The Grizzlies roster was filled during the 1995 NBA Expansion Draft. By way of winning a coin flip with the Toronto Raptors, Vancouver elected to choose the former, between a higher NBA Draft pick and the first pick in the NBA Expansion Draft, and therefore had the second pick in this draft. With their first pick, the Grizzlies selected point guard Greg Anthony from the New York Knicks.
The Grizzlies first ever draft pick was Bryant Reeves.
Round
Pick
Player
Position
Nationality
College
1
6
Bryant Reeves
Center
United States
Oklahoma State
2
36
Lawrence Moten
Guard
United States
Syracuse
Roster
First game
On November 3, 1995, Vancouver played their first ever game in Portland against the Trail Blazers and beat the Blazers by a score of 92–80. Benoit Benjamin scored a team high 29 points and 13 rebounds for the Grizzlies.
Regular season
Although they won their first two games in franchise history, the Grizzlies finished with the worst win/loss record in the 1995–96 NBA season, as is typical for an expansion team, and lost 23 straight games from February to April
Highs
On November 3, 1995, Vancouver plays their first ever game, defeating the Portland Trail Blazers by a score of 92–80 in Portland. On November 5, 1995, the Grizzlies make their home debut, defeating the Minnesota Timberwolves 100–98 in overtime in front of 19,113 fans, to begin the season with a 2–0 record.
The Grizzlies defeat nearby rivals the Seattle SuperSonics by a single point in a hotly contested game on December 19, 1995. The crowd leaves ecstatic.
The Grizzlies hold the Miami Heat to only 65 points in a 69–65 victory on January 13, 1996.
Vancouver finishes the season on a positive note, defeating the Denver Nuggets and Los Angeles Clippers on the road.
Lows
After starting the season 2–0, Vancouver would lose their next 19 games to quickly fall into last place in the Midwest Division.
Vancouver was held to a season low 62 points in a 111–62 loss to the San Antonio Spurs on November 8, 1995.
On December 10, 1995, the Grizzlies play the Toronto Raptors for the first time. The first NBA regular season game contested between two non-U.S. based teams. The game is held at General Motors Place in Vancouver. The Raptors win the game by a score of 93–81.
On April 2, 1996, Vancouver loses its 23rd straight game, losing 101–85 to the Portland Trail Blazers. The loss was also the Grizzlies 29th in their last 30 games.
Season standings
Record vs. opponents
Game log
Player statistics
Player
GP
GS
MPG
FG%
3FG%
FT%
RPG
APG
SPG
BPG
PPG
'
54
34
20.4
.480
.000
.651
5.6
0.6
0.4
0.2
6.3
'
69
68
30.4
.415
.332
.771
2.5
6.9
1.7
0.2
14.0
71
32
22.3
.384
.000
.740
5.0
1.0
0.4
0.6
5.8
13
13
31.1
.441
.000
.696
7.9
1.2
0.8
1.2
13.9
'
82
82
33.8
.419
.343
.755
4.2
2.6
1.4
0.6
12.7
31
0
16.7
.352
.000
.763
2.8
1.3
0.3
0.6
3.0
25
14
22.8
.479
.000
.603
4.6
0.6
0.4
0.4
9.2
18
6
22.8
.411
.000
.465
5.2
0.5
0.8
1.2
5.4
'
80
66
24.1
.427
.389
.662
3.6
1.3
0.9
0.4
7.9
29
0
10.7
.434
.000
.643
1.9
0.2
0.1
0.2
3.7
4
0
4.8
.600
1.000
.000
0.5
0.5
0.3
0.0
2.3
24
0
16.8
.450
.227
.826
1.6
2.5
1.1
0.0
6.7
34
1
18.0
.550
.500
.446
3.8
0.6
0.4
0.7
5.4
44
3
13.0
.453
.327
.653
1.4
1.1
0.7
0.2
6.6
64
14
23.1
.422
.320
.809
2.4
4.6
2.0
0.1
9.1
77
63
31.9
.457
.000
.732
7.4
1.4
0.6
0.7
13.3
80
0
23.7
.401
.335
.835
2.4
1.5
0.8
0.3
10.2
28
14
26.4
.376
.219
.870
2.3
2.4
0.8
0.1
6.7
Franchise firsts
On opening night, the Grizzlies would spoil the Portland Trail Blazers debut at the Rose Garden Arena by defeating them. A few nights later, the Grizzlies would play their first home game, defeating the Minnesota Timberwolves at the buzzer.
