-
Follow us on Twitter @buckeyeplanet and @bp_recruiting, like us on Facebook! Enjoy a post or article, recommend it to others! BP is only as strong as its community, and we only promote by word of mouth, so share away!
- Thread starter OSUBasketballJunkie
- Start date
Buckskin86
Moderator
Basketball great and current Memphis Grizzlie point guard Mike Conley will be recognized at halftime.
http://www.slamonline.com/online/nba/slamonline-top-50/2013/09/top-50-mike-conley-no-45/
Thursday, September 26th, 2013
Top 50: Mike Conley, no. 45
The Grizzlies PG is steadily elevating his game to an elite level.
by Mirin Fader / @mirinfader
At the start of every NBA season, we like to label players and put them into boxes. But Mike Conley has been making that a little more difficult lately. He was able to shake off the “guy-with-all-the-potential-but-never-lived-up-to-it” label that hovered over him for the past few years, by substantially surpassing expectations this past postseason.
So what do we call him now?
An elite point guard? A top-10 point guard? A superstar in the making, even? Depending on who you talk to, he could be one, none or all three. But what’s undeniable is that he’s integral to the Memphis Grizzlies’ chances for another deep playoff run in the upcoming ’13-14 season.
Conley has reached a critical point in his career. Will he match his post-season productivity or will he return to obscurity? Will he finally make the jump in people’s minds as part of the upper-echelon of the NBA’s point guards?
A lot of it comes down to winning. Or maybe not. You’d think he might be ranked higher than No. 45 in SLAM’s Top 50 after putting the Grizzlies on his back at times for a franchise-record 56 regular-season wins and a trip to the Western Conference finals.
Maybe there’s just a bigger pool of point guards to choose from now, making it tougher for someone with quiet confidence like Conley to stand out. No longer is the position solely dominated by the likes of Chris Paul, Tony Parker and Rajon Rondo. The League is populated with more elite point guards than ever before.
Conley seems most poised for another standout season because he’s a game-changer. When Rudy Gay was traded to the Raptors in January, Conley thrived with new freedom at the point, proving he could take over games. Big games.
In Memphis’ 99-93 Game 2 road victory over the Thunder in the Western Conference semifinals, Conley’s near triple-double (26 points, 10 rebounds and 9 assists) showed that he doesn’t run from pressure situations.
It wasn’t just one night. He raised his game consistently when it mattered most—upgrading from a regular-season average of 14.6 points, 6.1 assists and 2.8 rebounds per game to a playoff line of 17 ppg, 7.1 apg (fourth in post-season apg) and 4.7 rpg. (He did have a weak spot, though, shooting 38.4 percent from the field.)
Conley’s value this season, however, will be measured by more than pure numbers. He can change the game in more subtle ways, and will look to do so as one of the more complete point guards in the NBA. He can pass, score, defend, shoot and run an offense.
cont...
http://www.slamonline.com/online/nba/slamonline-top-50/2013/09/top-50-mike-conley-no-45/
Upvote
0
Buckskin86
Moderator
Thursday, October 31st, 2013
Catching Up With Conley
The Grizzlies guard promises a faster style of play.
by Tracy Weissenberg / @basketballista
Few teams have an identity as defined as the Grizzlies. Memphis has capitalized on controlling the paint on both ends, limiting opponents and creating opportunities for Zach Randolph and Marc Gasol to dominate inside. Since Randolph joined the team in ‘09-10, the Grizzlies have led the League in paint scoring two out of those four seasons.
On the other end, the Grizzlies can guard, both individually and as a team. While Gasol was named Defensive Player of the Year, the backcourt of Tony Allen and Mike Conley is known for tenacious perimeter and on-ball defense. Last season, the Grizzlies led the NBA in opponent scoring, allowing just 89.3 points per game.
They ranked third in opponent field-goal percentage and second in opponent three-point percentage.
The connection between both ends of the court is Conley, who happens to be the Grizzlies’ longest-tenured player. Drafted fourth overall in 2007, Conley has developed into the veteran needed to propel the team from 22-win seasons (like his rookie year), into the territory of the League’s elite. He helped lead the franchise to its first playoff series win in 2011 and then to the Western Conference finals in 2013.
On his journey the past six seasons, Conley says, “It’s been phenomenal to just see the growth of the team over the six, seven seasons I’ve been here. It’s been unreal to just see how far we’ve come. For us to make the Western Conference finals last season, and almost have a chance at making it to the Finals is everybody’s dream. To do that in the small market of Memphis is fun to be a part of.”
Last season, Conley was one of two players to average at least 14 points, 6 assists and 2 steals while shooting at least 44 percent from the field. The other was Chris Paul.
In the Playoffs, Conley, Gasol and Randolph each averaged 17 points. The Grizzlies have relied on inside-out offense and playing at a methodical, slow pace. Last season, Memphis used just over 91 possessions per game, ranking 29th in the NBA. But Conley says that’s about to change.
Asked about training camp under new head coach Dave Joerger, he says, “It’s actually been a little bit of a learning experience for a lot of us, ’cause we’ve had to kind of revamp our offense a little bit. We’ve got a whole bunch of new plays, some new faces here and there, and we’re just all trying to get used to each other. I think it’s helped over the last couple of [pre-season] games, we’ve gotten to see different lineups and things like that. Hopefully, we’ll jell it all together and get the chemistry going and be ready to go.”
cont...
http://www.slamonline.com/online/nba/2013/10/catching-up-with-mike-conley/
Upvote
0
Buckskin86
Moderator
Mike Conley Q & A
By Phillip Dean On November 21, 2013
Credit: Kim Klement / USA Today Sports
Memphis Grizzlies point guard Mike Conley spoke to the media today before practice today as they prepared for the San Antonio Spurs Friday at FedEx Forum. I asked him about what changed over the past four games in California, what they do on their downtime on long road trips, and is he a XBOX or PlayStation guy? Check it out.
Q:What did this team work on defensively?
Conley: It wasn’t really I think working on something in particular I believe it was effort. I think we just gave more effort and talk and communicate more. Our defense is better. We were always in the right spots we were just half a second late or somebody’s not calling out a call half second early enough and I think we started doing that we talking earlier getting guys in better positions and it’s working for us.
Q:Anything personally you worked on this road trip that needed to be fixed?
Conley: I just wanted to be more patient. Pick and choose when to be aggressive offensively. Pick and choose when to get the guys down low the ball and get other guys involved. I think I did a better job at that and manage the game.
Q:When you’re on a long road trip like that what do you do for down time? Movies? Bowling? Or is this a business trip in your mind?
Conley: It’s a business trip but we like to leave the hotel room and do something. There will be a lot of times where we will go to the movies, go out to eat, go shopping a little bit, and hang out and do stuff together.
Q: I know you’re a big gamer you committing to the XBOX 360 or getting the PS4?
Conley: I’m committing to XBOX right now I haven’t gotten the PlayStation. I’ll definitely be getting the XBOX one as soon as I can.
http://www.3sob.com/november-2013/mike-conley-q-a/10261/
Upvote
0
Buckskin86
Moderator
Dec 6, 2013
Who’s Better: John Wall Or Mike Conley?
By Dime Magazine
MIKE CONLEY
Wait, Mike Conley is in the same class as John Wall? YES. Mike Conley has been affected by playing in a small market in Memphis, where a lot of people don’t see the Grizzlies play often. Nonetheless, Conley has been ballin’ this year. He’s averaging 18.2 points and 6.4 assists on an impressive 49 percent from the field. I bet you didn’t even know he was having that great of a season. Averaging 14.6 points last season, Conley was more of an afterthought to Marc Gasol and Zach Randolph. This season, however, Mike Conley is the proverbial leader of the Memphis Grizzlies. He’s averaging more points than Z-Bo (16.0) and has become the leader of a Western Conference powerhouse that will be without defensive stalwart Marc Gasol for the foreseeable future. Mike Conley is putting people on watch this year and may sneak into the conversation as a top 10 point guard. But, for right now, let’s just stay with the fact that Mike Conley is a better point guard than John Wall.
John Wall is no slouch, however. The $80-million man is averaging 19 points and 9.2 assists this season, also pacing himself to enter the top 10 point guard conversation, if he’s not already in it. Wall is a good player, there’s no denying that. But good is not great and there are flaws in Wall’s game.
To the naked eye, Wall’s production is better than Conley’s, no doubt. But, I’m not the naked eye. I’m looking deeper than basic numbers. Wall’s numbers are based off of 37.2 minutes per game, while Conley is playing 33.8 minutes per game. Sure, it doesn’t look like that great of a difference. But, with Wall being on the court about 3.6 minutes more than Conley, he’s getting about nine more possessions. The minutes may only be greater by 3.4, but nine possessions can impact a game, especially because Conley is only averaging .7 points less than Wall. Mike Conley’s per-36 minute averages for points actually outpace Wall at 19.5 to 18.4. Another fact to point out is that according to NBA.com/stats, Conley is averaging more points per touch (.21) compared to Wall (.20). Wall may have the edge in general scoring numbers, but behind the scenes one can see that Conley is the better option.
Player efficiency is a huge deal, especially for a point guard. I can’t have my point guard throwing up shots every game and turning the ball over at a high rate. This is another category where I would rather have Conley over Wall. You’re right, Wall is averaging more assists than Conley. I can’t deny it and I won’t shy away from that fact. But, let’s not hide that Wall is getting 18.6 assist opportunities per game compared to 12.2 for Conley. Break those numbers down more and Conley is actually converting on a clean 50 percent of his assist opportunities compared to 48 percent for Wall (assists per game/assist opportunities). Conley is actually distributing the ball better, even though the initial numbers may say different. There’s always more behind a number, just like we’ve seen right here.
cont...
http://dimemag.com/2013/12/whos-better-john-wall-mike-conley/2/
Upvote
0
MaxBuck
SoCal, Baby!
Congratulations to Mike on being awarded the NBA's Joe Dumars Trophy for sportsmanship. Fine young man as well as a great player.
http://espn.go.com/nba/story/_/id/1...emphis-grizzlies-wins-nba-sportsmanship-award
http://espn.go.com/nba/story/_/id/1...emphis-grizzlies-wins-nba-sportsmanship-award
Upvote
0
http://www.sikids.com/blogs/2014/07/21/mike-conley-when-i-was-a-kid
As told to Christina M. Tapper
As a teenager, Mike Conley spent his summers traveling the country and playing hoops with the best of the best. In 2004, he ran the offense for the AAU Spiece Indy Heat, a team with a roster of future NBA stars — Miami Heat center Greg Oden, New Orleans Pelicans guard Eric Gordon, Charlotte Hornets forward Josh McRoberts, and guard Daequan Cook, who played for the Houston Rockets and the Chicago Bulls in 2012–2013 and in Ukraine this season.
Conley, who averaged 17.2 points and 6.0 assists as the Memphis Grizzlies' point guard this year, played 11 years of AAU ball and won five titles as a youngster, but the '04 team brings back his fondest memories. Conley spoke to SI KIDS about the experiences that helped mold his NBA career.
I began playing in AAU when I was six, but I started playing basketball a few years before that. My parents said even as a one-year-old I was obsessed with bouncy balls, so basketball was definitely in my future.
When I was 12, Greg Oden started playing AAU with me. He lived an hour away, so he spent that summer with my family and me [in Indianapolis]. I have two brothers and a sister, all younger than me. Greg was like another brother. He fit right in with us.
Greg wore big glasses and was very soft-spoken. But he was a giant. Back then it was a new experience to be around someone that big. I was around tall players, but not that tall! I'm little today, but I was tiny back then, so you can imagine the big difference in height when we stood next to each other. I remember some of the photos that were taken of us all through our childhood and teenage years, and I laugh. We bonded well, won AAU tournament championships and went on to play high school [at Lawrence North High] and college ball at Ohio State together. We were pretty much inseparable.
Team on Top
Our 2004 AAU team was real tough to beat. We had Daequan Cook, who would also play with Greg and me in college, Josh McRoberts, and Eric Gordon. I think I can count the number of times we lost on one hand during that summer. We won a lot, and we had a target on our backs because of that.
We got the job done on the court, but off the court, we were reserved and easy to get along with, which made it easy for us to jell during the games. Nobody cared who scored or who got credit. Those are highlights of our lives and played a role in our success. We all had goals of making it big, and now look at us. We're still playing basketball, but on a different stage.
My father [Mike Conley, Sr.] coached our team. He won an Olympic gold medal in the triple jump. Sometimes it was frustrating playing for my dad, because I wanted to make him proud. There were times when my teammates would rag on me when my dad disciplined me. There were some games where I just was not playing as hard as I should have. I'd get a little lazy and just wouldn't be into it. My dad would come down hard. He'd take me out of the game for two quarters! He wanted me to understand that I should always aim to do my best and that I wasn't bigger than the goal we had, which was to win. It was a valuable lesson.
Road Trips to Victory
AAU broadened my horizons. It exposed me to a lot. We traveled around the country and saw different places and things. My dad drove us to most of the games in a van that was equipped with small TV screens, so the road trips were fun. We'd travel to Virginia, Florida, Nevada, Tennessee, and Michigan. We'd be in the back of the van, playing video games or trying to rap. We'd tap on armrests to get a beat to freestyle to. There were lots of laughs in the back of that van. We got a kick out of who was terrible at rapping. We were just trying to pass the time.
During our rest stops, you could find us at a McDonald's and the table would be filled with chicken nuggets and burgers. While we ate, we'd debate who was the best player in the league. Was it Kobe Bryant or Tracy McGrady? Was Vince Carter the next Michael Jordan? Did Allen Iverson have the best handle? We were just kids trying to prove our points over French fries.
I truly believe we had one of the best AAU teams of the modern era. If I had to compare our teenage basketball team to a current NBA team, we were kind of like the San Antonio Spurs. Very consistent and unselfish. No egos. We played hard, won a lot, and had so much fun.
Photos: MICHAEL J. LEBRECHT II FOR SPORTS ILLUSTRATED, GREG NELSON FOR SPORTS ILLUSTRATED
Upvote
0
