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Six NBA teams fading down the stretch

NBA draft, Paul George trade

Memphis Grizzlies

Memphis started off March with a five-game skid, including a loss to the lowly Nets. It seemed it righted the ship after a strong week, then the Grizzlies dropped four in a row, taking them down to the No. 7 seed. Since March 1, the Grizzlies have a -4.7 net rating compared to +0.4 on the season.

This drop-off has come almost entirely on defense. In fact, their offense has been better since March. In the 61 games before March, Memphis gave up 103.1 points per 100 possessions. Since then, it’s 109.9, which would rank 29th if it were over the full season. With a team that doesn’t exactly qualify as spry, it should be incredibly alarming that the Grizzlies’ defensive rating has gotten worse as the season has gone along.

The difference between the six and seven seed is massive in the Western Conference. It’s more or less the difference between whether a team like Memphis can compete in the first round. If things stay the way they are, the Grizzlies will draw the San Antonio Spurs in the first round. That’s a matchup in which they have virtually no chance (though it will be fun to see the Memphis center Marc Gasol and his brother, Spurs forward Pau Gasol match up in the postseason for the first time).

Had Memphis avoided their March slide and stayed in the No. 6 seed, there would be some hope to compete against the Houston Rockets, though they would still be underdogs.

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