Brewer tears hamstring; out indefinitely

Ronnie Brewer partially tore his hamstring on Friday night in his first action as a member of the Memphis Grizzlies.

The Grizzlies fell to the Miami Heat 100-87 in double overtime.

Grizzlies add Ronnie Brewer

The Memphis Grizzlies have traded a 2011 first-round pick, which is protected, to the Utah Jazz for 6'7 swing man Ronnie Brewer.

Brewer will be a restricted free agent at the end of this season.

Grizz outlast Raptors in OT, 109-102

The five game losing streak comes to an end.

The Memphis Grizzlies downed the Toronto Raptors on Wednesday night.

Click here to read The Commercial Appeal's take.

Two former Grizzlies back in the trade rotation

ESPN is reporting a deal between the New York Knicks and the Minnesota Timberwolves that would send Darko Milicic to the Twin Cities and land Brian Cardinal in the Big Apple.

Obviously this trade is not sending ripples through the NBA. Neither team will make the playoffs this season and neither player will ever be an All Star.

As a Grizzlies fan though, this one made me smile.

Remember when the Grizzlies picked up Darko in 2007? He was four years removed from being the number two overall pick by the Detroit Pistons in the 2003 NBA Draft. Some labeled him a bust after four years in league left him with impressive numbers such as 19 starts, 15.5 minutes per game and 3.9 points per game.

Brian Cardinal had a little better career statistically, especially for the Grizzlies. Also, Cardinal involved himself in numerous community projects during his stay in Memphis.

But I think it is safe to say that neither player provided what the Grizzlies were looking for in the two big men. Darko continued to under-produce and Cardinal never really came on as consistently as the team, and fans, had hoped.

The smile is deeper than either players' performance while playing for Memphis, though. What makes me smile is thinking that finally the Grizzlies might be out of the mediocre player trading business. These two guys being trading for each other is strictly a salary cap move. The Grizz have some financial wiggle room right now, and there is no pressing need to acquire expiring contracts or dump hefty ones (see: Pau Gasol).

There is a real possibility the team could make a solid long term to Rudy Gay. The offer was not made before the October 30, 2009 deadline that was set in Gay's contract, leaving him a restricted free agent this off-season. That means that any team can make an offer to Gay and the Grizzlies will have to at least match that offer or his services will be retained by highest bidder.

Pending the outcome of that situation, the Grizzlies could make a splash in the much anticipated free agent class of 2010 that features LeBron James, Dwayne Wade, Chris Bosh and other high-profile players.

It is just nice to know that the Memphis Grizzlies are becoming a serious franchise. Moves have been made in the past to set the team up for the next several years. What is already a strong nucleus of players and coaches should only get stronger this season and off-season.

You better jump on the Grizzlies bandwagon now, cause it's getting full.

P.S.

Who could forget Darko ripping his jersey in frustration? At least the kid had heart.

Suns at Grizzlies

The game starts at 7 p.m. CST and will be played in Memphis.

Here is ESPN's preview article for the game.

Welcome to Grizz Gab

Hello and welcome to Grizz Gab, a blog about the Memphis Grizzlies of the National Basketball Association.

The goal of this blog is to provide a place for Grizzlies fans to find information and opinion about their team. I also want to try to expand the fan base for the Grizzlies.

I live near Nashville, and the Grizzlies barely even exist here. The only people who really seem to support the team are from West Tennessee. That has to change.

With your help, we will spread the Grizzlies to the rest of the nation (or maybe just the state, if we're lucky).

This blog is for you, the fan. If there is something you want me to cover or if you want to cover something, feel free. We could all use a little more Grizz Gab in our lives. Use this blog as a forum to discuss what the Grizz are doing and whether or not you agree with it. Talk about the players, coaches and management.

I have been a fan of the team since the days of the expansion draft when they were still in Vancouver. NBA Live '96 was my game and the Grizzlies were my team. Who else misses the Sega Genesis?

I figured the conclusion of All Star Weekend was a good time to launch this blog. Now we can all get on board to cheer the Memphis Grizzlies into the playoffs.

Jake Wells