News article copied below taking notice of the twin towers concept that coach Ivaroni is trying out with Gasol and Milicic. As I knew from watching Spain over the summer Olympics, Marc is a real stud basketball player, displaying the rare combo of rugged toughness and intelligent skill. From the article, it is clear that he has earned the starting center spot with Memphis.
It is Darko who is now trying out for PF, along side Marc, as Ivaroni is intentionally playing them together to see what chemistry develops. The results were good tonight. Although the team lost overall, the starting unit with Gasol and Milicic had a winning plus-minus. Darko especially shined, scoring 12 points on five shots, along with six FTs, a nice sign of aggressive play. He also led his unit with 5 rebounds, in 20 minutes of play.
Here is the article:
Milicic, Gasol tested as Griz's towers of power
Serbian moves from forward to center, back
Sometimes, all Darko Milicic knows to do is laugh.
It's funny to the Grizzlies' big man that he's sort of come full circle.
The 7-foot Serbian and former No. 2 overall draft pick entered the NBA as a power forward and supposed offensive dynamo. His focus then shifted to becoming a defensive-minded, rugged center in recent years.
Now, in his second season with the Griz, Milicic is back working mostly at his natural position at power forward. Newcomer Marc Gasol has stepped in as the man in the middle. And while Milicic promises "to do whatever they want me to," he admits not knowing what to think of the Twin Towers concept.
Griz head coach Marc Iavaroni is taking a serious look at the combination. The pair of 7-footers started the past two preseason games together, and the idea is more than a fleeting experiment.
Iavaroni is trying to strike the right balance with his starting unit as conventional wisdom suggests at least three positions have been solidified. The question midway through training camp appears to be what is the right power forward-center combination to go alongside the Grizzlies' talented perimeter trio of Mike Conley, O.J. Mayo and Rudy Gay?
The upside of a Gasol-Milicic combo is their sheer bulk, defensive prowess and high basketball IQ that could help offensive flow.
The downside is low offensive productivity and poor foot speed that sometimes makes them a glaring liability at both ends.
"I'm not sold on anything," Iavaroni insisted, adding that, "we just want to see how our 7-footers play together."
The jury is still out partly because Milicic's back injury has made him available for just two of the four preseason games. Meanwhile, Gasol has demonstrated that he's more than serviceable. The Spaniard, former Griz Pau Gasol's brother, amassed 14 points, 10 rebounds and four assists Monday in the Grizzlies' 103-95 victory over the Indiana Pacers.
Iavaroni, slow to infuse post-up options on offense, ran several plays through Gasol and the 7-footer displayed uncanny awareness and crisp passes.
During one sequence against the Pacers, Gasol stood on the low block in front of Griz bench. He surveyed the scene and then flipped a pass to a streaking Conley, who flipped in a layup from under the rim. Moments later, Gasol corralled a loose ball under the basket and slammed it through the rim for an easy put-back.
"There's always got to be a balance," Gasol said. "If we're effective on the inside it'll make it easier for the guys on the outside. They know they need us to score at least a little bit to get them open."
It's no secret that Iavaroni is impressed by Gasol.
"I've been surprised by Marc's defense," Iavaroni said. "He's a position guy, and he's shown some shot-blocking ability. And he's physical. He hasn't backed down from anybody."
Opponents have hit Gasol, and he's been hitting back.
"Being young does not mean you can't be strong," Gasol said. "We need that toughness. Sometimes you have to be mean. I'll do anything that it takes."
That's at least one thing Gasol and Milicic have in common.
But while Iavaroni praises Milicic as a reliable defensive rebounder, there are questions about his ability to provide passable perimeter defense. Milicic's passing and scoring around the rim are inconsistent, too.
Those bad habits are concerns given the athleticism and scoring prowess Milicic could face daily at power forward.
It didn't bode well when Mayo fed Gasol streaking along the baseline, and Gasol delivered a touch pass to Milicic, who missed a dunk.
"He just needs to play a very simple game," Iavaroni said. "Offensively, he needs to finish inside. We're probably not going to go to him a lot. We've got other guys we can go to. But Darko has to do the little things."
The upside of Milicic's game is that four of his first five rebounds Monday were on the offensive glass and his defensive intensity didn't waver. Soon after Gay tip-dunked a basket early in the second half, Milicic followed with a block on the defensive end. Milicic's rejection of Jarrett Jack's floater with two seconds left on the shot clock eventually led to a 24-second, shot-clock violation.
"He just has to be more consistent with his habits," Iavaroni said.
Iavaroni was consistent, making sure that Gasol or Milicic was on the floor at all times whenever making substitutions.
"We're going to go with what we do well and make the opponent match us," Iavaroni said. "It might be them (together). It might not be them."
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