for our actions on the court," Mayo said. "Early in the year, people were asking if there were enough basketballs. But we've proven that every night it could be another guy's night (offensively). We're definitely playing much better." There are no moral victories in professional sports. But there was no shame in the Griz coming out on the short end of a 110-105 decision to the Boston Celtics Monday night in FedExForum. The Griz made a statement. http://www.commercialappeal.com/news/2009/dec/16/grizzlies-no-easy-out-foes-discover/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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