Roughly 30 games into the season, Memphis finds itself hanging on the fringes of the West playoff picture thanks to a frontcourt duo few gave much creedence to before the season began.
With Zach Randolph and Marc Gasol, Memphis has emerged as the league's third-best rebounding team (44.2 per game), leads the league in rebounding differential (+5.6) and is among the top teams in points per game (102.7, eighth in league).
Few blinked an eye over the summer when Randolph was traded from the Clippers to the Grizz in a deal for Quentin Richardson. And despite Marc Gasol's All-Rookie Second Team performance last season, few would have expected the young center to develop as much offensively as he has this season.
It should hardly come as a surprise that Randolph is averaging a double-double (20.2 ppg, 11.4 rpg), though. He's pulled off that feat nearly every season since he became a regular starter for the Blazers in 2003-04. Z-Bo has been shipped around plenty since his Blazers days (the Grizz are his third team in the last four seasons), but his always-reliable low post footwork never fades. While he's always been a big scorer, Randolph has surprised by meshing well with the Grizzlies' stable of young talent and has become the team's go-to player late in games despite the presence of O.J. Mayo and Rudy Gay.
The returns the Grizzlies are getting on Gasol have perhaps been the most surprising. Memphis landed the young big man as part of the Pau Gasol-to-the-Lakers deal in 2008. Marc Gasol showed toughness and rebounding acumen in his rookie season, but his offense was rough around the edges, consisting mostly of putback and dunks. This season, Gasol has added some nice hook shots and across-the-lane moves to his arsenal. The project player the Grizzlies got from the Lakers seems to be taking shape. He has become one of the best centers in the West.
Even better for Memphis' future is that the two big men seem to enjoy playing together. Randolph, who is on pace to tie his career high in assists, has worked well with Gasol in the Grizzlies' high-low sets. Gasol, on the other hand, is a solid low post defender who helps cover up Randolph's mistakes on defense.
"They just vibed so quickly," assistant coach Johnny Davis told the Memphis Commercial-Appeal. "Neither one of those players is selfish by nature. They enjoy the other's success. There are no jealousies, there are no hidden agendas. They just both enjoy the beauty of the game."
NBA.com's Five on the Rise is a weekly look at which young players (and resurgent veterans) have yet to reach stardom and have made the biggest impact for their team in the last week. These rankings are just one man's opinion and are released every Thursday during the season. If you have an issue with the names on this list, or have a question or comment for Jeff Case, send him an e-mail.
| G | MPG | PPG | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% |
| 25 | 26.9 | 9.4 | 2.6 | 2.5 | 1.7 | 0.3 | .506 | .403 | .795 |
The Warriors were the darlings of the week with wins over the contending Suns and Celtics and a narrow loss in L.A. to the Lakers. Watson played a big part in all three of those performances, but his standout game was Monday against Boston when he had six steals to pace the upset of the Celtics. His defensive play on Ray Allen (and in the Celtics' passing lanes) turned an all-but-certain Boston win into a dog fight that Golden State pulled out. He followed that game up with a solid night against the Lakers (14 points, four 3-pointers) and helped handle the team's ball-handling duties when he and star Monta Ellis are on the floor, freeing Ellis up for a 22-point night. With the Warriors still missing super sub Kelenna Azubuike to a season-ending injury, Watson has stepped up nicely of late to fill the backup combo guard role the Warriors have been lacking since Azubuike was lost.
| G | MPG | PPG | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% |
| 29 | 31.3 | 14.0 | 2.6 | 4.0 | 1.0 | 0.1 | .512 | .432 | .837 |
The Kings put a scare into the Cavs and Lakers last week before finally breaking through with a win over the Nuggets. Udrih played a big role in all three games, posting 23 points and six assists against L.A. and eight points on 4-for-9 shooting in the loss to the Cavs. But as has been the case most of this season, Udrih made his biggest when he was in the Kings' starting lineup -- which he was as the Kings' fill-in starter vs. Denver for rookie Tyreke Evans. He had 17 points and seven assists and hit a crucial underhanded driving layup late in the fourth quarter to help seal what was Sacramento's biggest home win of the season to date. The Kings are 5-6 (as compared to 14-17 overall) this season when Udrih starts and Udrih is averaging 16.6 ppg, 3.2 apg and shooting 50 percent as a starter. He's been perhaps one of the best backup point guards in the league this season and clearly has played a key factor in the Kings' resurgence.
| G | MPG | PPG | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% |
| 31 | 35.5 | 15.1 | 100 | 2.3 | 0.9 | 1.4 | .613 | .000 | .693 |
Gasol, the NBA's 11th best rebounder, trails only Marcus Camby, Randolph and Tim Duncan among the Western Conference's rebounding leaders. He was particularly effective last week in a loss to Dallas (12 rebounds), that thrilling OT win over the Wizards (11 rebounds) and he more than carried his weight in a blowout win over the Pacers (21 points, 10 rebounds). He's bumped his rebounds per game average up to 10.7 in his last 10 games and continues to be an intimidating force in the middle. While Gasol's minutes are also up over his last 10 games (to 36.9 mpg), he's getting some solid rest now, too, since coach Lionel Hollins started playing rookie Hasheem Thabeet more. That time off is allowing Gasol to stay out of foul trouble more. He's averaging only 3.6 fouls per game in December.
| G | MPG | PPG | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% |
| 31 | 36.9 | 20.2 | 11.4 | 1.9 | 0.9 | 0.4 | .508 | .250 | .837 |
With Rudy Gay on the sidelines with a bum ankle on Monday night, Randolph showed how valuable he is to the Grizzlies' hopes of staying in the playoff picture. He nailed two clutch free throws with :00.3 left against the Wizards to send the game into overtime and then took over from there, scoring six of Memphis' 11 points in the win. As our own Art Garcia wrote in his recent NBA Insider, Randolph isn't trying to be a "rah-rah guy," but is focused on getting Memphis into the playoffs. "I definitely want to get back to that," he said. "There ain't nothing like the postseason. I'm just taking it one game at a time. We've got to get back to the .500 mark first. That's definitely something I want to do. We're not far away. We're right there." Randolph, who isn't know for his sky-high leap, is the NBA's top offensive rebounder. His fancy footwork in the post is no doubt one of the ways he's helping teach the Grizzlies' young big men.
| G | MPG | PPG | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% |
| 29 | 41.3 | 17.9 | 12.1 | 2.0 | 1.7 | 0.9 | .467 | .327 | .734 |
While Memphis has playoff hopes to fulfill, the Bobcats would be the East's No. 8 seed if the playoff started today. As long as Wallace can stay healthy and keep up his work on the glass, there's no reason to think Charlotte won't keep hold of a playoff spot. Always one of the hardest-playing guys in the NBA, Wallace has taken it upon himself to be the team's best rebounder. The 6-foot-7 forward boasts the league's third-best rebounds per game average (12.1), where he ranks higher than Charlotte's starting center last season, Emeka Okafor. His rebounding work was on display in a big win Monday over the Bucks as his 14-rebound night sparked the Bobcats' blowout win that gave them an early leg up on one of the East's other playoff hopefuls. Charlotte took a step back in their playoff chase with a loss to the Raptors on Wednesday, but new faces Tyson Chandler and Stephen Jackson have eased Wallace's burden this and have helped him find a place among the league's rebounding elite.
G: Shannon Brown, Lakers -- Kobe Bryant's 38 points on Saturday (while playing with a fractured right index finger) got the majority of the highlight attention the following day, but Brown also had a hand in the Lakers' thrilling double-OT win in Sacramento. Aside from a solid stat line (16 points, 6-for-12 FG, seven rebounds), Brown helped frustrate Kings rookie Tyreke Evans with his stifiling defense, holding him to 18 points on 9-for-23 shooting. Coach Phil Jackson has growing confidence in Brown as his off-the-bench defensive stopper and Brown's minutes have risen as a result, from 15.0 in November to 18.5 in December. "He played very well," Bryant told the Los Angeles Times about Brown. "He has the potential to be a very good defensive player. He has the body to do it, the athleticism to do it."
G: George Hill, Spurs -- Hill made the Five on the Rise earlier in the season for his defensive tenacity and scoring while the Spurs were waiting for Manu Ginobili and Tony Parker to get healthy. Now that both Parker and Ginobili are back to their regular roles as sixth man and starting point guard, respectively, Hill is settling nicely as predicted as the Spurs' top backup point guard. Since Ginobili returned to the lineup on Nov. 29, the Spurs have gone 10-5 and have won six of their last seven games. While Hill hasn't done anything particularly dazzilng in the Spurs' last seven games, his steady play has helped the Spurs start to figure out their playing time rotation and re-emerge among the West's elite.
C: Joakim Noah, Bulls -- Noah is staying within striking distance of Dwight Howard for the NBA's rebounding crown and put up another monster game as Chicago ended a two-game win streak by defeating New Orleans. Noah had 17 points and 18 rebounds in the win, marking the 10th game this season in which he's had 14 rebounds or more. While the Bulls have undoubtedly been one of the bigger disappointments in the East and are now dealing with rumblings of coach Vinny Del Negro's impending dismissal, you can't fault Noah for Chicago's shortcomings. While Howard is a shoo-in for the starting bid at this season's All-Star Game, there's no reason Noah shouldn't get a serious look as the East's All-Star reserve at center. Del Negro, for his part, says he's going to do what he can to promote Noah's All-Star campaign. "Everyone will talk about his rebounding, but he's made strides with his offense. He works hard. He puts the time in. He's building on that, working before practice, after, after shootarounds," Del Negro told the Chicago Sun-Times. "When you work at things, you usually get better and he's seeing that. He's gaining confidence with that.
F: Jared Dudley, Suns -- Dudley got a spot in our last Five on the Rise with his clutch shooting and big 3-pointers in a home win over the Magic. This time, Dudley lands in the Next Five thanks to another night of clutch shooting and big 3-pointers ... against the Lakers at home. He nailed a trio of 3-pointers and had 19 points and seven rebounds in Phoenix's victory and is red hot in December from outside, hitting an astounding 50.6 percent of his 3-pointers and is the NBA's best outside shooter -- percentage-wise -- this season. His play has improved so much from last season that the Arizona Republic reports part of the reason the Suns dealt former first-round pick Alando Tucker to Minnesota was because Dudley is finding minutes at both small forward and the guard spots.
F: Carl Landry, Rockets -- Landry has gotten plenty of attention in the Five on the Rise (and around the Web, too) for his improved offense and reliablity down the stretch. While even Landry knows he's not a great defender -- he recently told the Houston Chronicle he's "the sorriest defender on the team" -- his all-around play Tuesday in a win over the Hornets gets him a spot here this week. Landry scored six of his 18 points in the fourth quarter, but his defense on David West was more noteworthy than his scoring. While West finished with 44 points in the game, Landry was physical with the Hornets' forward and held him to 4-of-8 shooting in the fourth quarter. Landry also came up with a big block on Devin Brown with 30 seconds left to seal the win. "I wanted to lock him up," Landry said. "When I started guarding him he had something like 36 points, so when I started defending him I was like, 'OK, he's not scoring any more.' My job was to play the best defense I could. I know that defense is not my specialty and it's an area I need to work on, but I think I did a pretty good job in the fourth quarter."
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