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Forum nameOkay Sports
Topic subjectThe Evolution of Mike Conley
Topic URLhttp://board.okayplayer.com/okp.php?az=show_topic&forum=8&topic_id=1604562&mesg_id=2179921
2179921, The Evolution of Mike Conley
Posted by hardware, Tue May-14-13 10:50 AM
http://www.grantland.com/story/_/id/9272912/the-evolution-mike-conley-jr-memphis-grizzlies-point-guard

exerpt:

Grizzly Man
How Mike Conley Jr., Memphis's ambidextrous point guard, has grown up and led his team deep into the playoffs
By Zach Lowe on May 14, 2013
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Here's a fun exercise: Pick any NBA player and try to picture his go-to move on offense. For LeBron James, you'll likely think of him negotiating a pick-and-roll up high, probably going to his left, scanning the defense for a driving lane or a clear pass to a spot-up shooter in the corner. For Tim Duncan, it'll be a pet post-up move from the left block. Tyson Chandler is almost tearing off the rim while finishing a lob dunk, and Matt Bonner is shot-putting a 3-pointer from the top of the arc.

Now try it for Mike Conley, point guard of the Memphis Grizzlies, the team that just might be the favorite in the Western Conference after taking a 3-1 series lead with an OT win Monday night over the Thunder. This exercise is easy for most point guards, because they dominate the ball and get to imprint their stylistic flair into our brains. But it's tough for Conley, isn't it? If you're a regular Grizz watcher, you'll eventually land on his righty floater in the lane. But how did he get into the lane? And how does he score the rest of his 15 points per game (up to about 17.5 in the playoffs)? What are his trademark passes?

Conley sort of defies this exercise, even for those of us who spend unhealthy amounts of time watching NBA basketball. And that's fitting. Conley's game on both ends is one of refined subtlety, and it can take a long time in the NBA for that sort of player to find the right rhythms. That has been doubly so for Conley, who entered the league a "frail" 19-year-old, says his coach, Lionel Hollins. Conley spends the bulk of his time on the floor with two slow-moving behemoths who control the Grizzlies' pace, own the real estate south of the foul line, and prop up one of the league's last true inside-out offenses. Conley doesn't have spectacular pick-and-roll lob partners, a 3-point shooting power forward to open up space down low, or even all that much time when he's clearly the controlling figure in Memphis's offense. So how good, really, is Mike Conley?