The Memphis Grizzlies have lost two playoff games by one point to the Los Angeles Clippers and another in overtime and find themselves on the brink of first-round elimination going into Wednesday night’s Game 5 at home.

While point guard Mike Conley has played exceptionally well for Memphis, All-Star Chris Paul has been better for Los Angeles.

Conley has more than held his own, shooting 22-for-44 (50%) and averaging 7.5 assists.

But Paul willed his team to a 27-point comeback on the road in Game 1 to steal home-court advantage, and he has taken charge of the series.

It hasn’t been the finest hour for Grizzlies coach Lionel Hollins, who led his team to a No. 4 seed despite major injuries to forwards Zach Randolph and Darrell Arthur and two early-season trades to retool the roster. Hollins had seven new players after leading the franchise to its first playoff series victory as a No. 8 seed last year, the upset of the No. 1 San Antonio Spurs.

Great things were expected for this season.

But in the playoffs, Memphis is failing to adapt. Hollins has insisted on playing a man-to-man defense and won’t double-team Paul to force the ball out of his hands. That means the Grizzlies are letting the opposing team’s best player dictate the outcomes — and that’s why they’re trailing 3-1.

Although noted for their rugged defense, the Grizzlies haven’t made any of the right moves strategically. They had options in doubling or trapping Paul because Clippers coach Vinny Del Negro played Reggie Evans and Kenyon Martin extended minutes during key fourth-quarter stretches, and neither is a scoring threat.

Both are physical, defensive stoppers but are limited offensively. Why was Randolph, for instance, following Evans, who averages 3.3 points, away from the basket? Why chase Martin? He averages 3.0 points. Doing so clears the space for Paul to operate and dissect Memphis.

What happens by chasing Paul with one defender?

Hollins put his best one-on-one defender, Tony Allen, on Paul to start Game 4. Allen played only 25 minutes because of foul trouble. He was hit with his fourth foul at 7:28 of the third quarter and played just nine minutes in the second half, including overtime.

There’s no shame in running a matchup zone defense to swallow up Paul, something the Dallas Mavericks did successfully to the Miami Heat’s LeBron James and Dwyane Wade in winning their first NBA championship last season.

And why is Memphis not fouling Evans, a 31.3% free throw shooter, and Martin, a 37% foul shooter, whenever they touch the ball in the clutch?

Where were the offense-for-defense substitutions in the final two minutes to use those fouls, slow the pace and force Del Negro’s hand to take his offensive liabilities off the court and go to a smaller lineup that would have problems defending Randolph and Marc Gasol in the post?

But Memphis’ woes have run deeper than defensive inefficiencies. All 7-1, 265-plus pounds of Gasol, who was a first-time All-Star, has disappeared. He took less than 10 shots in three of the first four games, and his offensive limitations are being exposed.

Unlike his brother Pau Gasol of the Los Angeles Lakers, he’s not as versatile around the basket to create his shot. The scouting report on him: He’ll always turn into the lane and isn’t a threat to drop step.

Like his brother, however, Marc Gasol is an exceptional passer who sees the floor well. Hollins hasn’t used him enough to facilitate the offense from a higher spot in the lane, where he’s a threat to pass or knock down the mid-range jump shot.

When facing such an athletic team as the Clippers, that’s where they’re vulnerable — beat them with the pass. Their ball moves faster. The No. 1 seed Spurs understand that, and that’s why they’re so revered in the West. That’s how an aged team such as the Mavericks upset the Heat.

The lack of ball movement allows the Clippers to pack it in, clog the lane around Gasol and Randolph and dare the Grizzlies to beat them from long range.

It’s working swimmingly. Grizzlies leading scorer Rudy Gay is shooting 42.3% vs. 45.5% during the season, and sixth man O.J. Mayo is shooting 31% vs. 40.8% during the season.

If Hollins doesn’t adjust and give Paul different and multiple looks, this will be like shooting fish in a barrel for Paul. And Hollins’ team will drown.

Copyright 2012 USA TODAY

COMMENTARY | Last season, the No. 8 seeded Memphis Grizzlies defeated the top team in the Western Conference, the San Antonio Spurs, without star forward Rudy Gay.

Just when the team thought they were going to have their full lineup for the 2011-12 season, power forward Zach Randolph injured his knee four games into this year’s campaign. Without Randolph, the Grizzlies posted a 24-17 record and are in fifth place in the Western Conference.

Although Memphis has played well as of late, Randolph’s return is finally going to show the basketball world what the team can really do when all the parts are in working order.

Randolph came back to the Grizzlies Friday in a 114-110 overtime loss to the Toronto Raptors. In only his fifth game of the season, he scored 25 points off of 64% shooting from the field and grabbed nine rebounds (six were offensive boards). Sunday, he scored 13 points and pulled down nine rebounds in a 97-92 win against the Washington Wizards.

With the eleventh year player back in the lineup, the Grizzlies have arguably the second best center and power forward combination in the league with Randolph and Marc Gasol. The only big man duo I would classify as better than Randolph and Gasol is the Los Angeles Lakers’ duo of Pau Gasol and Andrew Bynum.

Package the second best front court with Gay’s 19 points and 7 rebounds per game and we have arguably the best front court in the league. If I had to list the league’s best threesome from the small forward to center positions, Memphis wins by a far margin.

Bynum and Pau Gasol are great, but Ron Artest isn’t enough to best the Grizzlies.

The Indiana Pacers have Roy Hibbert, David West and Danny Granger, but I like all three of Memphis’ players better than their Indiana counterpart. I feel the same way about Memphis when compared to Chicago’s Joakim Noah, Carlos Boozer and Luol Deng, even though they’re closer than the Pacers.

The Bulls’ front court plays better defense but Gay, Randolph and Marc Gasol are far better scorers and influence the game more than the Chicago players. Deng is considered a “glue guy” as Gay is considered “the guy”. Noah is a “hustle man” while Marc Gasol is “a complete center”. Bulls’ fans want Boozer out and Grizzlies’ fans couldn’t wait for Z-Bo to return.

With the Grizzlies full lineup at full throttle, I think they could beat any team in the Western Conference in a seven game series. Randolph came back and didn’t miss a step as he put up 25 points in his first game back to go along with Gasol’s 28 points and Gay’s 26. These guys haven’t even had time to fully gel and scored 79 points. Imagine what they could do after a month of playing together.

I wouldn’t be surprised at all if Memphis climbs the Western Conference standings and is the second seed heading into the playoffs.They’re only a half game behind the Los Angeles Clippers for the four seed, two behind the Lakers for third and four from the Spurs for second.

The Grizzlies are probably not going to catch the Oklahoma City Thunder, since they’re playing out of their mind, but Memphis could take the second or third spot and play an easier competitor in the first round.

Randolph’s return is the missing piece in the Western Conference playoff race. Now, finally, the Memphis Grizzlies have all of their legs underneath them and can prove they are no longer the underdog.

Brandon LaChance has been a diehard NBA follower since 1994 and began blogging about the league in 2007. Besides contributing to the Yahoo! Contributor Network, he writes and podcasts for Oncourt Onslaught while covering local sports for a rural Illinois newspaper.

When you are seven-feet tall and an NBA All-Star it seems inconceivable Memphis Grizzlies big man Marc Gasol would live in anyone’s shadow.

But when you’re older brother is Pau Gasol, an NBA champion with the Los Angeles Lakers, you tend to get overlooked.

Not anymore.

The younger Gasol has stepped out of big brother’s long shadow and into the spotlight this season, taking a leading role as the Grizzlies have clawed their way into the post-season picture collecting their seventh win in eight games with a 102-99 victory over the Toronto Raptors on Friday.

“When you walk out of your big brothers shadow and they start recognising you for your own ability, that always makes you feel good,” Grizzlies coach Lionel Hollins told Reuters. “You know you’ve arrived.

“He’s made a huge step.

“I think the biggest step is mentally, being more confident, being more vocal. Just taking and being the player he is suppose to be.

With the Raptors’ Andrea Bargnani missing his 17th game with a calf injury, Gasol contributed 21 points and five rebounds to the Grizzlies’ effort.

Gasol has been asked to up his game this season as the Grizzlies await for the return of injured forwad Zack Randolph and the Spaniard has delivered in style averaging career highs in points (15.2), rebounds (10.1) and blocks (a franchise record 2.23 per game).

“Every day, every year, he steps forwards and grows up as a player in every aspect of the game,” said Raptors guard Jose Calderon, who will join Gasol on Spain’s squad at this summer’s London Olympics.

“He can do a lot of things out there. Sometimes people don’t know him yet but maybe this year people are starting to realise how good he is.

“I think people here see him as a Gasol brother but for us in Spain we forget they are brothers.

“They are different players, different personalities. For us he’s just another guy another great player, never the brother of Pau Gasol.”

It would be easy for people, even fans in Memphis, to confuse the Gasol brothers.

After all, Pau spent his first seven NBA seasons with the Grizzlies before being traded to the Lakers in a deal that included his younger brother going back to Memphis.

But no one in Memphis is missing Pau Gasol anymore, as Marc continues to emerge as one of the key cogs on one of the NBA’s best defensive and grittiest teams.

“They are one of the toughest teams in the league, the way they approach the game, the way they attack the paint,” Raptors coach Dwane Casey said. “They are one of the top teams in steals and creating points off turnovers.

“Memphis and Miami are the two top teams, you make a mistake defensively and they will capitalise.

“Their style of play is playoff style basketball.

“It’s not the up and down windshield wiper basketball. The game in the playoffs slows down and that favours them.”

Reuters

When you are seven-feet
tall and a National Basketball Association (NBA) All-Star it
seems inconceivable Memphis Grizzlies big man Marc Gasol would
live in anyone’s
shadow.

But when you’re older brother is Pau Gasol, an NBA champion
with the Los Angeles Lakers, you tend to get overlooked.

Not anymore.

The younger Gasol has stepped out of big brother’s long
shadow and into the spotlight this season, taking a leading role
as the Grizzlies have clawed their way into the post-season
picture collecting their seventh win in eight games with a
102-99 victory over the Toronto Raptors on Friday.

“When you walk out of your big brothers shadow and they
start recognising you for your own ability, that always makes
you feel good,” Grizzlies coach Lionel Hollins told Reuters.
“You know you’ve arrived.

“He’s made a huge step.

“I think the biggest step is mentally, being more confident,
being more vocal. Just taking and being the player he is suppose
to be.

With the Raptors’ Andrea Bargnani missing his 17th game with
a calf injury, Gasol contributed 21 points and five rebounds to
the Grizzlies’ effort.

Gasol has been asked to up his game this season as the
Grizzlies await for the return of injured forwad Zack Randolph
and the Spaniard has delivered in style averaging career highs
in points (15.2), rebounds (10.1) and blocks (a franchise record
2.23 per game).

“Every day, every year, he steps forwards and grows up as a
player in every aspect of the game,” said Raptors guard Jose
Calderon, who will join Gasol on Spain’s squad at this summer’s
London Olympics.

“He can do a lot of things out there. Sometimes people don’t
know him yet but maybe this year people are starting to realise
how good he is.

“I think people here see him as a Gasol brother but for us
in Spain we forget they are brothers.

“They are different players, different personalities. For us
he’s just another guy another great player, never the brother of
Pau Gasol.”

It would be easy for people, even fans in Memphis, to
confuse the Gasol brothers.

After all, Pau spent his first seven NBA seasons with the
Grizzlies before being traded to the Lakers in a deal that
included his younger brother going back to Memphis.

But no one in Memphis is missing Pau Gasol anymore, as Marc
continues to emerge as one of the key cogs on one of the NBA’s
best defensive and grittiest teams.

“They are one of the toughest teams in the league, the way
they approach the game, the way they attack the paint,” Raptors
coach Dwane Casey said. “They are one of the top teams in steals
and creating points off turnovers.

“Memphis and Miami are the two top teams, you make a mistake
defensively and they will capitalise.

“Their style of play is playoff style basketball.

“It’s not the up and down windshield wiper basketball. The
game in the playoffs slows down and that favours them.”

Marc Gasol, who was 6 of 8 from the field, added 20, as the Grizzlies had six players in double figures. Randolph shot 11 of 14 and grabbed nine rebounds. Gasol and Rudy Gay, who finished with 10 points, each had eight boards as Memphis outrebounded the Rockets 42-33.

“Any time you have Randolph and Gasol go 17 of 22, you are going to have major issues,” Rockets coach Kevin McHale said.

Randolph, who doesn’t have a reputation as a strong defender, was part of a Grizzlies front line that held Houston starters Chase Budinger, Luis Scola and Jordan Hill to a total of 17 points, 11 from Budinger.

While Randolph didn’t necessarily agree with Hollins’ assessment of the defensive effort being his best, he did acknowledge trying to concentrate more on that end of the floor.

“That’s what I’m trying to focus on, just better D, helping my guys out and being in the right position,” Randolph said, adding, “Defense wins games. I know I can score with the best of them, and rebound with the best of them. (Working) on defense there’s going to be a trickle-down effect, and everybody gets to playing defense and moving their feet and helping each other out.”

Jeremy Pargo, starting in place of injured Memphis point guard Mike Conley, finished with 14 points, while Quincy Pondexter, picked up in a preseason trade with New Orleans, had 13.

Kevin Martin led the Rockets with 21 points, while Kyle Lowry had 15 points and eight assists. Rookie Chandler Parsons scored 13 points, including a trio of 3-pointers, all in the fourth quarter.

Memphis shot 56 percent and forced 20 Houston turnovers. The Grizzlies put away the game in the third quarter, outscoring the Rockets 31-16.

The victory was another step in Memphis establishing its identity as an inside force that carried the Grizzlies to the semifinals of last season’s Western Conference playoffs.

“Defensively and offensively, we can get a lot better,” Gasol said, “but this is more who we are. You saw some things last game (Wednesday’s 98-95 loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder) and today for longer periods, we played better.”

Memphis opened the second quarter on a 10-2 run for a double-digit lead and eventually carried a 57-51 lead into the locker room, shooting 56 percent.

Randolph had 15 in the half, while Gasol scored 13. Martin had 19 points at the break for the Rockets and Lowry contributed 13, going a combined 10 of 16 from the field.

“We started off the game, and (Randolph) made some shot that we didn’t want him to take, those long jump shots, and he just got on a roll,” McHale said. “We couldn’t stop him.”

Memphis extended its lead by opening the second half with an 18-7 run, claiming a 75-58 margin just past the midway point of the third period.

Memphis, Tennessee – The Memphis Grizzlies have re-signed center Marc Gasol to a multi-year contract, Grizzlies General Manager and Vice President of Basketball Operations Chris Wallace announced today. Per team policy, terms of the deal were not disclosed.

We are very happy to re-sign Marc Gasol, who has been one of the pillars of the Grizzlies franchise since his arrival and a true Memphis basketball player ever since his days at Lausanne, Wallace said. We are excited to keep him as part of our core group of players and to build on what this organization has already achieved for many years to come.

Gasol (7-1, 265) posted 15.0 points, 11.2 rebounds, 2.2 assists and 2.15 blocks in helping lead Memphis through a 13-game run through the 2011 NBA Playoffs, which included a first-round upset of the top-seeded San Antonio Spurs and a seven-game series with the Oklahoma City Thunder. The 26-year-old finished second in the league in rebounds per game and third in blocks per game during the postseason.

During the 2010-11 regular season, Gasol averaged 11.7 points, 7.0 rebounds, a career-high 2.5 assists and 1.68 blocks in 81 games (all starts). Teaming with Zach Randolph, Gasol helped Memphis pace the NBA in points in the paint (51.5) for the second consecutive season.

The Barcelona, Spain native holds career averages of 12.6 points, 7.8 rebounds, 2.2 assists and 1.44 blocks in 32.7 minutes in 232 games (225 starts) over three seasons in Memphis after his draft rights (48th overall in the 2007 NBA Draft) were acquired in a package from the Los Angeles Lakers in exchange for older brother Pau Gasol on Feb. 1, 2008. Memphis originally signed Marc on July 9, 2008.

Memphis all-time leader in field goal percentage (.545), Gasol has led the Grizzlies in field goal accuracy and blocked shots in each of his first three NBA seasons. In addition, he already ranks in the top 10 in franchise history in blocks (335, 5th), free throws made (747, 8th), offensive rebounds (563, 8th), defensive rebounds (1,251, 8th) and total rebounds (1,814, 9th).
- Grizzlies.com –
 

MEMPHIS, Tennessee (AP)—Spanish center Marc Gasol announced on Twitter that he
has reached a tentative agreement to stay with the Memphis Grizzlies for a deal
reported to be worth nearly $58 million.

Gasol tweeted late Monday that he “can’t wait to get on the court with all
my teammates!”

The Memphis Grizzlies confirmed the agreement later, keeping a player
general manager Chris Wallace called one of their cornerstones.

“Marc has been a Memphis basketball player ever since his high school days
at Lausanne, and we’re excited for him to continue his blossoming career with
the Grizzlies,” Wallace said in a statement.

The Commercial Appeal newspaper reported Gasol and the Grizzlies agreed on a
four-year deal worth nearly $58 million. Gasol was a restricted free agent, and
Grizzlies owner Michael Heisley had said they would match any offer for Gasol to
keep together a team that lost to Oklahoma City in seven games in the NBA
Western Conference playoff semifinals last spring.

Gasol teamed with Zach Randolph last season to help Memphis lead the NBA in
scoring in the paint at 51.5 points per game.

The 26-year-old center averaged 15 points and 11.2 rebounds in the
Grizzlies’ playoff run, an improvement from his averages of 11.7 points and 7.0,
respectively, during the regular season.

Memphis Grizzlies owner Michael Heisely has always insisted that a team would have to pry Marc Gasol from his cold, dead hands. The Houston Rockets will try, but Heisley maintains that he’ll match (and even top) their offer for Gasol. Per the Commercial Appeal: “The Houston Rockets are preparing a maximum-contract offer sheet worth $55 million over four years for Memphis Grizzlies center Marc Gasol, according to several media reports. Griz owner Michael Heisley expressed his reluctance to negotiate Gasol’s contract in the media Sunday afternoon so he responded with an economy of words. ‘We’d match that,’ said Heisley, who would have three days to make good on his word under NBA rules. Gasol’s position as a restricted free agent seemed to take a strange turn Sunday except for this: The 7-footer hasn’t signed Houston’s reported offer sheet and there are no indications that he will. Griz management seemed genuinely puzzled. Heisley said the Griz already offered Gasol a five-year deal that is worth more than Houston’s reported offer sheet. The Grizzlies’ proposed deal is also said to be worth more than any other team can offer under the league’s new collective bargaining agreement. A maximum contract for Gasol starts at $12.9 million for the Griz or any team. However, Memphis can give Gasol 7.5percent raises and five years while other teams can only offer 4.5percent raises over a maximum of four years. The Grizzlies can pay Gasol a four-year maximum contract worth $58 million. A five-year maximum deal would be worth $75million from the Grizzlies.”

Roughly three minutes into the first news conference, Mike Conley laid it right out there.

“We feel like we have a team to make a run for the championship,” he said.

Way to set the bar low, Griz!

“The sky’s the limit,” said Conley. As if on cue, his teammates joined in.

“The sky’s the limit,” said Zach Randolph.

“The sky’s the limit,” said Rudy Gay.

As possible slogans go, this franchise has come a long way from Dunkyland.

Yet it’s true, isn’t it? For the first time since the team moved to Memphis, Grizzlies fans can look forward to a season with no limit to what can be achieved.

This team isn’t trying to get to the playoffs. This team isn’t trying to win a playoff game. This team is trying to claim a place among the league’s elite.

“We’re looking at the big picture,” said Randolph. “Winning a championship.”

Small wonder the team was all smiles on the first day of camp.

“It feels like coming home,” said the irrepressible Tony Allen.

“I’m 200 percent right now,” said Gay.

About the only thing that could have made Gay feel any better: Having Marc Gasol suited up and in camp.

That was the only disappointment, really, that Gasol hasn’t yet been signed.

“Obviously, we need him,” said Gay. “There’s no more Gasol brothers out there.”

But nobody seemed alarmed that Gasol was missing. The Grizzlies continue to insist the deal will get done.

“When we get the big feller back, I’ll be happier than a kid at McDonald’s with a Happy Meal,” said Allen and, yes, it was good to be writing down quotes like that again.

They were your same lovable Grizzlies. They were just the way you remembered them.

All around the league, teams are scrambling to figure out their rosters. The Grizzlies know exactly who they are. They are Randolph and Gasol inside and Gay and Conley outside. They are O.J. Mayo and Darrell Arthur and Greivis Vasquez off the bench. They are Allen and the relentless ethic he inspired. They are grit and they are grind.

And if league officials — who left the Grizzlies off the Christmas television schedule — seemed to have forgotten all of this, well, it’s not like the players were surprised.

“They actually added a game with two teams that didn’t even play in the playoffs,” said Gay.

Isn’t the chip on the shoulder grand?

It’s what drove this team last year, what drives them to this day. Randolph got a contract extension during the playoffs and then spent the summer working out with the Memphis Tigers’ maniacal trainer, Frank Matrisciano.

“It’s definitely different for me, training,” said Randolph, who said he’s aiming for 30 — 30! — dunks this year.

And then there was the pickup game the Grizzlies held the other day, with some strange stuff going on.

“We were doing things in pickup games I didn’t ever think we’d do,” said Conley. “We were trapping the ball, rotating.”

It’s the winning mindset, taken hold.

None of which means the Grizzlies will actually win the championship, of course. That seems wildly improbable to me. But, then, last year was wildly improbable. It happened just the same.

At the end of the news conference, Channel 5′s Jarvis Greer asked Conley, Gay and Randolph to pick their favorite memory from last year. All three picked the scene at the airport, after the final loss. They appreciated the gratitude, the connection with the city their work had forged.

Gay said he even took a picture of the moment. Snapped it from his seat on the team plane.

“I still have that picture, I want to see it again,” he said. “Maybe on Beale Street one day.”

To reach Geoff Calkins, call (901) 529-2364 or e-mail calkins@commercialappeal.com. Visit his blog at geoffcalkinsblog.com.

They also feel confident that the only uncertainty at this point — the signing of center Marc Gasol — will be resolved.

Memphis, which had never won a playoff game entering last season, dispatched the Western Conference’s top-seeded team, the San Antonio Spurs, in six games and then went to a deciding seventh game against Oklahoma City before being eliminated.

Now, after waiting longer than expected for the season to start, the Grizzlies are ready to carry that momentum with a new confidence.

“It’s obvious that as a team, we have a lot of optimism. We feel like we have a team to make a run at a championship,” point guard Mike Conley said at Friday’s media availability before the opening of preseason practice. “That’s always been our goal each year. We’ve got the team. We’ve got Rudy back and he’s ready to go, and he says he was 100 percent.”

Gay missed the last part of the season and the playoffs after suffering a shoulder injury in February, leaving the Grizzlies without their second-leading scorer and third-best rebounder. Gay continually talked about the drive he has to return and fit into a team that some thought played better when he was out of the lineup.

“Last year was a great season, but we’re not done there,” Gay said. “Obviously, I’m hungrier than ever.”

A key factor in the team’s success will be the status of Gasol, who averaged 11.7 points a game and 7.0 rebounders. Gasol is a restricted free agent, and team management has pledged to make sure Gasol returns, vowing to match any offer sheet extended to him.

That is in keeping with what forward and leading scorer Zach Randolph was told when he signed his own new contract with the team last year.

“I hope he’s on the way back now,” Conley said of Gasol, who was not at the Friday media availability. “He’s our final piece, so I hope that we get him back.”

But the Memphis players don’t believe their thoughts of their team translate to others. Conley, Randolph and Gay all shook their heads when asked if the team had earned the respect throughout the league.

They noted that even though they became an exciting team to watch with a “grit-and-grind” approach and an unexpected playoff run, they still didn’t get a Christmas Day showcase game.

“It seems like they are going to always try to keep us down some way, somehow,” Conley said.

Randolph added: “We take it how it comes, but we’ve got to take care of our business and hopefully we can get some more games on TV once we get to winning some games.”

All three players mentioned that the highlight of the season was returning home after the season-ending loss at Oklahoma City. Despite being eliminated, a crowd gathered at the Memphis airport to welcome them home and congratulate the team on the season.

Gay, who was a part of that celebration from the periphery because of his injury, said he keeps handy a photo he took of the crowd at the airport.

“As a team, we still feel like we have a chip on our shoulder,” Conley said. “We’re never going to play as if we’re the top team in the league. We are always playing with something to prove. .We always play that way, and I don’t think it is going to change.

“We’re still motivated. We’re not satisfied with what we did last season. We felt like we could have gone further, so we were disappointed, even though there was a bunch of celebrating going on. This season is hopefully, just another stepping stone for us.”

Copyright 2011 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) – Memphis Grizzlies general manager Chris Wallace says re-signing center Marc Gasol is the franchise’s top priority right now as it attempts to maintain the momentum created during last season’s playoff run.

Wallace said Thursday that he has contacted Gasol’s agent Arn Tellem about securing the 7-foot center and keeping intact a nucleus that carried the Grizzlies to within one win from the Western Conference finals.

Gasol is a restricted free agent, and the Grizzlies would have a chance to match any offer Gasol receives. He averaged 11.7 points and seven rebounds per game last season and could command an annual salary of $10 million or more.

Wallace told reporters that signing Gasol is “priority number one.”

The lockout is not over, but training camps are expected to start Dec. 9.

Copyright 2011 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

BARCELONA, Spain — Barcelona says Pau and Marc Gasol will practice with the Spanish basketball club during the NBA lockout.

Memphis Grizzlies center Marc Gasol will start practice on Tuesday, with his older brother Pau set to join on Thursday.

Barcelona says the Gasols can practice with their former club “while the NBA lockout lasts.”

The Los Angeles Lakers’ Pau Gasol told Catalan radio RAC1 that “Barca would be my first option to consider” playing for if the NBA season is canceled.

Dallas Mavericks forward Rudy Fernandez signed a contract last month with Real Madrid to play basketball until the end of the lockout.

Copyright 2011 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

While the Memphis Grizzlies are likely to retain restricted free-agent center Marc Gasol(notes) when a new collective bargaining agreement is delivered, the Memphis Commercial Appeal doesn’t think small forward Shane Battier(notes) will be back.

The team is “very interested in re-signing Battier,” the paper reports, but “this deal will come down to nothing but dollars and cents.”

The paper has heard that Battier would like a contract that pays him around $5 million annually, but also heard that “the Griz aren’t willing to pay that” to Battier.

The 33-year-old, two-time NBA all-defensive team member averaged 7.6 points, 4.5 rebounds and 2.3 assists last season.

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Source: Memphis Commercial Appeal

Related: Marc Gasol, Memphis Grizzlies