The 9:01: Grizzlies lottery memories, new Lucero music and more

Good morning in Memphis, where we'll try our luck, but first ...  

Tonight is the NBA draft lottery, where the Grizzlies will land a pick in the 1-5 range. Yesterday, Geoff Calkins went over the franchise's lottery history. I have distinct memories of three of those nights.

2003: This one featured one of the greatest top prizes in league history, preps-to-pros prodigy Lebron James, and a Grizzlies team that was going to lose its pick to complete a (very bad, no good, horrible) Vancouver-era trade unless it was #1 overall. I was at a friend's house with a few hardcore hoops fans and a dog named Hubie (true story), but all I can remember is the public torture of lead executive/NBA legend Jerry West, who unleashed the tight smile of a man who can't wait to shiv you in the gut:

2007: The Grizzlies came into this lottery with the highest odds after an NBA-worst 22-60 record the prior season and thus were well-positioned for one of two presumed big prizes: Ohio State center Greg Oden or Texas forward Kevin Durant. Fourth place was the worst-case scenario.

The lottery watch party was at the Downtown location of Flying Saucer, with camera crews beaming footage to the national broadcast and team radio voice Eric Hasseltine acting as emcee. The place was packed out and festive -- don't let anyone tell you there were no Grizzlies fans before "grit and grind." When the lottery started, it went to form for picks #14 through #7, and the cheering built with every reveal that wasn't the Grizzlies. I was standing in the back of the main room, the lottery odds list in hand, crossing off teams as they were announced. 

When the card for pick #6 was opened and revealed to be the #3 slotted Milwaukee Bucks, the television announcer said only that the #6 Portland Trailblazers had moved up, and everyone in Memphis kept cheering. But the Bucks moving down three spots meant that the #5 Seattle Supersonics and #4 Atlanta Hawks had also moved up into the top three, and it meant the Grizzlies were locked into #4. It was decided in that moment. I turned to friends behind me and made the Vince Carter slash signal, saying "It's over. The Grizzlies are fourth." But the room didn't register this and just kept cheering, even louder when the Boston Celtics were revealed to be pick #5. I gave up trying to tell people and just stood amid the cheers, waiting for the rest of the room to experience the car crash. I went back to watch the broadcast. It was only about 30 seconds between when the Grizzlies pick was known and when it was revealed, but it felt more like 30 minutes. 

As people filed out of the room, disappointed, the final memory is Hasseltine on the mic, reeling off all of the good players who had been taken with a #4 pick. The Grizzlies ended up with Mike Conley, who was a pretty good consolation prize. Incidentally, it was Jerry West, then the outgoing team president, representing the team on the broadcast again. Maybe that wasn't the best karmic idea.

2009: This one was at Buffalo Wild Wings at Eastgate. There was a consensus top pick in Blake Griffin, but the Grizzlies were slotted #6 going into the lottery, represented by head coach Lionel Hollins, and no-one was really expecting the top prize. The likely #2 pick at the time was Spanish point guard Ricky Rubio, but on the lottery broadcast that night analyst Jay Bilas touted Connecticut center Hasheem Thabeet as the second-best player in the draft. 

This lottery held to form for picks #14 through #7. When it was time for the Grizzlies card to be opened, it was instead the #5-slotted Minnesota Timberwolves, revealing that the Grizzlies had moved up into the Top 3. This time the cheers were justified and lottery disappointments past had been rewarded. When the Grizzlies finally came up #2, it was a bittersweet -- this close yet again to the sure thing -- but still a good day. Until they took Bilas' advice a month later.  

Tonight, the team is hosting three watch parties for a lottery broadcast that runs 6:30-7:30 p.m. (Lots of stalling for a few minutes of action.):

• Railgarten in Midtown (2166 Central Ave.)
• Buffalo Wild Wings in East Memphis (3770 Hacks Cross Road)
• Maria’s Cantina in Southaven, Miss. (6717 Airways Blvd.)

Because there's no sure thing at #1 and a generally strong set of prospects throughout the Grizzlies' pick range, this one feels less fraught than in the past. Still, it should be both a fun and tense night. Memphis will be represented on the broadcast by Elliot Perry, which means we're a winner regardless of the outcome. I'll probably be at the Railgarten one, a lottery order list and pen in hand.

Additional Reading:

• John Varlas on the death of former Memphis University School basketball coach Jerry Peters. 
• John Daly is headed to the FedEx-St. Jude Classic golf tournament. 
• Sports gambling in Tennessee? Probably not. 
• Wayne Risher on the arrival of bike share in Memphis. 
• After losing the GOP primary for mayor, Terry Roland is considering a write-in campaign. 

Happening in Memphis Today: In addition to the aforementioned draft lottery parties, here are a few other options for the less hoops-inclined:

• Historians Aram Goudsouzian (University of Memphis) and Charles W. McKinney Jr. (Rhodes College) talk about their new collaboration "Unseen Light: Black Struggles for Freedom in Memphis, Tennessee" at Novel bookstore. 
• The rock band Chicago, who evolved from progressive to pop in its heyday, will be at the Orpheum. 
• The 1966 Czech film "Daisies" will screen at 7 p.m. at Studio on the Square as part of Indie Memphis' "Memphis in May" series. If you're a fan of adventurous cinema, this might be something of a must-see. I'll regret having to miss it. Here's what the great Chicago film critic Jonathan Rosenbaum had to say about it: 

My favorite Czech film, and surely one of the most exhilarating stylistic and psychedelic eruptions of the 60s, this madcap and aggressive feminist farce by Vera Chytilova explodes in any number of directions. Two uninhibited young women named Marie engage in escapades that add up to less a plot than to a string of outrageous set pieces, including several antiphallic gags and a free-for-all with fancy food (rivaling Laurel and Hardy) that got Chytilova in lots of trouble with the authorities; disturbing yet liberating, it shows what this talented director can do with freedom. A major influence on Jacques Rivette's Celine and Julie Go Boating, this 1966 feature is chock-full of female giggling, which might be interpreted in context as the laughter of Medusa: subversive, bracing, energizing, and rather challenging to most male spectators.

The Fadeout: Late last week, stalwart Memphis rockers Lucero announced the August 3 release of a new album, "Among the Ghosts," and released a couple of songs from the album, debuting them on RollingStone.com. The album was recorded locally at Sam Phillips Recording with Matt Ross-Spang behind the board and and after expanding into a big band of sorts in recent years, the initial returns may remind some longtime fans of the band's leaner early years. Here's one of the new songs:

Reach Chris Herrington at chris.herrington@commercialappeal.com or on Twitter at @chrisherrington and @herringtonNBA.