Grizzlies rough start continues with fourth consecutive loss

Beale Street is singing the blues.

The Grizzlies lost 125-110 to the Mavericks on Monday, dropping their record to 0-4. That's their worst start under head coach Taylor Jenkins and the franchise's first 0-4 start since 2004-05. Memphis rebounded to finish that season 45-37 and reach the playoffs but was swept in the first round by the Phoenix Suns.

Three of its losses have come at home against potential Western Conference playoff teams (Pelicans, Nuggets, Mavericks), which is understandable since the team is without starting point guard Ja Morant. Most troubling was the team's 113-106 road loss to a bad Wizards team.

It's also surprising considering the team was 37-24 without Morant from 2019-20 through 2022-23 and added guard Marcus Smart via trade during the offseason.

The team will be without Morant for another 21 games, so there isn't a quick fix coming to save the Grizzlies. They could quickly return to looking like a playoff contender if they simply shoot better from three. Entering Monday night, the Grizzlies shot 33.3 percent from deep, which ranked 21st in the league, despite ranking 10th in three-point attempts. They were slightly better against the Mavs (37.8 percent), but that was negated after they allowed Dallas to make 48.9 percent of their attempts from beyond the arc.

Beyond their cold shooting, the Grizzlies also have an issue with frontcourt depth. Center Steven Adams (knee) is out for the season and power forward Brandon Clarke (Achilles) might miss the entire year, too. 2022-23 Defensive Player of the Year Jaren Jackson Jr. is a force in the middle, but Memphis must improve its depth behind him.

The Grizzlies have a long season ahead of them, giving them plenty of time to right the ship. However, if they don't get things fixed soon, their season could already be sunk when Morant returns.