The Memphis Grizzlies are one win from a Las Vegas title. Memphis beat the Houston Rockets 101-90 in a Summer League semifinal Saturday, leading wire-to-wire and never letting a talented Houston backcourt close the gap.
The Grizzlies set the tone immediately, racing to a 26-9 lead after the first quarter and carrying a 48-33 cushion into halftime. Cedric Coward did the heavy lifting, finishing with 28 points, six rebounds, five assists, a steal and a block — the kind of two-way line that has made the second-year wing the most polished player on Memphis’s summer roster. Javon Small added 13 points and five assists and knocked down three of the team’s threes.
The headliner did his work on the glass. No. 3 overall pick Cameron Boozer, playing on his birthday, posted a 12-point, 12-rebound double-double with five assists, a steal and a block. Boozer’s summer has been less about scoring outbursts than about the steadiness Memphis wants at the four — rebounding, passing out of the short roll and defending across positions.
Houston shot it well from deep, going 16-of-37 (43.2%) from three, but couldn’t overcome Memphis at the free-throw line, where the Grizzlies went 17-of-18. Quadir Copeland led the Rockets with 24 points on 9-of-13 shooting. Houston’s run ends in the semifinals after Bruce Thornton and Tristen Newton had carried the No. 3 seed to the final four.
The win sends Memphis to Sunday’s championship game against the Golden State Warriors, who beat the previously unbeaten Lakers 92-88 in the other semifinal. For a franchise that spent the offseason trimming its veteran contracts down to the studs, watching Coward and Boozer anchor a deep summer run is the clearest look yet at the young core Memphis is betting on.
For fantasy purposes, Coward is the name to file away: a wing with real defensive feel and a summer usage that points toward a rotation role, which makes him a sensible late-round dynasty target. Boozer’s redraft value will hinge on how quickly Memphis clears frontcourt minutes for him, but his rebounding-and-passing floor should give him standard-league appeal by midseason, and in dynasty he remains a premium hold.
