By Adrian Vivar Mike Conley Jr. came into the NBA with mixed expectations After starting for a National Championship finalist in Ohio State, and wowing the country in the NCAA tournament with his lighting fast speed and ability to get to the basket, many scouts saw Conley Jr. developing to a player close to Finals MVP Tony Parker. Others just saw Conley as another ultra fast point guard who was too weak to be able to score around the basket as well as he did in collage and had a jump shot that was way to inconsistent. There was another knock to Conley that did not include any of Conleys skills as a basketball player or his behavior off the court, his lifelong teammate, Greg Oden. Oden was nothing short of a high school phenom and probably would have been the number one pick in the draft with or without his one year of collage in Ohio State. Conley had been playing with Oden since middle school and scouts questioned Conleys ability to produce without the seven-foot man child. The Memphis Grizzlies, now in rebuilding mode, took a chance and took the freshman point guard with the forth pick of the NBA draft. To go along with the Grizzlies giving away star big man Pau Gasol and flushing their season down the toilet, the young point guard only played 53 games that entire year and the same people that doubted him before went back to Conley being to weak to be the effective player he was in high-school and collage. Conley opened some eyes at the end of the season where he scored over 13 points, had at least 5 assists, and never had more than five turnovers in the last five games. The good end to an up and down rookie season was definably a good sign. Well, Conleys sophomore season did not start as well as his rookie year ended. Conley rarely had double-figure scoring and could never find a rhythm to running the Grizzlies offense. Mike Conley Jr. was not the only one struggling, the whole team was and that eventually led to the firing of than head coach, Mike Ivaroni. The Grizzlies management then went after long-time Grizzlies assistant, Lionel Hollins, who was one of the assistants for the Milwaukee Bucks. The Grizzlies took the risk and offered Hollins a head coach contract for the long-term, not just as an interim. If this change would have never happened, and the Grizzlies kept Iavaroni, a safe assumption would be that Conley would continue to struggle and would continue to come off the bench for the Grizzlies. The Hollins hiring opened up Conleys offense tremendously. He has statistically gone up in just about every offensive category. It is not just the statistics that have improved, it is also his improvement driving to the basket, his shooting stroke, and controlling the offense. With Ivaroni, Conley was not ever comfortable at point guard and often even OJ Mayo would bring the ball up while Conley was in the game. Under Hollins, Conley finally has the freedom to run the offense and have more plays designed for him. The thing the Lionel Hollins stressed the hardest in his first press conference is that he wants Conley to have more freedom and be more aggressive. Ever since Lionel Hollins was hired, Conley has been averaging close to 15 points, and 6 assists while improving his 3 point shooting percentage. Pretty big difference for a player that was averaging around 8 points and 4 assists with Ivaroni. There is no question that if the Grizzlies are going to be a threat anytime soon, they need Conley to play at his highest level. The Grizzlies may not be a playoff team by next year, but if Conley continues to play at this level and continues to improve, there is no doubt the Grizzlies will be a more entertaining team to watch and a team that will be in the playoffs down the road. http://bleacherreport.com/articles/158337-...ust_published=1 Comments, views, and reps are appreciated.
