1995–96 Vancouver Grizzlies season

1995–96 Vancouver Grizzlies season
Head coach	Brian Winters
Owners	Arthur Griffiths
Arena	General Motors Place
Results
Record	15–67 (.183)
Place	Division: 7th (Midwest) Conference: 14th (Western)
Playoff finish	DNQ
Stats at Basketball-Reference.com
Local media
Television	CHAN
Radio	CKST

The 1995–96 NBA season was the Grizzlies' first season in the National Basketball Association. The Vancouver Grizzlies, along with the Toronto Raptors became expansion NBA franchises in 1995. They were the first NBA teams to play in Canada since 1946–47's Toronto Huskies. The Grizzlies got off to a solid start stunning the Portland Trail Blazers on the road 92–80 on November 3. Two nights later the Grizzlies had a successful home debut at General Motors Place by beating the Minnesota Timberwolves 100–98. Despite the start, the Grizzlies lost their next 19 games, as they finished in last place in the Midwest Division with an NBA-worst record of 15 wins and 67 losses. Only four Grizzlies averaged 10 or more points per game, as Greg Anthony led the way with 14.0 points per game. In games against the other Canadian expansion team, the Grizzlies and the Toronto Raptors split two games.

Offseason

NBA Expansion Draft

The Grizzlies roster was filled during the 1995 NBA Expansion Draft. Vancouver lost the coin flip to the Toronto Raptors, and had the second pick in the draft. With their first pick, the Grizzlies selected point guard Greg Anthony from the New York Knicks.

Pick	Player	Position	Nationality	Former Team
2	Greg Anthony	Point guard	United States	New York Knicks
4	Rodney Dent	Center	United States	Orlando Magic
6	Antonio Harvey	Forward	United States	Los Angeles Lakers
8	Reggie Slater	Power Forward-Center	United States	Denver Nuggets
10	Trevor Ruffin	Point Guard	United States	Phoenix Suns
12	Derrick Phelps	Point Guard	United States	Sacramento Kings
14	Larry Stewart	Power Forward	United States	Washington Bullets
16	Kenny Gattison	Power Forward	United States	Charlotte Hornets
18	Byron Scott	Shooting Guard	United States	Indiana Pacers
20	Gerald Wilkins	Small Forward	United States	Cleveland Cavaliers
22	Benoit Benjamin	Center	United States	New Jersey Nets
24	Doug Edwards	Forward	United States	Atlanta Hawks
26	Blue Edwards	Shooting Guard	United States	Utah Jazz

NBA Draft

Main article: 1995 NBA Draft

The Grizzlies first ever draft pick was Bryant Reeves.

Round	Pick	Player	Position	Nationality	College
1	6	Bryant Reeves	Center	United States	Oklahoma State
2	36	Lawrence Moten	Guard	United States	Syracuse

Roster

Vancouver Grizzlies roster

Players

Coaches

Pos. No. Name Height Weight DOB From PF 18 Amaya, Ashraf 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 230 lb (104 kg) Southern Illinois PG 2 Anthony, Greg 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 176 lb (80 kg) UNLV PF 34 Avent, Anthony 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 235 lb (107 kg) Seton Hall PF 32 Edwards, Doug 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 220 lb (100 kg) Florida State PF 44 Gattison, Kenny 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 225 lb (102 kg) Old Dominion SF 17 King, Chris 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 215 lb (98 kg) Wake Forest C 15 Manning, Rich 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) 260 lb (118 kg) Washington SG 40 Martin, Cuonzo 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 213 lb (97 kg) Purdue C 52 Mobley, Eric 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) 235 lb (107 kg) Pittsburgh SG 7 Moten, Lawrence 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 185 lb (84 kg) Syracuse PG 14 Murdock, Eric 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) 190 lb (86 kg) Providence SF 21 Wilkins, Gerald 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 185 lb (84 kg) Chattanooga

Head coach Brian Winters Legend (DP) Unsigned draft pick (FA) Free agent (S) Suspended Injured Roster

First game

• On November 3, 1995, Vancouver played their first ever game in Portland against the Trail Blazers and beat the Blazers by a score of 92–80. Benoit Benjamin scored a team high 29 points and 13 rebounds for the Grizzlies.

Regular season

Although they won their first two games in franchise history, the Grizzlies finished with the worst win/loss record in the 1995–96 NBA season, as is typical for an expansion team, and lost 23 straight games from February to April (setting an NBA single-season record now held by the Philadelphia 76ers with 27.)

Highs

• On November 3, 1995, Vancouver plays their first ever game, defeating the Portland Trail Blazers by a score of 92–80 in Portland. On November 5, 1995, the Grizzlies make their home debut, defeating the Minnesota Timberwolves 100–98 in overtime in front of 19,113 fans, to begin the season with a 2–0 record.
• The Grizzlies defeat nearby rivals the Seattle SuperSonics by a single point in a hotly contested game on December 19, 1995. The crowd leaves ecstatic.
• The Grizzlies hold the Miami Heat to only 65 points in a 69–65 victory on January 13, 1996.
• Vancouver finishes the season on a positive note, defeating the Denver Nuggets and Los Angeles Clippers on the road.

Lows

• After starting the season 2–0, Vancouver would lose their next 19 games to quickly fall into last place in the Midwest Division.
• Vancouver was held to a season low 62 points in a 111–62 loss to the San Antonio Spurs on November 8, 1995.
• On December 10, 1995, the Grizzlies play the Toronto Raptors for the first time. The first NBA regular season game contested between two non-U.S. based teams. The game is held at General Motors Place in Vancouver. The Raptors win the game by a score of 93–81.
• On April 2, 1996, Vancouver loses its 23rd straight game, losing 101–85 to the Portland Trail Blazers. The loss was also the Grizzlies 29th in their last 30 games.

Season standings

Midwest Division	W	L	PCT	GB	Home	Road	Div
y-San Antonio Spurs	59	23	.720	–	33–8	26–15	19–5
x-Utah Jazz	55	27	.671	4	34–7	21–20	14–10
x-Houston Rockets	48	34	.585	11	27–14	21–20	15–9
Denver Nuggets	35	47	.427	24	24–17	11–30	13–11
Minnesota Timberwolves	26	56	.317	33	17–24	9–32	10–14
Dallas Mavericks	26	56	.317	33	16–25	10–31	10–14
Vancouver Grizzlies	15	67	.183	44	10–31	5–36	3–21

Western Conference
#	Team	W	L	PCT	GB	GP
1	c-Seattle SuperSonics *	64	18	.780	–	82
2	y-San Antonio Spurs *	59	23	.720	5	82
3	x-Utah Jazz	55	27	.671	9	82
4	x-Los Angeles Lakers	53	29	.646	11	82
5	x-Houston Rockets	48	34	.585	16	82
6	x-Portland Trail Blazers	44	38	.537	20	82
7	x-Phoenix Suns	41	41	.500	23	82
8	x-Sacramento Kings	39	43	.476	25	82
9	Golden State Warriors	36	46	.439	28	82
10	Denver Nuggets	35	47	.427	29	82
11	Los Angeles Clippers	29	53	.354	35	82
12	Minnesota Timberwolves	26	56	.317	38	82
13	Dallas Mavericks	26	56	.317	38	82
14	Vancouver Grizzlies	15	67	.183	49	82

Game log

#	Date	Opponent	Score	Record	Streak
1	November 3	@ Portland Trail Blazers	92–80	1–0	Won 1
2	November 5	Minnesota Timberwolves	100–98 (OT)	2–0	Won 2
3	November 7	@ Dallas Mavericks	88–99	2–1	Lost 1
4	November 8	@ San Antonio Spurs	62–111	2–2	Lost 2
5	November 10	Los Angeles Clippers	91–98	2–3	Lost 3
6	November 11	@ Seattle SuperSonics	81–117	2–4	Lost 4
7	November 13	Dallas Mavericks	89–94	2–5	Lost 5
8	November 16	@ Los Angeles Clippers	98–103	2–6	Lost 6
9	November 17	Los Angeles Lakers	91–114	2–7	Lost 7
10	November 19	@ New York Knicks	93–98	2–8	Lost 8
11	November 22	@ Orlando Magic	93–95	2–9	Lost 9
12	November 24	@ Charlotte Hornets	104–116	2–10	Lost 10
13	November 25	@ Miami Heat	91–111	2–11	Lost 11
14	November 28	@ Minnesota Timberwolves	98–121	2–12	Lost 12
15	November 30	Chicago Bulls	88–94	2–13	Lost 13
16	December 1	@ Los Angeles Lakers	100–113	2–14	Lost 14
17	December 3	Milwaukee Bucks	95–109	2–15	Lost 15
18	December 5	@ Phoenix Suns	108–112	2–16	Lost 16
19	December 7	Detroit Pistons	84–93	2–17	Lost 17
20	December 10	Toronto Raptors	81–93	2–18	Lost 18
21	December 13	Houston Rockets	89–100	2–19	Lost 19
22	December 15	Portland Trail Blazers	104–100 (OT)	3–19	Won 1
23	December 16	Golden State Warriors	85–116	3–20	Lost 1
24	December 18	@ Sacramento Kings	85–92	3–21	Lost 2
25	December 19	Seattle SuperSonics	94–93	4–21	Won 1
26	December 21	@ Seattle SuperSonics	68–92	4–22	Lost 1
27	December 22	Phoenix Suns	80–101	4–23	Lost 2
28	December 26	@ Houston Rockets	84–100	4–24	Lost 3
29	December 28	@ Dallas Mavericks	101–103 (2OT)	4–25	Lost 4
30	December 30	Boston Celtics	103–95	5–25	Won 1
31	January 5	Philadelphia 76ers	103–102 (OT)	6–25	Won 2
32	January 7	Los Angeles Clippers	93–101	6–26	Lost 1
33	January 9	@ Golden State Warriors	103–109	6–27	Lost 2
34	January 10	Denver Nuggets	85–91	6–28	Lost 3
35	January 12	Golden State Warriors	95–104	6–29	Lost 4
36	January 13	Miami Heat	69–65	7–29	Won 1
37	January 18	Cleveland Cavaliers	90–98	7–30	Lost 1
38	January 20	New York Knicks	84–80	8–30	Won 1
39	January 22	@ Milwaukee Bucks	100–92	9–30	Won 2
40	January 24	@ Chicago Bulls	84–104	9–31	Lost 1
41	January 25	@ Toronto Raptors	106–101 (OT)	10–31	Won 1
42	January 27	@ Washington Bullets	77–102	10–32	Lost 1
43	January 29	@ Philadelphia 76ers	92–103	10–33	Lost 2
44	January 31	@ Boston Celtics	98–131	10–34	Lost 3
45	February 2	New Jersey Nets	84–93	10–35	Lost 4
46	February 5	Utah Jazz	83–92	10–36	Lost 5
47	February 7	@ Utah Jazz	79–102	10–37	Lost 6
48	February 14	Sacramento Kings	93–86	11–37	Won 1
49	February 16	Atlanta Hawks	100–110	11–38	Lost 1
50	February 18	Seattle SuperSonics	109–118	11–39	Lost 2
51	February 19	@ Phoenix Suns	94–98 (OT)	11–40	Lost 3
52	February 25	San Antonio Spurs	84–95	11–41	Lost 4
53	February 28	Los Angeles Lakers	80–99	11–42	Lost 5
54	March 1	Dallas Mavericks	111–119	11–43	Lost 6
55	March 2	@ Denver Nuggets	82–108	11–44	Lost 7
56	March 4	Washington Bullets	81–96	11–45	Lost 8
57	March 5	@ Golden State Warriors	78–110	11–46	Lost 9
58	March 8	Indiana Pacers	80–94	11–47	Lost 10
59	March 10	Houston Rockets	89–95	11–48	Lost 11
60	March 11	@ Sacramento Kings	88–92	11–49	Lost 12
61	March 15	Orlando Magic	87–92 (OT)	11–50	Lost 13
62	March 17	@ Minnesota Timberwolves	85–90	11–51	Lost 14
63	March 19	@ New Jersey Nets	77–82	11–52	Lost 15
64	March 20	@ Atlanta Hawks	93–98	11–53	Lost 16
65	March 22	@ Indiana Pacers	94–111	11–54	Lost 17
66	March 24	@ Cleveland Cavaliers	85–90	11–55	Lost 18
67	March 26	@ Detroit Pistons	75–86	11–56	Lost 19
68	March 28	Denver Nuggets	88–92	11–57	Lost 20
69	March 29	@ Utah Jazz	91–105	11–58	Lost 21
70	March 31	Charlotte Hornets	88–121	11–59	Lost 22
71	April 2	@ Portland Trail Blazers	85–101	11–60	Lost 23
72	April 3	Minnesota Timberwolves	105–103	12–60	Won 1
73	April 5	@ Los Angeles Lakers	94–104	12–61	Lost 1
74	April 7	Phoenix Suns	92–112	12–62	Lost 2
75	April 9	@ Houston Rockets	84–90	12–63	Lost 3
76	April 10	@ San Antonio Spurs	82–105	12–64	Lost 4
77	April 12	Sacramento Kings	99–98	13–64	Won 1
78	April 14	Portland Trail Blazers	79–81	13–65	Lost 1
79	April 16	San Antonio Spurs	86–95	13–66	Lost 2
80	April 18	Utah Jazz	79–94	13–67	Lost 3
81	April 19	@ Denver Nuggets	92–78	14–67	Won 1
82	April 21	@ Los Angeles Clippers	108–101	15–67	Won 2

Player statistics

Legend

GP	Games played	GS	Games started	MPG	Minutes per game
FG%	Field-goal percentage	3P%	3-point field-goal percentage	FT%	Free-throw percentage
RPG	Rebounds per game	APG	Assists per game	SPG	Steals per game
BPG	Blocks per game	PPG	Points per game

Player	GP	GS	MPG	FG%	3FG%	FT%	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	PPG
Ashraf Amaya	54	34	20.4	.480	.000	.651	5.6	0.6	0.4	0.2	6.3
Greg Anthony	69	68	30.4	.415	.332	.771	2.5	6.9	1.7	0.2	14.0
Anthony Avent	71	32	22.3	.384	.000	.740	5.0	1.0	0.4	0.6	5.8
Benoit Benjamin	13	13	31.1	.441	.000	.696	7.9	1.2	0.8	1.2	13.9
Blue Edwards	82	82	33.8	.419	.343	.755	4.2	2.6	1.4	0.6	12.7
Doug Edwards	31	0	16.7	.352	.000	.763	2.8	1.3	0.3	0.6	3.0
Kenny Gattison	25	14	22.8	.479	.000	.603	4.6	0.6	0.4	0.4	9.2
Antonio Harvey	18	6	22.8	.411	.000	.465	5.2	0.5	0.8	1.2	5.4
Chris King	80	66	24.1	.427	.389	.662	3.6	1.3	0.9	0.4	7.9
Rich Manning	29	0	10.7	.434	.000	.643	1.9	0.2	0.1	0.2	3.7
Cuonzo Martin	4	0	4.8	.600	1.000	.000	0.5	0.5	0.3	0.0	2.3
Darrick Martin	24	0	16.8	.450	.227	.826	1.6	2.5	1.1	0.0	6.7
Eric Mobley	34	1	18.0	.550	.500	.446	3.8	0.6	0.4	0.7	5.4
Lawrence Moten	44	3	13.0	.453	.327	.653	1.4	1.1	0.7	0.2	6.6
Eric Murdock	64	14	23.1	.422	.320	.809	2.4	4.6	2.0	0.1	9.1
Bryant Reeves	77	63	31.9	.457	.000	.732	7.4	1.4	0.6	0.7	13.3
Byron Scott	80	0	23.7	.401	.335	.835	2.4	1.5	0.8	0.3	10.2
Gerald Wilkins	28	14	26.4	.376	.219	.870	2.3	2.4	0.8	0.1	6.7

Franchise firsts

On opening night, the Grizzlies would spoil the Portland Trail Blazers debut at the Rose Garden Arena by defeating them. A few nights later, the Grizzlies would play their first home game, defeating the Minnesota Timberwolves at the buzzer.

Awards and records

• Bryant Reeves, Second Team, NBA All-Rookie Team

References

• Grizzlies on Database Basketball
• Grizzlies on Basketball Reference
• Expansion Draft Details