Grizzlies GM Chris Wallace and former coach Lionel Hollins met Monday night at a Memphis-area restaurant, fueling speculation that the team is considering Hollins for its coaching vacancy, according to Ronald Tillery of The Commercial Appeal. It’s nonetheless widely believed that Frank Vogel is the front-runner, Tillery adds. Memphis reportedly reached out to Vogel this past weekend.
Wallace was in charge of the front office when Hollins took over as Grizzlies coach midway through the 2008/09 season, and the club’s decision not to re-sign Hollins in 2013 came while former CEO Jason Levien exerted control over the basketball operations department. Wallace returned to power in the 2014 offseason, around the time Hollins took the Nets head coaching job. Brooklyn fired Hollins in January, and Memphis fired coach Dave Joerger, a former Hollins assistant, this past Saturday.
The Grizzlies had their greatest success during Hollins’ tenure as coach, winning 56 games in the 2012/13 season and reaching the 2013 Western Conference finals. Memphis went 214-201 in parts of seven seasons under Hollins.