What’s Next for the Grizzlies After Firing Their Head Coach?
Earlier today, the Memphis Grizzlies announced that they would be parting ways with head coach Taylor Jenkins, the winningest coach in their franchise history who had coached the team for the last six seasons. Grizzlies President and GM of Basketball Operations Zach Kleiman said in a news release, "I'm genuinely appreciative of Taylor's contributions to this team and this city over the past six seasons. This was a difficult decision, given the consistent and tangible development of our players and overall success under Taylor's leadership. I wish Taylor the very best going forward."
This announcement comes as a shock to the basketball world as, not only do the Grizzlies currently have a 44-29 record, sitting at fifth in the Western Conference standings, but the Grizzlies only have nine games remaining in the regular season before the playoffs begin. While the Grizzlies currently sit above the Play-In-Tournament bubble, the team has lost four of their last five games with four of those losses being by double digits. This downward trajectory caused the team to fall from its previous position as the second seed in the Western Conference just a few weeks ago. It is worth noting that in all these games the Grizzlies were without their star player Ja Morant who has been listed as day-to-day with a hamstring strain.
As for where the Grizzlies go from here, the team will likely name lead assistant coach Tuomas Iisalo as the interim head coach. Lisalo was brought into the Grizzlies’ organization last year, his first stint in the NBA, after having major success as a coach in Europe. In Europe, Iisalo won the Bundesliga Coach of the Year in 2022 and 2023 for the Telekom Baskets Bonn in the highest level of pro basketball in Germany. After this, he jumped to Paris Basketball in the LNB Pro A, which is the top division of basketball in France. There Paris Basketball won the Leaders Cup and EuroCup championship under Iisalo's leadership. All in all, whether the Memphis Grizzlies decide to name Tuomas Iisalo as the interim head coach or if they go another route, the next leader of the Grizzlies will have a tall task as they navigate a struggling team desperately awaiting the return of their star player with the playoffs looming over their heads.
