Facing the Wizards on national television last night, the Grizzlies rested Marc Gasol, Zach Randolph and Tony Allen and didn’t play Mike Conley due to an injury he played through the day before.
The result? A 108-87 Washington victory.
John Wall was pleased with the win, but not exactly how it came.
Wall, via J Michael of CSN Washington:
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It’s interesting Wall finds Memphis’ strategy so reprehensible. That’s probably indicative of the Wizards’ old-school ways. At least it’s also a sign Wall continues to buy into Randy Wittman’s approach.
The Grizzlies probably cared very little about their opponent when determining whether or not to rest their key players. More importantly, they were on the second leg of a back-to-back and playing their seventh game in 10 days.
If anything, I wouldn’t be surprised if the Grizzlies – deep in a discussion they wouldn’t make public – rested their players in part because the Wizards are so good. If you’re going to throw away a game, it makes some sense to do it against a team you’re less likely to beat anyway.
