Santi Aldama's 22 points leads Grizzlies
LAS VEGAS — The Memphis Grizzlies trotted out a new lineup on Sunday night focused on their younger, inexperienced players. Ziaire Williams and Xavier Tillman Sr. didn't play, while Kenneth Lofton Jr. and Vince Williams were boosted to the starting lineup.
Even with a new starting lineup, the Grizzlies had similar offensive struggles, but the defense and Santi Aldama led Memphis to a 70-63 win against the Minnesota Timberwolves at Cox Pavilion.
Aldama led the Grizzlies with 22 points. Memphis shot 36.4% but held Minnesota to 34.8% shooting. Grizzlies starters missed all 18 of their 3-point attempts, but the defense forced Minnesota into 22 turnovers.
Here are some observations from
Sunday's game:
Santi Aldama bounces back
Aldama struggled on Saturday and finished with four points on 2-for-7 shooting. The 2021 first-round pick had a bounce back game that was lifted by a strong start. Aldama made his first four shot attempts before finishing 11-for-22 with 22 points. Grizzlies Summer League coach David Mcclure said that he believed Aldama was "in his head" during Saturday's game, and he's at his best when just playing. Aldama had an aggressive game where he looked loose and confident.
"I feel very confident, but yesterday, it was kind of weird, Aldama said. "I wasn't playing my game. I think the key is go to sleep, forget about it, it's a new day. I've been playing basketball my whole life, so just do it again and start from scratch."
Where is Jake Laravia?
Jake Laravia looked the most prepared to play amongst the Grizzlies rookies in Salt Lake City, but his past two games have been quiet. Laravia has attempted eight shots in his last eight quarters of play. On Saturday, Mcclure attributed the Grizzlies not getting into their offense as a big reason why Laravia struggled. Memphis plays a style that focuses on spacing, pace and precise passing. Each of those are areas where Memphis has struggled, and Laravia's attempts are impacted by it. He finished with two points on 1-for-5 shooting against the Timberwolves. That one basket came in the final minute of the fourth quarter.
"Today I think he turned down a few," Mcclure said. "Obviously when you shoot the way we do, they pretty much know we were trying to look for him. They were really physical with him and again, it's a learning curve."
Danny Green among Grizzlies in attendance on Sunday
All but four members of the current Grizzlies roster attended Sunday's game. Along with the players on the Summer League roster, Dillon Brooks, Ja Morant, Tyus Jones, Killian Tillie, John Konchar and Danny Green sat courtside.
Green's name stood out, since it was a couple weeks ago where general manager Zach Kleiman said that his future on roster was "TBD." Green showing up indicates that he is taking time to get to know his teammates. He suffered a torn ACL in the second round of the playoffs, so he's unlikely to be available for a decent part of the season. However, Green's shooting, defense and veteran presence could be important in a second half or playoff run.