2001–02 Memphis Grizzlies season

2001–02 Memphis Grizzlies season
Pau Gasol`s rookie season
Head coach	Sidney Lowe
Arena	Pyramid Arena
Results
Record	23–59 (.280)
Place	Division: 7th (Midwest) Conference: 13th (Western)
Playoff finish	DNQ
Stats @ Basketball-Reference.com
Local media
Television	Fox Sports Net South, WMC, WPXX
Radio	WREC

The 2001–02 Memphis Grizzlies season was the first season for the Grizzlies in Memphis.^[1] After six years of struggling in Vancouver, the Grizzlies relocated to Memphis. Although it was the first NBA team for the city, Memphis played home to an American Basketball Association team from 1970-1975. The Grizzlies made their debut on November 1 at the Pyramid. The Grizzlies would lose to the Detroit Pistons by a score of 90-80. The Grizzlies lost their first 8 games of the season. Their first win would come in a victory over the Cleveland Cavaliers by a score of 98-83. The game was played at the Pyramid on November 17, for the franchise's first win in Memphis. The Grizzlies would finish in last place in the Midwest Division with a 23-59 record.

The highlight of the season was the contribution of two rookies. Pau Gasol (who was drafted by the Atlanta Hawks) led the team with 17.6 points per game and was named Rookie of The Year. Duke alumnus Shane Battier had a solid 14.4 points per game, while former University of Memphis star Lorenzen Wright led the team in rebounding with 9.0 boards per game. The highlight of the inaugural season for the Grizzlies came on December 21. The Grizzlies beat the eventual NBA Champion Los Angeles Lakers at the Pyramid winning 114-108.^[2]

Draft picks

Round	Pick	Player	Position	Nationality	College
1	3	Pau Gasol (from Atlanta)	PF/C	Spain	FC Barcelona (Spain)
1	6	Shane Battier	SF/SG	United States	Duke
2	32	Will Solomon	PG	United States	Clemson
2	47	Antonis Fotsis (from New York)	SF	Greece	Panathinaikos (Greece)

Roster

Memphis Grizzlies roster
Players	Coaches
Pos. No. Name Height Weight DOB (YYYY–MM–DD) From G 25 Anderson, Nick 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 205 lb (93 kg) Illinois G/F 31 Battier, Shane 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 220 lb (100 kg) Duke G/F 32 Buford, Rodney 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 189 lb (86 kg) Creighton G 8 Dickerson, Michael  6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 190 lb (86 kg) Arizona F 21 Fotsis, Antonis 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 210 lb (95 kg) Greece F/C 16 Gasol, Pau 7 ft 0 in (2.13 m) 250 lb (113 kg) Spain G 7 Gill, Eddie 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 190 lb (86 kg) Weber State G 22 Knight, Brevin 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m) 173 lb (78 kg) Stanford F 43 Long, Grant 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 225 lb (102 kg) Eastern Michigan F 34 Massenburg, Tony 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 220 lb (100 kg) Maryland C 50 Reeves, Bryant  7 ft 0 in (2.13 m) 290 lb (132 kg) Oklahoma State G 5 Perry, Elliot 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 150 lb (68 kg) Memphis G 1 Solomon, Will 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 195 lb (88 kg) Auburn F/C 4 Swift, Stromile 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 225 lb (102 kg) LSU G 2 Williams, Jason 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) 180 lb (82 kg) Florida C 42 Wright, Lorenzen 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) 255 lb (116 kg) Memphis	Head coach Sidney Lowe (Niagara) Legend (C) Team captain (DP) Unsigned draft pick (FA) Free agent (S) Suspended Injured Roster • Transactions

Regular season

Season standings

Midwest Division

Team	W	L	PCT	GB
San Antonio Spurs	58	24	.707	-
Dallas Mavericks	57	25	.695	1
Minnesota Timberwolves	50	32	.610	8
Utah Jazz	44	38	.537	14
Houston Rockets	28	54	.341	30
Denver Nuggets	27	55	.329	31
Memphis Grizzlies	23	59	.280	35

Game log

Game	Date	Opponent	Result	Grizzlies score	Opponent score	Record	OT

Player statistics

Legend
GP	Games played	GS	Games started	MPG	Minutes per game
FG%	Field-goal percentage	3P%	3-point field-goal percentage	FT%	Free-throw percentage
RPG	Rebounds per game	APG	Assists per game	SPG	Steals per game
BPG	Blocks per game	PPG	Points per game

Player	GP	GS	MPG	FG%	3FG%	FT%	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	PPG

Awards and records

Awards

Pau Gasol 2001-2002 NBA Rookie of the Year Award.^[3]

Pau Gasol 2001-2002 NBA All-Rookie Team^[4]

Shane Battier 2001-2002 NBA All-Rookie Team^[4]

Transactions

Free Agents

Additions Player Signed Former team

Subtractions Player Left New team

See also

• 2001-02 NBA season

References

1. 2001-02 Memphis Grizzlies
2. Memphis Grizzlies (2001-Present)
3. Basketball-ReferenceNBA Rookie of the Year Award Winners, Sept 20 2011
4. RealGM,Historical Memphis Grizzlies Awards, Sept 20 2011