No Ja, no Jaren, no problem? 

Apparently so, at least with the spiraling Sacramento Kings in town. 

Fill-in point guard fills in record book in Grizzlies win

Still, the Memphis Grizzlies are in no place to be choosy when it comes to a win, especially a rollicking blowout in which fill-in point guard Vince Williams Jr. notched a career-high 15 assists in 24 minutes, sixth man Santi Aldama stepped into a starting lineup void for a career-high 29 points in 28 minutes and the Grizzlies moved (the ball) and made (shots) to the tune of a franchise-high 42 assists. 

That 137-96 win over the Kings on Thursday night at FedExForum ended a five-game losing streak for the Grizzlies. So here are five next-morning reactions to that win:

This team hasn’t quit

This is an easy and obvious thing to say after a 41-point win, of course. But I’ll note that I said it the day before, on this week’s Daily Memphian Grizzlies Podcast, in which friend of the pod Keith Parish sat in for new dad Drew Hill. (Shoutout Drew!).

Over the past week I’ve heard or seen what feels like countless national NBA podcasts, social media posts or other ‘content’ suggesting the Grizzlies had “quit” on their coach, or some variation on that. 

Nobody can watch every game, but these all felt like drive-bys. Like people watching a little bit, hearing an echo and repeating it. There were examples of people taking a very bad Ja Morant moment from a few weeks ago, noting the team’s record since and extrapolating. 

Aldama, Landale lead Grizzlies out of slump

In fairness I’ve seen similar from some Grizzlies fans, who probably had watched every game but seemed so annoyed at all the losing that they were ready to blame head coach Tuomas Iisalo for eating their homework.

But, as I noted on our podcast, the Grizzlies who had fallen in Cleveland on Saturday and then again in San Antonio on Tuesday, losing a fourth-quarter lead both times, did not look like a team that was packing it in or going through the motions. It looked like a team trying hard and coming up short, which is as common in basketball as in life. The awful truth is that failure isn’t always a result of poor effort. 

Grizzlies get Edey back, lose Morant in loss to Cavs

Emblems of effort: Let’s hear it for Cam Spencer and the aforementioned Williams. 

Spencer dove across the floor in San Antonio in a moment that I’m pretty sure no one in the building expected and most found excessive. 

Against the Kings Williams’ most memorable play wasn’t one of his 15 assists, but following up a Cedric Coward-to-Santi Aldama Sequence of the Season candidate with a sprint and dive that nearly resulted in a steal. This with a 29-point lead. 

Maybe Spencer and Williams can find time for a little side project band. Call it Unnecessary Floorburns. Unnecessary but welcome. 

This is the basketball definition of giving a bleep when it isn’t your turn to give a bleep. Just what the Grizzlies need. 

Possessions domination

Thursday night the winning team shot 51% from the floor, 32% from 3-point range and 77% from the free-throw line. 

The losing team shot 46% from the floor, 33% from 3-point range and 73% from the free-throw line. 

Pretend you don’t know the answer. Based on those shooting numbers, what would you imagine the scoring margin would be? Definitely not 41. 

Grizzlies collapse late in San Antonio, lose fifth straight

But the Grizzlies got up 19 more field-goal attempts and 11 more free-throw attempts. They dominated the ‘possessions game.’

The Grizzlies had 11 offensive rebounds to only four for the Kings, winning second-chance points by a 22-5 margin. They turned the ball over only seven times, to 16 for the Kings. The result was a 30-6 margin in points off turnovers. 

Could this become a durable advantage going forward? Let’s file it as a Subject for Further Research. More on that next week. 

Zach Edey’s bully ball, with benefits

Coward to Aldama may have been the sequence of the game, if not the season. But there was an earlier one I also particularly liked. 

With a loose ball rocketing around Edey stepped into a transition-esque catch-and-shoot, top of the key 3-pointer, his first of the season. 

On the ensuing defensive possession, Edey got so annoyed at the jostling from Kings center Drew Eubanks that he just shoved Eubanks out of bounds. It was worth the offensive foul.

Grizzlies sign Jahmai Mashack to two-way contract

In his FedExForum debut this season, Edey made all seven of his shots, which included four dunks. He’s a big dude who likes being big. He likes hammering it home and knocking guys around. He can also step into an open 3 and drill it. Find you a big man who can do both. Bully ball with benefits. 

And perhaps Edey’s early annoyance with Eubanks gave some fans a feeling of deja-vu. These guys have met before:

It’s always nice when your big guy holds a grudge. 

A GG Jackson II sighting

GG Jackson II, whose minutes were frequently a four-alarm fire for the Grizzlies last season, hasn’t gotten on the floor much yet in this season. 

But Jackson was in the rotation against the Kings and acquitted himself well.

Herrington: Zach Edey transformed the Grizzlies defense, but without a healthy point guard will it matter? 

You might not think so from a quick glance at the box score, in which you’ll see that Jackson scored only six points on 2-9 and missed all five of his 3-point attempts. 

But watching was believing, especially in a second-quarter run, when the game had not yet descended into extended mop-up duty. 

Grizzlies sign Jahmai Mashack to two-way contract

Jackson harassed a ballhandler into a bad-pass turnover, leading to an Aldama bucket on the other end. A possession later, he made the simple pass to set up an open Aldama 3 at the top of the key. Aldama missed it, but it was the right play. A couple of minutes after that Jackson’s defense forced another bad-pass turnover, and the Grizzlies got another score from Aldama out of it.

None of these plays show up on Jackson’s box score line, but they were all good basketball. 

A play that did register on Jackson’s line came soon after those: running a pick-and-roll with Edey and hitting his big man with a good hard bounce pass in stride for a dunk.

So did grabbing nine rebounds in 18 minutes. 

Jackson’s had games in which he’s made shots but otherwise not played well. This was mostly the opposite, and since the shots will fall more often than not for him this kind of performance was more encouraging. 

There’s bad and there’s worse

Let’s circle back to “effort” and “buy-in” and “are they quitting on the coach?” and all of that. Um … Sacramento? 

If Thursday night felt like a “get-right” game for the Grizzlies, it may have been more of a “there but for the grace of God” game. The Kings have now lost eight straight despite having plenty of brand-name players on the roster. 

The Grizzlies’ previous win, over Dallas, felt like a “get-right” game too, breaking up a four-game losing streak after a week of some team turmoil. Then the Grizzlies promptly lost five in a row. 

Ja Morant to miss time with calf injury

With Morant out and Jaren Jackson’s status uncertain, could this be the same kind of blip? 

Perhaps, but that last post-victory comedown didn’t begin with Edey on the floor and Coward in the starting lineup. And it came against a tougher schedule than what the Grizzlies now have before them. Other than a home game against a maybe-great Denver team Monday, the Grizzlies’ looming schedule is road-heavy, but against some middling competition: Dallas, New Orleans, Los Angeles Clippers, Sacramento. All teams struggling, three of whom the Grizzlies have already beaten. 

Grizzlies 25: For 10 momentous playoff minutes, Darrell Arthur found basketball perfection

The story of the Grizzlies last season was the inability to beat good teams. That hasn’t changed yet this season. Other than a one-point road win over the so-far better-than-expected Phoenix Suns, the Grizzlies’ wins (over New Orleans, Indiana, Dallas and Sacramento) have all come at home against teams with a combined 11-51 record. 

Right now, the Grizzlies look like the best of the bad. There is literally a worse place to be. But it’s time to start climbing up. 

More from your insider:

Fill-in point guard fills in record book in Grizzlies win

Vince Williams Jr. recorded 15 assists to help the Grizzlies set a single-game record in total assists. 

Aladama, Landale lead Grizzlies out of slump

Santi Aldama scored 29 points, Jock Landale added 21 and the Memphis Grizzlies built a big first-half lead to send the Sacramento Kings to their eighth straight loss.

Box score: Grizzlies 137, Kings 96

Box score for the Memphis Grizzlies’ Nov. 20 game against the Sacramento Kings.

Grizzlies Podcast: When will they win again?

After Tuesday’s nationally televised defeat to the San Antonio Spurs, the Grizzlies have lost five games in a row and nine of their past 10. 

Grizzlies 25: For 10 momentous playoff minutes, Darrell Arthur found basketball perfection

Some players pile up great moments throughout their careers and some are remembered for rising up and just having one.