In a 30-part series leading up to the start of the 2021-22 National Basketball Association season, we will take a look at each NBA franchise from a fantasy perspective. The 15th team we will review is the Memphis Grizzlies.
Ja Morant has only been in the NBA for two seasons, but has played more like a seasoned veteran in his first 130 regular season games. Morant’s sensational poise with the basketball was one of the reasons why he was named the NBA rookie of the year in 2020.
In 2020-21, Morant averaged 19.1 points per game, 7.4 assists per game, and 4.0 rebounds per game. Those were slightly better numbers in each category than the year before when he was the best first-year player in the entire league.
Morant is ranked 15th among point guards in 2020-21 with 1592 fantasy points.* The one category where he needs to improve a little more is his three-point shooting. Morant was only a .303 three-point shooter last year, as he only made 73 shots in 241 attempts from beyond the arc.
Two other Grizzlies players reached 1500 fantasy points. Swingman Dillon Brooks of Mississauga, Ontario, Canada had 1591 points, while forward Kyle Anderson of Fairview, New Jersey had one point more with 1592 fantasy points. Anderson and Brooks each averaged career-highs in points and assists in 2020-21. Anderson averaged 12.4 points per game and 3.6 assists per game, while Brooks averaged 17.2 points per game and 2.3 assists per game. The reason why Anderson is a better fantasy option than Brooks is because Anderson had 200 more rebounds than Brooks in 2020-21. If there is one weakness in Brooks’s overall game, it is his discipline. The last two seasons he has led the NBA in personal fouls. He had 278 in 2019-20, and 237 in 2020-21.
The Grizzlies also made a blockbuster three-way deal with the New Orleans Pelicans and Charlotte Hornets in the offseason. In the trade, the Grizzlies acquired center Steven Adams of Rotorua, New Zealand from the New Orleans Pelicans for Jonas Valanciunas. Adams is a very good field goal shooter, as he had a field goal percentage of .614 last year, which was 22 percentage points better than Valanciunas, who was at .592. Where Adams struggles mightily is from the charity stripe. He only made 60 of 135 free throw attempts last season for a terrible free throw percentage of .444.
*Please note: To calculate NBA fantasy points for point guards, shooting guards and small forwards, I use the formula (3PTM+Points+Rebounds+Assists+Steals-Turnovers). For power forwards and centers, I use the formula (Points+Rebounds+Assists+Steals+Blocks-Turnovers).
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