The Memphis Grizzlies reportedly decided to give David Fizdale his first head coaching opportunity in the NBA on Wednesday. According toAdrian Wojnarowskiof The Vertical, the Grizzlies signed the coach to a four-year deal. Ronald Tillery of theCommercial Appeal confirmed the deal and reported the contract includes a team option in the fourth year.This comes after the Grizzlies fired coach Dave Joerger following the teams first-round playoff loss to the San Antonio Spurs.It is not surprising that Memphis turned to Fizdale considering Marc Stein of ESPN.com previously cited a source who said the coach had moved into the lead in Memphis fluid search, which initially targeted former Indiana Pacers coach Frank Vogel, who instead took the Orlando Magic job.Stein noted Fizdales strong first interview with the Grizzlies is what merited a closer look and even a second meeting with the front office during the search. Steins report said Fizdale and San Antonio Spurs assistant coach James Borrego were seen as co-finalists at a time for the Memphis position.Fizdale will have a challenging job ahead of him after the Grizzlies used an NBA-record 28 players during the 2015-16 campaign because of injuries. Chief among the casualties were big man Marc Gasol and point guard Mike Conley, which essentially ended any realistic chances they had at competing in the playoffs against the best the Western Conference had to offer.Memphis has reached the postseason the last six years, but Conley is a free agent, and Gasol (31) and Zach Randolph (34) are both on the other side of their 30th birthdays.Chris Mannix of The Vertical suggested Fizdale is likely up for the challenge: Always surprised me that Fizdale didn't get more looks. Miami's lead assistant during a very successful Heat run.According to Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald, Fizdale was the assistant head coach the past two seasons for the Heat and was with Miami for a total of eight years. He was also an assistant for the Golden State Warriors for one year and the Atlanta Hawks for four before accepting the Memphis position.The Heat reached four straight NBA Finals with Fizdale on the bench alongside head coach Erik Spoelstra from 2010 to 2014 and won back-to-back rings in that span in 2012 and 2013. They also made the playoffs seven times in eight years with Fizdale on the staff:Spoelstra endorsed the former assistant when he said, Fiz is a great basketball coach, a dear friend of mine. He is a tremendous teacher of the gamea tremendous basketball mind, per Jackson.Jackson also pointed out Fizdale was a former All-West Coast Conference point guard when he played for the University of San Diego.According to Sports-Reference.com, he averaged at least eight points per game three straight seasons at San Diego (1993-1996). He also dished out a career-best seven assists per night in his final collegiate campaign in 1995-96, although the Toreros did not reach the NCAA tournament when Fizdale was in school.Fizdale will now look to parlay the experience he garnered from playing at the collegiate level and assistant coaching championship teams in Miami to succeed with a Grizzlies squad that is attempting to bounce back from a disappointing postseason exit.
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