It's now or never for the Memphis Grizzlies

The writing may already be on the proverbial wall for the bears of Beale Street.

A 4-10 hole may too deep to dig out of in Memphis - even in an era where technically ten Western Conference teams make the “postseason” thanks to the Play-In Tournament. But if mid-December feels too early to pronounce the Grizzlies season deceased, you can take solace in knowing the following -

First? The schedule is lightening considerably. Tonight’s game on NBC and Peacock with the Spurs is much more winnable - even with Memphis’ own injury issues, now that both Stephon Castle AND Victor Wembanyama are out for San Antonio. Sure, the Grizzlies don’t have a healthy point guard at the moment. But somehow the 9-4 Spurs may have more significant problems with their MVP candidate and third best player missing time.

Beyond tonight, Memphis’ schedule lightens. Over the next ten games (including tonight), the Grizzlies only play two teams with winning records - the wounded Spurs (twice, with Wembanyama potentially missing the 2nd game as well on December 2nd) and the admittedly impressive Denver Nuggets. Beyond that? Two games with the Kings, two with the Clippers, one with the Mavericks, one with the Pelicans, and one with the Trail Blazers.

Between Portland, L.A., Sacramento, New Orleans, and Dallas, the spunky Trail Blazers currently have the best record at 6-7. Even without Ja Morant (or again, any point guard), the duo of Jaren Jackson Jr. and Zach Edey should be able to keep Memphis in games.

Speaking of Edey, his return on Saturday did indeed matter. Is he the savior of Memphis Grizzlies Head Coach Tuomas Iisalo’s “system”? Maybe, maybe not. But there’s no denying his size, screening ability, and presence in the paint and at the rim carried significant weight. The X’s and O’s are important, but the Jimmies and the Joes are far more significant in any sport (or organization of people in general).

In the EXTREMELY small sample size of 25 minutes played (hopefully that number starts to go up in the games ahead as Edey gets his conditioning up and confidence post-injury), Memphis was 7.3 points better with him on the court. Against a good Cleveland Cavaliers team. That’s a reason for optimism - at the very least, opposing teams have to respect Edey’s 7’4, 290 pound frame and what it can do on both ends of the floor.

No disrespect to Jock Landale, of course. But it’s Edey’s spot he’s been keeping warm.

And Edey helped in another way - he took some of the big man burden from Jaren Jackson Jr., who looked more like himself against Cleveland. With Edey’s return, JJJ was much more aggressive, attempting more shots (24!) than he has all season long and getting to the free throw line 14 times. Edey attempted nine free throws himself, meaning the two Grizzlies bigs shot 23 free throws in the contest. The Cavaliers as a TEAM took 29 free throws in total.

Ignore (as best you can, for fellow old head Grizzlies fans that remember Rudy Gay shooting nights) the 6-23 shooting performance from Jaren. That, of course, must improve. But the point is that at least Jackson Jr. prioritized getting his shot. He made Cleveland defend him, made them foul him and gave him those charity stripe opportunities.

If Memphis is going to win 7 or 8 of these next 10 games to turn their season around (a 7-3 record would get the Grizzlies to 11-13, slightly below a .500 mark but a realistic goal considering all the injuries that have hit Memphis), they will need THAT Jaren Jackson Jr. alongside Edey to impose their physical will on opponents.

They will also need to get creative with their rotations as Ja Morant misses at least the next two weeks. Starting Vince Williams Jr. - the closest thing to a point guard the Grizzlies currently have - alongside Jaylen Wells, newly minted starter Cedric Coward, Jackson Jr., and Edey - allows for Iisalo to operate within the realm of his on-ball screen world as much as currently possible.

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But it gives the Grizzlies a chance to experiment offensively with looks like Jaren and Edey pick and rolls. It also enables Memphis to switch just about everything defensively if they so choose. It means that the team will be fairly big, with the 6’4” Williams Jr. (with a 7-foot wingspan) being the “smallest” member of the lineup - or at the very least be more defensively stout.

And it also creates more chances for Santi Aldama - quietly having a strong start to the season - to impose his offensive mismatch-seeking will as a reserve. More of the scoring burden will be placed on Aldama as he sees more playing time with the likes of Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Cam Spencer, and Jock Landale. He has been up to the task so far, and with the investment the team has made in him it makes sense for Aldama to see his role grow with Morant out in particular.

It surely will not be easy. Not having a true primary initiator of offense will make things at times look more like the Grit and Grind of a decade ago than a new-age explosion of scoring. But opportunity is knocking for Memphis. If they are to save their season, this is the time to do it.

Will the Grizzlies be able to answer the call?