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Reeling Memphis Grizzlies fire Taylor Jenkins after six seasons as coach
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- Reeling Memphis Grizzlies fire Taylor Jenkins after six seasons as coach
This story has been updated with new information.
The Memphis Grizzlies have fired coach Taylor Jenkins, the team announced on Friday.
Lead assistant coach Tuomas Iisalo will be the interim coach, according to a source close to the team.
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"I'm genuinely appreciative of Taylor's contributions to this team and this city over the past six seasons," president and general manager Zach Kleiman said in a news release. "This was a difficult decision, given the consistent and tangible development of our players and overall success under Taylor's leadership. I wish Taylor the very best going forward."
The Grizzlies are 44-29 and currently the No. 5 seed in the Western Conference. They lost 124-105 against the Oklahoma City Thunder on Thursday, finishing 1-4 on a five-game road trip.
Since the All-Star break, Memphis has struggled and is 8-11.
Jenkins, the winningest coach in franchise history at 250-214, surpassing Lionel Hollins this season, spent six seasons with the team. He was named the head coach in summer 2019, the same year the team selected star point guard Ja Morant with the No. 2 pick in the NBA draft.
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Memphis made the playoffs in three of Jenkins' first five seasons as coach, but the team did not have much success in the postseason, going 9-14.
A lack of success in the half-court offense the previous five seasons led to the Grizzlies revamping their assistant coaching staff before the season. They improved, but inconsistency, combined with defensive struggles, have led to the franchise being below expectations for this season.
Injuries, which derailed all of last season, again have limited the team's success. Morant has been available for 43 games; Memphis is 16-14 without him this season.
The Grizzlies are 11-20 against teams with records above .500.
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Damichael Cole is the Memphis Grizzlies beat writer for The Commercial Appeal. Contact Damichael at damichael.cole@commercialappeal.com. Follow Damichael on X, formerly known as Twitter, @DamichaelC.
This article originally appeared on Memphis Commercial Appeal: Struggling Memphis Grizzlies fire coach Taylor Jenkins after 6 seasons
