If ever there were an NBA team that the fates deemed the Murphy's Law exhibition squad, it's the Memphis Grizzlies. Just days after their prized free agent acquisition publicly balked at coming off the bench before leaving for personal reasons, the franchise suffered two devastating losses in one night, not only falling to 1-7 in a blowout loss at the hands of the Portland Trail Blazers but also losing their young franchise center to a broken jaw.
Hasheem Thabeet, the second overall pick in the 2009 draft, was already having a rough start to the season, but that was to be expected since he's regarded as a project. His primary goal was simply to find some playing time and develop for the future. Unfortunately, that's not possible for the foreseeable future after breaking his jaw in a collision with Zach Randolph.
Oh, the humanity.
Thabeet was considered the safe pick for the Grizzlies, who opted for the big man over exhilarating guards Jonny Flynn, Tyreke Evans or European sensation Ricky Rubio. But when he arrived to camp, he was even more of a project than expected. Now he faces a setback that will not only stunt his growth this year but may also make him think twice about throwing himself into the paint to do battle down the road.
To recap Memphis' drama over the last couple of weeks, Allen Iverson is MIA, Zach Randolph just knocked out the number one pick, Rudy Gay wasn't offered an extension and may or may not be feuding with O.J. Mayo.
It's a good thing the Blues is so good on Beale Street. This team's in need of catharsis.
For his part, Thabeet has shown up and done what he was supposed to do. He was struggling offensively and rebounding the ball, but he was able to generate blocks, his biggest asset. For the team with the worst defensive efficiency in the league, losing another defender certainly won't help. It's not yet known how much time he'll miss.
The Thabeet Era will have to wait.
