The Memphis Grizzlies are trying to push for the playoffs in a competitive Western Conference, but injuries are hurting the team's efforts. The Grizzlies have lost Marc Gasol for the remainder of the season following foot surgery, and they could now be without key depth on the bench. In the loss to the Boston Celtics, Mario Chalmers went down with a leg injury.
The Grizzlies were already playing short-handed against the Celtics. Zach Randolph was sitting with a knee injury. Mike Conley was out with sore foot. Chris Andersen and Brandan Wright were held out. Memphis was left to rely on depth, meaning that Chalmers was playing key minutes. However, the backup guard went down and was unable to put any weight on his leg when he stood up. The severity of the injury is unknown at this time. Chalmers is expected to undergo an MRI, and the Grizzlies will go from there.
"When Mario went down, that was a tough deal for us," head coach Dave Joerger said. "Our guys played their tails off. But that team right there ... they got cooking, and they were tough for us to catch."
Chalmers has been key for Memphis this season. He has averaged 10.8 points and 3.8 assists coming off the bench in place of Conley. The injury to Chalmers could leave Conley being forced to play more minutes while leaving Memphis without another true point guard. Matt Barnes noted that the Grizzlies are running out of ways to deal with injuries, while Tony Allen believes that the offense is suffering.
"Obviously, to see another fallen soldier go down due to injury, it deflates you, takes a lot out of you," Allen said. "We tried to play together, but obviously you could see his work on the court. We didn't have a poised point guard today."
While the Grizzlies lost a player in that game, the Boston Celtics gained one. The team got back Jared Sullinger following a two-day stay in the hospital for a skin infection. He helped lead the way against Memphis with 12 points and five rebounds in 21 minutes of play. Sullinger has not had the best season this year, but head coach Brad Stevens liked what he saw from the power forward.
"I thought he started the game, the first couple times he touched the ball he looked -- he did probably look like he was a little rusty from not having done much the last three days, but then he got himself going pretty quickly," Stevens said.
While the Celtics are thriving in the East, the Grizzlies are barely keeping their heads above water in the West. Losing Chalmers while dropping another game hurts the team moving forward. The Grizzlies need to at least get back Conley. Allen can help in some spots, but if Chalmers is out for a lengthy period of time, Memphis will be in a tough position.
