Grizzlies 2005-06 Season in Review
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NOVEMBER: 10 Wins, 5 Losses
After a myriad of offseason moves that saw the Grizzlies acquire Bobby Jackson,
Eddie Jones and Damon Stoudamire through trades and free agency, and draft Hakim
Warrick with the 19th overall pick, Memphis opened up the 2005-06 campaign on
November 2, 2005 at home against the Miami Heat and former Grizzlies Jason Williams
and James Posey. Despite losing the opener 97-78, the Grizzlies avoided another
slow start like the one that put them in an early hole last season. They went
on to win 10 games in November, including victories over Cleveland and the L.A.
Lakers at home and road wins over Phoenix and Dallas, a game in which Pau Gasol
had 36 points and 15 rebounds. Earlier in the month, Gasol had already come up
big, hitting a buzzer-beater in Atlanta that gave the Grizzlies an 85-84 victory.
The team’s 10-5 record in November was easily the best start the team had
ever had. Like Gasol, Shane Battier had a big month, scoring 20+ points in five
games, and adding two double-doubles.
DECEMBER: 9 Wins, 5 Losses
The Grizzlies started December riding high, only to end the month in bitter
disappointment. The Grizzlies won their first three games in the month, giving
them a six-game winning streak overall and a record of 13-5, one of the top
marks in the league at the time. That hot streak came to a halting end on Dec.
10 at Indianapolis when the team had their worst offensive game of the season,
setting season-lows in first quarter points (9), first half points (27), total
points (66) and field goal percentage (33.8%). That loss was one of four in
five games, punctuated by a heartbreaking double-overtime loss at home on Dec.
19 to the two-time defending Eastern Conference champion Detroit Pistons. While
the Grizzlies bounced back to win five of their last six games in the month,
they still suffered one more significant loss: Damon Stoudamire. The Grizzlies’
point guard’s season ended on Dec. 30 in his return to Portland when he
suffered a ruptured right patellar tendon. At the time, Stoudamire had been
averaging 11.7 points and 4.7 assists per game in his inaugural campaign with
the Grizzlies.
JANUARY: 7 Wins, 8 Losses
Despite the loss of Stoudamire, the Grizzlies kept rolling early in January
with Bobby Jackson assuming the starting duties. Memphis won four of their first
five games in January to up their record to 23-11. The highlight was a 99-85
win at home over Sacramento on Jan. 10 when Mike Miller had 21 points, 10 rebounds
and 10 assists, the first Grizzlies triple-double since the team moved to Memphis,
and only the third by a reserve in the last 10 years in the NBA. In the Grizzlies’
next game three nights later against New Jersey, Miller kept his hot streak
going with 18 points and 16 rebounds. But the Grizzlies’ offense dried
up, and they went on a four-game losing streak where they failed to crack 90
points in each game. The Grizzlies snapped the cold streak on Jan. 22 at Washington
behind 30 points off the bench from Mike Miller. One day later, the team signed
free agent point guard Chucky Atkins, who would take over the starting job by
the end of the month.
FEBRUARY: 5 Wins, 8 Losses
The Grizzlies opened February with five straight losses, and their record, which
once stood at 23-11, had dropped to 26-23. But Pau Gasol helped get the Grizzlies
back on track in a big way. He had 31 points and 12 rebounds in a road win over
the Los Angeles Lakers on February 11, then two nights later, hit a buzzer-beater
in Golden State to give the Grizzlies another win, their second of what would
become a four-game winning streak. But Gasol’s month got even better when
he was named to the Western Conference All-Star Game, the first time in franchise
history the Grizzlies had ever had an All-Star. Gasol did not disappoint in
the game, leading all players with 12 rebounds in the game. He wasn’t
alone at All-Star Weekend either, as Hakim Warrick represented the Grizzlies
in the Sprite Rising Stars Slam Dunk Competition. Gasol later capped his historic
month with a career-high 39 points in leading the Grizzlies to a 108-98 win
over Washington on Feb. 27, to bring the Grizzlies’ record to 31-26 heading
into March.
MARCH: 10 Wins, 6 Losses
After a 3-3 start to the month, the Grizzlies caught fire and reeled off seven
wins in a row, a season-high winning streak. One highlight of the streak was
how every player was involved, as in the seven wins, five different Grizzlies
led the team in scoring. Mike Miller had the biggest night during the streak,
when he set a career-high and tied a franchise record with 41 points on March
17 in a win over Denver. However, his name was at the top of the record book
for less than two weeks, as Pau Gasol eclipsed his mark with a career-high and
franchise record 44 points in a loss to Seattle on March 28, in a game that
snapped the winning streak. It was one of two historic performances for Gasol
in the month, as in an earlier game against Seattle on March 8 he registered
his first career triple-double with 21 points, 12 rebounds and 12 assists. The
Grizzlies also got a boost from Jake Tsakalidis, who took over for Lorenzen
Wright in the starting lineup and had three double-doubles in four games, including
a 19-point, 16-rebound performance in a March 14 win over Boston, before going
back to the bench with a sprained thumb. Along with his injury, the Grizzlies
suffered further when they dropped the final three games of the month as the
calendar turned to April.
APRIL: 8 wins, 1 loss
The Grizzllies avoided their April struggles of past season by winning eight
of their nine games in the month, while also meeting two significant milestones
along the way. A 100-90 victory over Milwaukee on Apr. 7 gave head Coach Mike
Fratello his 84th win since taking the helm of the Grizzlies, passing Hubie
Brown for first place on the franchise’s all-time coaching ranks. Then
the next night, when the Dallas Mavericks defeated the New Orleans/Oklahoma
City Hornets, it clinched a playoff berth for the Grizzlies, earning them their
third straight trip to the postseason. The Grizzlies finished the season fifth
in the Western Conference, setting them up for a first round playoff series
against the Dallas Mavericks. Grizzlies guard Mike Miller is also named 2006
NBA Sixth Man of the Year.