GASOL PLAYS 20 MINUTES IN LOSS
Center didn’t want to lose his timing on the floor
Grizzlies' next game
MINNEAPOLIS — Midway through the first quarter, Grizzlies center Marc Gasol stood under the basket and attempted to take a charge from Minnesota Timberwolves big man Karl-Anthony Towns.
The official whistled a blocking call on Gasol, who absorbed the blow and continued to bang bodies for 20 minutes during the Grizzlies’ preseason finale. This is not a misprint. Gasol, who is nursing a bruised bone in his right foot, appeared in the Grizzlies’ 101-94 loss to the T’Wolves Wednesday night in the Target Center.
The 7-footer said he didn’t want to lose his timing.
“You don’t want to be 10-12 days without playing,” said Gasol, who was originally scheduled to sit out. “You want to get a good run and get a feel for what (the T’Wolves) run and how they move. They’re the first team we play at home (in the season opener) so you don’t want to just be watching. You want to feel them a little bit, too.”
Gasol ran the floor comfortably and showed no ill effects from foot injury. He discussed playing with the medical staff and was informed that there was no risk for further injury.
Simply put: Gasol said he’ll be dayto-day this season.
“I asked ‘What was the risk? What does this mean?’” Gasol said about his conversations with team trainers. “The two screws are still there (in the right foot). So there’s no risk. It’s just part of the discomfort I’m going to feel often. As the season starts, there’s going to be more load ... you might as well get used to it.”
Gasol made just two of 10 field attempts, and his hook shots went awry. He grabbed four rebounds but struggled to keep up with Towns in the open court. Towns finished with 31 points,
Who: Memphis vs. Minnesota When, where: 7 p.m. Wednesday, FedExForum TV: Fox Sports Southeast/ Radio: WMFS 92.9 FM/680 AM
converted all 17 of his free throw attempts and grabbed nine rebounds in 25 minutes.
Gasol’s appearance seemed geared more toward maintaining his conditioning. He’s mostly used ice to treat the foot since the injury occurred last Saturday at Houston.
“I’m trying to take a step forward. It might not be big steps. But you always want to be moving forward so you’re not where you were before,” Gasol said. “As long is it’s not a risk, why not? To be cautious for no reason is not smart either. You want to get the foot to start feeling normal. … You’re going to feel different things. You can’t just go in a shell and hide every time you feel something in your foot.”
Meanwhile, rookie forward Deyonta Davis came out of a shell caused by plantar fasciitis in his left foot that had him sidelined since being drafted in June. Davis didn’t participate in summer league. He resumed full practice last week, and the Minnesota game was his first appearance in the preseason.
Davis didn’t take long to show why the Griz selected him. He’s expected to be the team’s best rim protector and quickly made an emphatic block on Minnesota’s Zach LaVine's floater upon entering the game. Davis finished with five rebounds and two blocked shots in 12 minutes.
He was also active around the basket on the offensive end. Davis grabbed Zach Randolph’s missed 3-point attempt and then tipped in his own miss at the rim.
“I’m really excited just for his sake. He’s had really tough go of it,” Griz coach David Fizdale said before the game. “He’s a big talent. I’m happy to get him a good look in live action. Zero expectations. He could throw the ball into the 10th row and I wouldn’t care. The kid hasn’t played. It’s not fair to put any stress on him. I just want him to run up and down, hit some guys, chase some shots and roll hard to the rim. Just do what he does naturally and not over think it.”