In basketball, wins are all that matter. There are is no advantage given for blowing out a team by 50 as opposed to narrowly winning by one. Unlike movies or novels, where the climax is supposed to occur roughly three-fourths of the way through the story, the Memphis Grizzlies have often waited until the very end of games to secure a victory.
A fourth of the way through the season, the Grizzlies have played six overtime periods. To compare, that’s the same number they had in 86 games last season. Yet, the Grizzlies (15-8) are 4-0 in those overtime games and sit at fifth in the Western Conference, nipping at the heels of the Houston Rockets (15-7) and L.