Memphis Grizzlies
Calkins: Yes, the Grizzlies will be better for losses like this
Steph Curry and the Golden State Warriors taught the Grizzlies some painful lessons Sunday. Let’s hope Ja Morant and the rest of the Grizzlies take those to heart.
Geoff Calkins
Columnist
Geoff Calkins has been chronicling Memphis and Memphis sports for more than two decades. Calkins has been named the best sports columnist in the country five times by the Associated Press sports editors, but still figures his best columns are about the people who make Memphis what it is.
There are 1122 articles by Geoff Calkins :
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May 2021
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Geoff CalkinsCalkins: Get your rest, Grizzlies, because Steph Curry and the Warriors lie ahead
The Grizzlies defeated the Kings Thursday to set up a game against the Warriors for the eighth seed in the Western Conference. So take a load off, Grizzlies. It’s one of the biggest regular-season games in franchise history.
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Geoff CalkinsCalkins: Yes, the Grizzlies are in the play-in! (And the hated Pelicans are not)
The Grizzlies are in the play-in! The Grizzlies are in the play-in! And if that doesn’t merit a champagne shower, it’s a real accomplishment. Just look at the New Orleans Pelicans.
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Spirit of Memphis Calkins: Mom who gave birth while in a COVID coma celebrates Mother’s Day at home
When Susie Espinosa went to the emergency room last May, she prayed she’d be home to her three children soon. Instead, she spent eight weeks in a coma. Her recovery — supported by an ICU nurse who’s also a mom — is a testament to the power of perseverance and love.
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Spirit of Memphis Calkins: Arnold Perl helped build a better Memphis
People rolled their eyes when Arnold Perl said FedExForum would be built on time and on budget. And he was right. Perl died this week at the age of 81. He leaves behind a better and more optimistic city.
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Geoff CalkinsCalkins: After a year of emptiness, baseball has returned to AutoZone Park
Sure, there was a rain delay. But after 610 days and nights without baseball in Memphis, what’s another two hours? It was a wet (but glorious!) night at AutoZone Park as the Redbirds made their return.
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Geoff CalkinsCalkins: Dancing back to No. 1
After an eight-year drought, Memphis Pom won a national championship in hip-hop. The inside story of how Memphis reclaimed its spot atop the dance universe.
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April 2021
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Geoff CalkinsCalkins: It’s time for the Grizzlies and Taylor Jenkins to stop screwing around
After Wednesday’s humiliating loss to Portland, the Grizzlies have 11 games to stake their claim to the playoffs. It’s time to stop screwing around with the rotation — and play the guys who will win.
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Geoff CalkinsCalkins: Ja Morant wants you at FedExForum (and now you can eat at your seat!)
Ja Morant issued a call for Grizzlies fans to come to FedExForum for the team’s playoff push. It has been a tricky year for in-person attendance. But more and more fans are trickling back.
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Geoff CalkinsCalkins: On the sweet pleasure of beating the evil Trail Blazers
On the sixth anniversary of the game in which the Portland Trail Blazers broke Mike Conley’s face, the Grizzlies swept the evil Blazers (and reminded us how intense NBA basketball can be).
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Geoff Calkins Calkins: Robert Pera, Marc Gasol and sections 103 & 104 fans help FedExForum usher get a new kidney
Grizzlies owner Robert Pera contributed $10,000 to a GoFundMe for LaVelt Hill, a longtime usher at FedExForum who needs a kidney transplant. The fundraiser is a tribute to Hill and the team’s extended family.
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Geoff CalkinsCalkins: For Memphis basketball and the Lawson family, there may be a happy ending
Nearly eight years after K.J. Lawson committed to Memphis, his two younger brothers are headed there, too. It’s an improbable twist in a messy basketball saga. May it end in the NCAA Tournament.
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Memphis Grizzlies Calkins: Jaren Jackson Jr. makes a (not very) triumphant return
Jaren Jackson Jr. returned to play for the Grizzlies Wednesday night. That’s the good news. The bad news was the rest of the game.
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Geoff CalkinsCalkins: How DeAndre Williams became the new face of the Penny Hardaway Era (and why that’s a good thing)
If Penny Hardaway gets Memphis to the NCAA Tournament next season, he won’t do it with a glittering collection of one-and-dones. He’ll do it with players like Williams, who don’t need all of the smoke.
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Geoff CalkinsCalkins: Magical Memphis spring game ‘just felt right’
A massive crowd showed up to the Liberty Bowl Friday night to celebrate Memphis football — and the return of life as normal.
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Friday Night Stripes: Tigers offer glimpse of QB race, defense’s work
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Geoff CalkinsCalkins: Grizzlies lose a heartbreaker! (Not)
Luka Doncic hit a last-second miracle shot to defeat the Memphis Grizzlies Wednesday night. But don’t let anyone tell you it was a heartbreaker. It was not.
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Geoff Calkins Calkins: Thanks to y’all, John Payne will start walking next week
John Payne needed more than $92,000 to buy the robotic system that can help him walk again. Thanks to the generosity of readers, the ReWalk will be arriving next week.
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Geoff Calkins Calkins: Let’s help this Memphian walk again
John Payne has spent the past two decades helping Memphians of all ages run. Now it’s time for Memphians to help him walk again.
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Spirit of MemphisCalkins: No vaccination, no admission. This Marine is showing us the way
Tony Ludlow served his country for a decade. He didn’t do it to protect the right of the misguided to make the rest of us sick. So if you want to join his boot camp, you’ll have to show him proof of vaccination first.
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Geoff Calkins Calkins: How did my 96-year-old mother celebrate her vaccination? She went to Disney, of course
Mom got her second dose of the Moderna vaccine not long ago. We celebrated by taking her to Disney World. It was a magical experience — made possible by the magic of the vaccine.
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March 2021
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Geoff CalkinsCalkins: Hey, Memphis fans, the sky is not falling! (It just entered the transfer portal)
Boogie Ellis, D.J. Jeffries and Damion Baugh all have entered the transfer portal. That’s not great — but it doesn’t have to be the end of the world.
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Memphis Tigers BasketballCalkins: Katrina Merriweather will make women’s basketball at Memphis matter once again
Katrina Merriweather looks like a perfect fit as the new coach. Here’s hoping she returns the program to relevance.
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Memphis’ new women’s basketball coach lauded as ‘proven winner’ and a ‘star’
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Memphis Tigers BasketballCalkins: Now comes the hard part for Penny Hardaway — persuading his players to stick around
The Memphis Tigers could be a dangerous team next season if their most important players return. But will they? In the age of the transfer portal, all bets are off.
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Geoff Calkins Calkins: How Memphis (elevation 338 feet) became the unlikely center of the climbing world
Not long ago, Memphis was the biggest city in the country without a climbing gym. This weekend, it is the unlikely host of the United States Climbing team trials.
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Geoff CalkinsCalkins: It was a perfect ending for the Tigers
Memphis won the NIT title Sunday, overwhelming Mississippi State. If it wasn’t the tournament the Tigers had hoped for, it was the triumphant ending they deserved.
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