The Grizzlies finished up the first half of the 2011-12 season with a 19-15 record which has them in 4th place in the Southwest Division.  They are also currently #7 in the Western Conference as of right now.  Here is a look at the players making the biggest impact for the Grizzlies so far this year in my opinion:

Team MVP:  Marc Gasol:  27-year old center Marc Gasol has really stepped up so far this year.  He has played in 34 games (all starts) for the Grizzlies so far this year and he is averaging 38.1 minutes, 15.0 points, 10.1 rebounds, 3.1 assists, 1.0 steal and 2.2 blocked shots per game.  The Grizzlies need him to keep up the great work in the second half of the year.

Biggest Surprise:  Marreese Speights:  24-year old power forward Marreese Speights might be inconsistent but he has helped fill in for the injured Zach Randolph.  Speights has played in 28 games (26 starts) for the Grizzlies so far this year and he is averaging 23.0 minutes, 8.6 points, 6.5 rebounds and 0.8 assists per game.

Biggest Disappointment:  Sam Young:  26-year old SG/SF Sam Young has been banged up a little bit this year and he hasn’t played too well.  Young has played in 17 games (1 start) for the Grizzlies so far this year and he is averaging 12.2 minutes, 4.0 points, 2.1 rebounds and 0.4 assists per game.  Young is only shooting a paltry 38.2% from the floor this year.

The Grizzlies only shot 39.7% from the floor last night but it just didn’t matter as they held the Sixers to a paltry 36.5% shooting from the floor.  Marc Gasol (15 points, 14 rebounds, 7 assists, 1 steal and 5 blocked shots) and Rudy Gay (14 points, 7 rebounds, 4 assists, 1 steal and 2 blocked shots) led the way for the Grizzlies last night.  O.J. Mayo (13 points, 5 rebounds and 5 assists in 29 minutes) and Marreese Speights (12 points, 2 rebounds and 1 blocked shot) also pitched in for the Grizzlies.  The Grizzlies are now 19-15 on the year.

The Rockets outscored the Grizzlies 21-17 in the 4th quarter and it did them in last night.  Rudy Gay led the way for the Grizzlies with 23 points, 7 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 steal and 1 blocked shot.  Mike Conley also filled up the stat sheet with 16 points, 3 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 steals and 1 blocked shot.  Marreese Speights (12 points), Marc Gasol (11 points) and Tony Allen (10 points) also pitched in for the Grizzlies last night.  The Grizzlies are now 18-15 on the year.

The Grizzlies nipped the Warriors last night in Memphis.  Rudy Gay (19 points, 6 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 steals and 1 blocked shot) and O.J. Mayo (18 points, 3 rebounds and 2 steals) led the way for the Grizzlies last night.  Marc Gasol (17 points, 13 rebounds, 3 assists and 1 blocked shot) and Marreese Speights (16 points and 8 rebounds) also had rock solid games for the Grizzlies last night.  Mike Conley (15 points) and Tony Allen (11 points) also pitched in for the Grizzlies in this game.  The Grizzlies are now 18-14 on the year.

24-year old shooting guard O.J. Mayo was traded last year to the Pacers to Josh McRoberts, but the paperwork didn’t get to the league on time.  Mayo has been in Lionel Hollins’ Dog House the last couple of years, so I wouldn’t be shocked to see him traded next month.  I’m on the side of keeping Mayo, because he’s still a good basketball player.  He has played in 31 games (0 starts) for the Grizzlies so far this year and he is averaging 25.7 minutes, 11.9 points, 3.1 rebounds, 1.9 assists and 1.0 steal per game.  Mayo has now played in 266 games (181 starts) in his first four years with the Grizzlies and is averaging 33.5 minutes, 15.5 points, 3.3 rebounds, 2.7 assists and 1.1 steals per game.  The Grizzlies need to keep Mayo.

The Grizzlies shot 50% from the floor and they outrebounded the Nuggets 44-37 which help them squeeze out a hard fought win at home last night.  Rudy Gay (20 points, 8 rebounds, 6 assists and 3 steals) and O.J. Mayo (17 points, 2 rebounds, 1 assist, 2 steals and 1 blocked shot) led the way for the Grizzlies last night.  Marc Gasol (16 points, 14 rebounds, 8 assists and 3 blocked shots) and Mike Conley (16 points, 2 rebounds, 7 assists and 5 steals) also had rock solid games for the Grizzlies last night.  Tony Allen (13 points) and Marreese Speights (12 points, 10 rebounds, 2 assists and 2 blocked shots) also pitched in for the Grizzlies.  The Grizzlies are now 17-14 on the year.

The Grizzlies outscored the Nets 28-22 in the 4th quarter last night to surge to a nice road win.  Rudy Gay (25 points, 6 rebounds, 2 assists and 1 steal), Tony Allen (21 points, 4 rebounds, 3 assists, 5 steals and 1 blocked shot) and Marreese Speights (20 points, 18 rebounds, 1 assist and 2 blocked shots) led the way for the Grizzlies last night.  Mike Conley (16 points, 10 assists and 4 steals) and Marc Gasol (12 points, 7 rebounds and 3 assists) also pitched in for the Grizzlies last night.  The Grizzlies are now 16-14 on the year.

The Grizzlies turned up the D last night in holding the Rockets to 38.5% shooting from the floor and it was the biggest reason for the nice home win.  Mike Conley (21 points, 3 rebounds and 4 assists) and Rudy Gay (20 points, 8 rebounds, 3 assists and 3 steals) led the way for the Grizzlies last night.  Marc Gasol also had a solid game as he filled up the stat sheet with 18 points, 7 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 steal and 1 blocked shot.  O.J. Mayo and Tony Allen pitched in with 10 points apiece in this game.  The Grizzlies are now 15-14 on the year.

The Grizzlies were outscored 29-22 in the 4th quarter and it did them in last night.  Rudy Gay (22 points, 6 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 steal and 1 blocked shot) and Marc Gasol (17 points, 9 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 steal and 2 blocked shots) led the way for the Grizzlies last night.  Mike Conley also had a solid game with 17 points, 2 rebounds, 6 assists and 2 steals last night.  Tony Allen pitched in with 12 points, 4 rebounds, 2 steals and 1 blocked shot in this game.  The Grizzlies are now 14-14 on the year.

25-year old undrafted point guard Jeremy Pargo is ice cold as a shooter for the Grizzlies so far this year.  He is only hitting 32.5% (27 of 83) from the floor so far this year, and that is pathetic.  Pargo has played in 19 games (3 starts) for the Grizzlies so far this year and he is averaging 11.9 minutes, 3.5 points, 1.2 rebounds and 1.7 assists per game.  20-year old shooting guard Josh Selby has played in 18 games (0 starts) for the Grizzlies so far this year and he is averaging 10.3 minutes, 2.9 points, 0.7 rebounds and 1.4 assists per game.  He is only shooting 38.9% from the floor (21 of 54) so far this year and that just isn’t going to cut it.  Look for Pargo and Selby’s playing time to start to diminish if they don’t start shooting a little better soon.