The Vancouver Grizzlies, Canada’s other NBA team, only lasted six seasons. After the conclusion of the 2000-01 season, they relocated to Memphis where they are now known as the Memphis Grizzlies. However, there were some notable players that have played with the Vancouver Grizzlies. These players included Bryant Reeves, Shareef Abdur-Rahim and Mike Bibby. To learn more about the five best players with now Canada’s only NBA team, the Toronto Raptors, read this previous article.
Keep in mind these top five players are not ranked by how good they were in their NBA careers. It is more to do with how great these players were when wearing the Vancouver Grizzlies jersey and their contribution to the city of Vancouver.
Vancouver Grizzlies Top Five All-Time Players
5. Greg Anthony
There were a few other players that were under consideration. Other players who had similar stats, which included Sam Mack. However, Greg Anthony was able to bring Vancouver its first and only Naismith trophy against the Toronto Raptors in 1996.
The Naismith Trophy was awarded to the annual pre-season match-winner between the Toronto Raptors and the Vancouver Grizzlies from 1995-00. Both teams faced each other five times for the Naismith trophy, with Vancouver winning only once in 1996.
The best season in Anthony’s career happened in the 1995-96 NBA season with the Vancouver Grizzlies. He averaged 14 points, 6.9 assists, 2.5 rebounds, 1.7 steals, and 0.2 blocks per game. The following 1996-97 NBA season, he averaged 9.5 points, 6.3 assists, 2.8 rebounds, 2 steals, and 0.1 blocks per game.
He played a pivotal role in exposing the game of basketball in Vancouver. Anthony was the first pick by the Vancouver Grizzlies and second pick overall in the 1995 NBA Expansion Draft. He was also one of the few NBA players to play for the three Pacific Northwest teams (Portland Trail Blazers, Seattle SuperSonics, and the Vancouver Grizzlies). However, his contribution to the team does not compare with the top four players on this list.
4. Michael Dickerson
Michael Dickerson may have only been with the Vancouver Grizzlies in the latter part of the team’s existence, but he was also one of their best players. He had some good years with Vancouver. In the 1999-00 season, he averaged 18.2 points, 3.4 rebounds, 2.5 assists, 1.4 steals, and 0.5 blocks per game. In his second year with Vancouver, he averaged 16.3 points, 3.3 rebounds, 3.3 assists, 0.9 steals, and 0.4 blocks per game during the 2000-01 NBA season.
The Vancouver Grizzlies acquired Dickerson via trade with the Houston Rockets. A big reason for this was Steve Francis refusing to play for the Grizzlies in 1999 according to “The NBA” of Kitsap Sun. He would play one more season when they became the Memphis Grizzlies before retiring because of injuries.
3. Bryant Reeves – “Big Country”
Bryant Reeves was drafted sixth overall in Vancouver’s first-ever NBA draft in 1995. He had a good rookie season. He averaged 13.3 points, 7.4 rebounds, 1.4 assists, 0.6 steals, and 0.7 blocks per game in the 1995-96 NBA season. Then in the 1996-97 season, he averaged 16.2 points, 8.1 rebounds, 2.1 assists, 0.4 steals, and 0.9 blocks per game. He would follow that up in 1997-98 season, where he averaged 16.3 points, 7.9 rebounds, 2.1 assists, 0.5 steals, and 0.2 blocks per game. However, his stats went down after his third NBA season.
He was affectionately known as “Big Country” in his seasons as a member of the Vancouver Grizzlies. He is the only player on this list to play all six seasons in Vancouver. One of his most notable games was scoring 31 points and 12 rebounds against the Seattle SuperSonics (now the Oklahoma City Thunder) on March 13th, 2000. Vancouver would end up losing that game 113-103 to the SuperSonics, with the Sonics’ Gary Payton scoring 40 points and 11 assists in that game.
It was a hard choice to put Reeves third on this list. However, Mike Bibby had better stats compared to Reeves and that is why Reeves was placed third on this list.
2. Mike Bibby – Vancouver Grizzlies’ 1998 NBA Draft Pick
Bibby was drafted second by the Vancouver Grizzlies in the 1998 NBA Draft. He made an immediate impact with the Grizzlies and averaged 13.2 points, 6.5 assists, 2.7 rebounds, 1.6 steals, and 0.1 blocks per game. He would increase his production in the next two seasons. In the 1999-00 season, he averaged 14.5 points, 8.1 assists, 3.7 rebounds, 1.6 steals, and 0.2 blocks per game.
In his final year with Vancouver, he averaged 15.9 points, 8.4 assists, 3.7 rebounds, 1.3 steals, and 0.1 blocks per game. His 8.4 assists per game were his highest number of assists he averaged in his entire career. An example of this was February 2nd, 2001, which was one of his most notable games. He scored 23 points and eight assists against the Sacramento Kings. However, the Grizzlies would lose 105-95 as Chris Webber scored 41 points and 15 rebounds for the Kings.
1. Shareef Abdur-Rahim – Vancouver Grizzlies’ Best Player
Abdur-Rahim was drafted third overall in the 1996 NBA Draft. He was Vancouver’s franchise player, much like Vince Carter was the Toronto Raptors franchise player during that time.
I felt like nearly 20 years after being drafted to the @NBA would be a good time to join Twitter. #FirstTweet pic.twitter.com/8tF4POfR4e
— Shareef Abdur-Rahim (@ShareefAbdur_R) January 22, 2016
By far the best player for the Vancouver Grizzlies was Abdur-Rahim. He averaged 18.7 points, 6.9 rebounds, 2.2 assists, one steal, and one block per game in his rookie season. Then, in his sophomore season, he averaged 22.3 points, 7.1 rebounds, 2.6 assists, 1.1 steals, and 0.9 blocks per game.
His most notable season with the Vancouver Grizzlies was the 1999-00 season. In that season he averaged 20.3 points, 10.1 rebounds, 3.3 assists, 1.1 steals, and 1.1 blocks per game.
He also averaged 22.3 points per game in the 1997-98 season and averaged 23 points in the 1998-99 season. These points per game for the Vancouver Grizzlies were a personal high in his NBA career.
One of his most notable games was on January 7th, 2001 when Abdur-Rahim scored 38 points and 11 rebounds in a 120-117 win over the Milwaukee Bucks. Abdur-Rahim is also a “what if” for the Vancouver Grizzlies as he could have been Vancouver’s first NBA All-Star. The first season after the Grizzlies relocated to Memphis, Abdur-Rahim made it to his first and only NBA All-Star appearance with the Atlanta Hawks.
Overview of the Top Five Vancouver Grizzlies Players
The Vancouver Grizzlies in their short history had some pretty good players. The most notable ones NBA fans will remember is Abdur-Rahim and Bibby. Both players made a name for themselves after Vancouver moved to Memphis.
There are also fan favorites on this list, which includes Reeves, who played his entire NBA career with the Vancouver Grizzlies. Dickerson and Anthony also provided a contribution to the short-lived Vancouver Grizzlies.
Potential NBA Expansion Cities
It is hard to predict if Vancouver will be one of the next few NBA expansion teams. Everyone knows that Seattle will probably get one of the NBA expansion teams. There are also cities like Las Vegas and Louisville, which are also potential sites for an NBA team.
Looking outside of the US, Vancouver’s biggest competition might be Montreal and not Mexico City. It is true that the NBA has a lot of interest in Mexico City. Last year, the NBA announced that an NBA G League team is coming to Mexico City. However, there are a lot of problems with Mexico City including safety concerns.
Montreal is also actively looking for an NBA team according to Michael Grange of Sportsnet. Although, more importantly, they are starting to produce a lot of NBA players in the Greater Montreal Area. This might be a concern for cities like Vancouver and Mexico City trying to get an NBA team. To learn more about the growth of basketball in Montreal and the province of Quebec, read this previous article.
However, Vancouver can support an NBA team if given a second chance. Abdur-Rahim explains on a Patrick Johnston article for The Province.
“I definitely think Vancouver could support a team. I think the passion is here, people love NBA basketball. If it will or not, I don’t know. So many things have to happen that are outside of anyone’s control. The team never would’ve left if I made the decision. If it was up to me, this is a wonderful city, there would still be the Grizzlies here.”
Main Photo
