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OK, sure. They traded their franchise player a year and a half ago for Kwame Brown and some Skittles. And yes, with the No. 2 pick they managed to select the only basketball player available who's biggest weakness is his ability to put the little ball in the big circle with the net attached (which I hear is kind of important). But hey, they needed to rebuild, and they rebuilt. But they have tons of cap space now, so much in fact, that they're actually under the CBA limit and have to spend some.

So they've stopped torturing their fans with one terrible decision after another right? Right? Guys? Anybody?

Oh, hi Zach Randolph. What are you ... doing ... here ...?

Oh, no.

With Tuesday's talent dump netting the No. 5 pick for Minnesota, the initial theory followed that said pick combined with the Wolves' own No. 6 could net the team Memphis' for-sale No. 2 pick, a selection coveted by several teams. Minnesota quickly blew back that idea, saying it would not be giving up both top-six picks in any such deal.

But the quest for No. 2 -- and the Ricky Rubio or Hasheem Thabeet it entails -- isn't over yet.

Memphis has been a team that has been a bit tangential to the whole Amare Stoudemire Sweepstakes -- there's been reported interest and/or contact, but the only rumor out there (Rudy Gay and Mike Conley as the main parts) seemed a bit too rich for the Grizzlies.

Apparently, Memphis management agrees. Ron Tillery of the Memphis Commercial-Appeal reports Memphis owner Michael Heisley has rejected Phoenix's (supposedly firm) offer, and the Grizz are out of the Amare derby.

Technically speaking, the Grizzlies aren't the youngest team in the league -- Golden State and Portland just barely edged them out.

But in terms of players who actually play the most minutes, there's no doubt that the Grizzlies lead the way: they start three rookies (O.J. Mayo, Marc Gasol and Darrel Arthur), a second-year point guard (Mike Conley) and a third-year small forward (Rudy Gay) who's the old man of the group at 23 years old.

With that much inexperience, it's not a surprise the team is just 4-13 ... but at least one player thinks they probably could be better. When asked if he thought the Grizzlies were a well-coached team, Gay gave one of the worst endorsements of a coach I've ever seen.

Shockingly, not everyone in Memphis thought trading Kevin Love, Mike Miller, and taking on more bad salary -- all for the services of O.J. Mayo -- was a good idea, reports Jerry Zgoda of the Minneapolis Star-Tribune. Minnesota czar Kevin McHale discusses the feeling he got from the Grizzlies when finalizing the negotiations.

"I really had a feeling there was a huge contingency in Memphis who didn't want to do it. In fact, I know that. They told me that."

Oh come on! Why wouldn't you want to add another would-be point guard to your bloated backcourt, as well as Antoine Freaking Walker and Marko Jaric in exchange for your biggest trade chip and a stud-to-be 19-year-old power forward?

To be honest, as simply awful as this deal is for Memphis, it's no great shakes for Minnesota either. For all the hubbub around the summer of 2010, exactly who among the holy trinity of LeBron, Wade and Bosh will be knocking down McHale's door to join what will then be the worst defensive team in the league? Half the league plans on having cap space in two years; Minnesota is not remotely going to be an attractive option.

And if Miller was the hinge to this deal for the Wolves, but the deal was made with the summer of '10 in mind ... doesn't it matter that Miller's contract expires in 2010! There's a strong chance that a) Miller and the hypothetical 2010 superstar never play together, or b) you'll be offering a 30-year-old MiMi a fat six-year contract in 2010. HMMM.

I liked Mayo on the Wolves and Love on the Grizzlies a lot more than I like the current situation.

Good morning, Grizzlies fans. How about some awesome news to go with your Malt 'o Meal? The Memphis Commercial-Appeal's Ron Tillery reports, you decide:

[Owner Michael] Heisley made it clear that he will take a fresh approach to the NBA Draft, which unfolds tonight in New York with the Griz owning the fifth and 28th picks. The Chicago-based billionaire insists that he'll have final say on all decisions -- so point the finger at him once the Grizzlies emerge from their war room. Heisley didn't exercise such command over the past eight years of his ownership. [...]

"For the first time, I'm having major input," Heisley said. "That doesn't mean I don't think much of [GM] Chris [Wallace] or any of my basketball people. It just means that like a lot of owners, I reserve the right to approve or not approve any decisions.

Heisley reportedly called for the cost-cutting, quasi-disastrous Pau Gasol trade in February, though some oscillation on who deserved "credit" came after the season ended and the franchise had endured months and months of jokes. Some are starting to call the Gasol deal a fair one, given Memphis' aims. You won't be able to convince me they couldn't get more talent back, which is an absolute necessity when a bleak franchise like Memphis gives up its top asset. (Ask Atlanta, circa 2000-2007.)

Of course, Heisley can't win. If Memphis trades down for extra assets, he's a cheapskate who doesn't want to pay for quality. If he trades for a big star, there's the potential for failure (present with any move for any team), which would lead to resentment toward his interference. (Ask Yankees fans.) Yes folks, it's a tough hand being Michael Heisley. Very tough.

Via Hardwood Paroxysm, Grizzlies owner Michael Heisley decided to refute some quotes published by Yahoo!'s Adrian Wojnarowski regarding delayed displeasure with the Pau Gasol trade. How? By calling a Grizzlies blogger, 3 Shades of Blue.

Michael Heisley called me from Kuala Lumpur. ... This is the message Mr. Heisley wants Memphis fans to hear and understand. Michael Heisley is in no way unhappy with Chris Wallace. Michael Heisley approved the deal with LA and it accomplished what Mr. Heisley wanted. If anyone wants to be upset about the deal they should be upset with Heisley not Chris Wallace.

If nothing else, this means Gregg Popovich should stop egging Wallace's house and instead turn his scorn to Heisley.

I have no clue if Heisley's comments to Wojnarowski were taken out of context, and I suspect 3 Shades (despite all the vitriol heaped on Wojnarowski, a reporter with a good reputation) also doesn't really know if the Yahoo! piece was unfair. Heisley's own reputation as someone trying to shrink his franchise's financial burdens to help a sale doesn't help his case. (Nor does the tone of the 3 Shades piece, which is quite unfortunate.)

Apparently, Kwame Brown couldn't fill the emotional void the trade of Pau Gasol left in Memphis. Via TrueHoop, Yahoo!'s Adrian Wojnarowski catches Grizzlies owner Michael Heisley tossing his general manager, Chris Wallace, under the fleet by asserting, "Maybe our people should've shopped (Gasol) more and maybe we would've gotten more, done a better deal."

Henry Abbott gamely points out what Heisley said right after the trade in an interview with the Memphis Commercial-Appeal:

"I'm the guy who is making the decisions. If people want to (complain) don't get on (general manager) Chris Wallace about the trade -- get on me."

Wojnarowski also quotes Heisley calling Gregg Popovich to the carpet for the Luis Scola trade, which seems less like honest debate and more like retribution for Pop's harsh remarks about the Grizzlies franchise in February. Sure, the Scola trade won't appear in San Antonio's end-of-season pizza party PowerPoint. But comparing it to the Pau deal is intellectual frotteurism at best.

It's starting to seem like this trade is going to haunt Memphis, though. Remember late February, when rumor had it Memphis wouldn't trade Mike Miller solely because how harshly Wallace and Heisley were judged for the Gasol deal? It's like the Crappy Team version of the Mavericks choking in Game 3 of the 2006 Finals.

In the immediate aftermath of the Lakers' series-clinching victory, Laker great Jerry West got on the mic to spread Christmas joy and regale Kobe with compliments (as pictured to the right). Again, West is a Laker great. He was the architect of the last 200 Lakers teams which made it to the Finals. He looks unequivocally comfortable amid all that Forum blue and gold. His presence at center court in-and-of-itself is worth only a glance.

But considering his consultant role in Memphis, following several years running the Grizzly show, and considering a significant reason the Lakers have gotten to the Finals is named Pau Gasol, and considering the Lakers acquired Gasol in a deal which was universally considered heavily lopsided, to the point in which executives from several NBA teams reacted by openly saying there should be a committee of team execs which is allowed, fantasy-style, to veto such lopsided trades, and considering that last summer Kobe made an ultimatum which consisted of "bring back Jerry West or trade me," and considering West has a history of seriously not giving a flip about what anyone thinks about anything he does ever, and considering once again that West is for all intents and porpoises a lifelong Laker ... should we be concerned with him showing up on TNT before Marv's brow even dries?

West has been connected deeply to the Lakers franchise since 1960. I'm not saying he locked Chris Wallace and Michael Heisley in a cell and forced them to trade Gasol for a highly questionable package of ifs, ands, and maybes. But as a trusted consultant (and one of the top basketball minds in the world), he could have been in their ears, arguing the overblown "flexibility" perspective and talking up Javaris Crittenton as the next coming of Wade as simple ruse to get his real loyalties the steal of the decade.

Back in February, West denied involvement. But we wouldn't be talking about any of this if West wasn't on TV ten seconds after the final whistle. (And, of course, it's unlikely West gives a giggle that we are talking about it.)

Mitch Lawrence of the New York Daily News cites a few anonymous sources saying Memphis plans on firing rookie head coach Marc Iavaroni this summer if they can replace him with Larry Brown. A Grizzlies fan emailed to note Memphis radio jock Chris Vernon -- who correctly predicted the out-of-nowhere Pau Gasol trade -- can't find any source to refute the rumors.

Iavaroni was the prize of the coaching free agent market last summer. Roughly a half-dozen teams were rumored to have interest before the Griz made a bold play to interview and basically hire him during the Suns' playoff run. Brown, meanwhile, has become radioactive. No team will touch him in a coaching role, and new Sixers GM Ed Stefanski even made a point to push L.B. (a Hall-of-Fame coach) away from Mo Cheeks' general vicinity (to prevent any Brute action).

We often rue the incessant instability in the NBA -- teams give up on young players too fast, and franchises give up on coaches before they've gotten much of a chance. Firing a coach with Iavaroni's pedigree after one season -- when he still has his team playing hard, despite a bullet-riddled roster -- would be the most egregious edition of knee-jerk decision-making.

Seriously, would L.B. have gotten this team to the playoffs? Really? Give Iavaroni a frickin' chance.