Doug Smith: The Raptors tell us Greg Monroe has some back spasms and won’t be available tonight in Memphis. He joins Norm Powell, he of the shoulder injury, on the shelf
Greg Monroe Rumors
All NBA Players
Position: F-C
Born: 06/04/90
Height: 6-11 / 2.11
Weight:250 lbs. / 113.4 kg.
Salary: $2,165,481
Born: 06/04/90
Height: 6-11 / 2.11
Weight:250 lbs. / 113.4 kg.
Salary: $2,165,481
Eric Smith: Greg Monroe (back spasms) is out vs MEM
In eight seasons, Monroe has yet to attempt a three. Don’t expect that to change. “We all know what everybody is reacting to and it is what it is,” Monroe said of the recent three’s-over-everything push. “If a team dethrones the Warriors with a big everyone is going to go out and get a big. I mean you saw what they (the Warriors) did this summer (signing DeMarcus Cousins). They added a centre. You need bigs. JaVale (McGee) was still playing in Golden State (Zaza Pachulia too). You still have great centres in this league – Joel Embiid, Andre Drummond, Marc Gasol. You still have guys who are productive that play so I’m not worried about it. The only thing I can control is what happens inside the lines and that is what I am focussing on.”
Even after a season that ended badly and his playing time diminished, credit Hassan Whiteside for working diligently on his game. His offseason included training with Pittsburgh Steelers receiver Antonio Brown; training with NBA centers Andre Drummond and Greg Monroe; hiring a personal trainer for the first time and refining his post moves. On working out “a couple times” with Brown, Whiteside said Thursday: “Antonio Brown, seeing how he works, working out with him. He runs in the sand, that’s why nobody can guard him in the NFL. “I really wanted to get faster, my lateral speed, my overall speed. That where I’ve been working out on the beach. The game is speeding up. I really want to be very mobile. You know, my body feels great. I was in that sand, I told them I got it from Antonio Brown. So there was different drills I was doing.”
Josh Lewenberg: JV on playing with former rival Greg Monroe: “Yes, we had some battles before. He’s a tough guy. He never backs down, and I never back down, and now we have a chance to play together. So it’s fun. We can kick somebody’s ass.”
Greg Monroe has never made a three-pointer over his eight-year professional career, and has only attempted 12 shots from long range over that time. Perhaps sensing he needs to adapt his game to the modern NBA, the 28-year-old has been working on his three-point stroke this off-season, posting an Instagram video Saturday that shows him splashing triples from all over the court.
