MEMPHIS, Tenn. _ It has been not quite a year since David Fizdale was fired as coach of the Memphis Grizzlies, the wounds healed but with his return to FedExForum for the first time there were still things to be settled.
It marked the first time that Fizdale and Marc Gasol were in the same place after their rift had led to Fizdale being axed. And there were simple logistics to work out as he made his way into the arena for the first time as an opposing coach.
"It's weird. I ain't going to lie," Fizdale said. "It's weird. I pulled in and, OK, I'm not parking in my spot. J.B. [Bickerstaff] is in my damn spot. Seeing everybody, I didn't even know what metal detector to walk through. All the stuff was backwards for me ... I just felt like everything is at peace with the relationships. So I feel really good walking back in here."
Fizdale felt better walking out since he did it with a victory, the Knicks overcoming a 13-point deficit to beat the Grizzlies, 103-98. The win was the Knicks third straight _ an improbable run with a win in Boston, over New Orleans and then here in Memphis.
Trailing 66-53 after a Gasol 3-point field goal with 8:05 left in the third quarter, the Knicks went on a 15-2 run over the next 3:36 to tie the score at 68. After a free throw by Memphis, Trey Burke converted a pair from the line to push the Knicks in front. The Knicks ran off six more consecutive points to take a 76-69 lead and held a 78-71 advantage entering the fourth quarter spurred by Enes Kanter, who had 14 points in the third, finishing with 21 points and a career-high 26 rebounds.
The lead disappeared as the Grizzlies pulled even at 89. Mike Conley then put the Grizzlies in front with 3:30 left, converting a pair from the line after a foul by Emmanuel Mudiay in the backcourt. Mudiay then had a layup swatted away by rookie Jaren Jackson Jr. _ his fourth of the quarter, seventh in the game and a franchise-record 19th for the Grizzlies.
But Conley, with a chance to stretch the lead, misfired from three again and Tim Hardaway Jr. converted from beyond the arc, giving the Knicks a 92-91 lead. Up 94-93, Burke swiped a Garrett Temple pass and fed Mudiay for a fast break dunk, drawing a foul on the play to push the advantage to 97-93 with 1:35 remaining.
Mudiay made the lead 99-93 when he hit a pair of free throws after a Conley turnover and an airball by Shelvin Mack. Jackson converted a 3-pointer to close the gap to three, but Frank Ntilikina went to the free throw line with 10.1 seconds remaining and he hit both shots to put the game out of reach.
Time may have passed and Fizdale is in a better place _ mentally at least, if not in the standings.
"It's great. This game is not about if you're coaching the kid," Fizdale said. "It changes so much. People get traded, cut. Coaches get hired, rehired. All of that stuff happens. That can't be the determinant on your relationships. I put a lot into these guys. I just feel like I deserve to have relationships with these guys. I poured it into them and they poured it back into me and I became a better coach because of it. That's why I feel so good about it and I'm at peace.
"It didn't really take me long. I was down about losing my job for a while. But the idea of being angry or anything like that, that went away fast. The other thing is J.B. is basically my blood. Anything that's happening to him, that's more important than anything I might be down about. So I am just really happy for him. He was a guy who was chomping at the bit to be a head coach and he deserves to be one of 30."
Bickerstaff, who took over when Fizdale was fired, was asked what he'd learned from Fizdale during his time as an assistant on the staff and joked, "Absolutely nothing," before adding, "I think him coming from a championship pedigree in Miami, understanding how they go about business every single day."
Before the game began Gasol never came near Fizdale while Conley did trot over and hug his former coach. When the game ended Bickerstaff greeted Fizdale and then Gasol embraced him on the court.
Fizdale is convinced that regardless of what transpired on the court Sunday, the divide between he and Gasol is in the past.
"Absolutely. That's not going to be a story anymore for you guys," Fizdale said. "He and I both. He pulled a migrant out of the ocean this summer. That's way more important than a basketball beef. He and I both know it and we were like, man, we're going to be seeing each other too much, our wives love each other. He has a beautiful family and I think it's pretty cool that at a time that we all live in when people are so mad at each other and here we are two guys and we squashed it and we're cool."
