When Zach Randolph went down earlier this week against the Bulls, Memphis Grizzlies fans had to be holding their breath, hoping that it wasn’t as bad as it looked. Now we know Randolph could miss up to eight weeks or more with an MCL tear. It could have been a lot worse, but in this shortened season, every game counts and the Grizzlies can’t afford to have Randolph gone for that long.
The Grizzlies were already weakened in the post with Darrell Arthur out for the year, so they gave up Xavier Henry and a second-round draft pick in a three- team trade with New Orleans and Philadelphia to get big man Marreese Speights. While this desperation move will help Memphis put out a decent starting five every night, Speights is definitely no replacement for Randolph.
Spurs fans saw firsthand last year in the playoffs how important Randolph is to the Grizzlies. Not only did he fill up the stat sheet, but he was an emotional catalyst as well. He’s so valuable to that team and losing him for 8 w...
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