A Hard Candy Grizzmas

A legendary Tennessean, Dolly Parton, made the song “A Hard Candy Christmas” famous as part of the the cast of The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas. Written by Carol Hall, the song’s chorus reinforces the idea of a “Hard Candy Christmas” as a time that can be hard and sweet at the same time. The joy of the holiday, coupled with in this instance economic hardship and struggles in relationships, make for an uneven experience.

Sound somewhat familiar?

The Memphis Grizzlies open the 2025-2026 NBA season this evening. That is cause for celebration - only 30 markets in North America have NBA teams (for now) and Memphis is fortunate to be one of them. The team also boasts more star power than they arguably ever have in the form of Ja Morant and Jaren Jackson Jr., who both are active for the first game of the season for the first time since 2021.

That’s the good news. The bad news? Who knows how the rest of the roster will shake out.

The uncertainty stems from the Desmond Bane trade, and which version of Kentavious Caldwell-Pope the Grizzlies will be getting. It is a result also of injuries - four of the long-term variety to Zach Edey, Brandon Clarke, Ty Jerome, and Scotty Pippen Jr. in particular - that will force unproven commodities like Jock Landale and Javon Small in to roles they should not be in on a team trying to compete for postseason success.

The Tuomas Iisalo era beginning also bring about anxiety - not in terms of whether or not he can coach. But how his “system” will utilize and maximize the best of Memphis. Ja Morant has not been the “Ja Morant” that audaciously exploded on to the scene earlier this decade consistently in some time. Jaren Jackson Jr. is coming off of a career year in the “system” of a coach - Taylor Jenkins - who is no longer employed by the Grizzlies.

In the absence of certainty, doubt can creep in to your consciousness. And that is the reality for those that follow the Memphis Grizzlies as a new season starts. You are unsure of what you are about to see. Any team with two top-30 players in the NBA on it should be competitive. But how competitive? And can the pieces around them allow for them to achieve at the level necessary to have a “successful” season?

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What does that success look like, anyway? Was the Bane trade to Orlando an acknowledgement of a team stuck in NBA purgatory, unwilling to pay the price to hope for the right breaks toward contendership? Or was it a true retooling around two true franchise cornerstones, primed and ready to remind the league at large what the Memphis Grizzlies are capable of when they are the focal point of a franchise?

As a child, when it is Christmas morning and you have the chance to run to the tree to see what Santa Claus brought you, there is a feeling that can’t be replicated as you age. A sense of wonder at what transpired overnight, and the thrill of opening your gifts and experiencing the shock (or disappointment) and what jolly old Saint Nick gave you.

But the gift of Christmas - or Grizzmas, in this case - isn’t what came from Santa’s workshop, or the store, or free agency or via trade. The fact that there is a season to celebrate - a chance to start fresh, to begin again and journey through a wonderful time of the year with people you care about - is what we all can be thankful for.

The Memphis Grizzlies could win 50 games and host a 1st round playoff series. They could win 36 games and miss the Play-In Tournament entirely. The wide array of outcomes lends itself to this season, more than any in some time, being one where we simply enjoy the ride.

Memphis Grizzlies basketball is back. And while a true title contender, or just a fully healthy roster, would be quite the gift under the proverbial tree, for now we can embrace the season for all it will bring - both the tough times, and the sweet ones.

A Hard Candy Grizzmas is still Grizzmas, after all.