According to the Memphis Commercial-Appeal, the Grizzlies will be looking at big men in the upcoming NBA draft to try to solidify their frontcourt.

The Grizzlies' director of player personnel, Tony Barone Sr, says that the team's relunctance to take a chance on a big man may have to change this year.

"We keep investigating," Barone said Tuesday morning. "Maybe our standards have to change a little bit. Maybe we don't have to have a 7-footer. Maybe it's a 6-8, 6-9 guy who is going to bang and go after it that way. We have one in Lawrence Roberts, so we'll keep investigating and see what happens."

Denver's Yemi Nicholson (6-11 center), UCLA's Ryan Hollins (7-foot center), George Washington's Pops Mensah-Bonsu (6-9 forward) and Michigan State's Paul Davis (6-11 center) worked out for Griz personnel as they prepared for the June 28 draft.

"The biggest difference between college and the NBA is you still have to be able to make that 15-foot shot," Barone said. "That's one of the things we want to find out about these guys. The other part of it is the consistent banging and effort on the glass. In college, they can overwhelm the players they're playing against. They can muscle in and get it done. That's why on every drill we do -- even on defense -- you have to put the ball back in (the basket) so we can see that constant effort."

Damon Stoudamire is recovering from his knee injury at an amazing pace.

While Stoudamire has some improvement to make in the area of flexibility, he performed astonishingly well in what was described as a "difficult, intense" exhibition of his on-court abilities.

According to various reports, Eric Musselman interviewed with the Kings earlier this week.

Musselman has the support of the Grizzlies in the process.

Last summer, he was interviewed by the Orlando Magic before they decided to give the position to former coach Brian Hill.

The Memphis Grizzlies completed their first week of pre-draft workouts looking almost exclusively at combo guards ?- players capable of playing point guard and shooting guard with equal effectiveness, according to the Memphis Commercial-Appeal.

The Griz own the 24th pick in the first round of the June 28 NBA draft.

"We think that's an area we want to look at in the draft," said Tony Barone Sr., the team's director of player personnel. "We want to investigate as many combo guards as we can find. A combo guard to us is a guard who can absolutely play both positions. We want someone who can survive at either position."

Despite speculation and conjecture, Mike Fratello's job security with the Grizzlies won't be an issue this summer after majority owner Michael Heisley recently seconded a vote of confidence first delivered by team president Jerry West, the Memphis Commercial-Appeal is reporting.

Fratello, who is about to enter the final year of a three-year contract, is not in jeopardy as the team prepares to retool.

"We have no plan to make changes with the coaching staff," Heisley said. "We're moving forward with Mike."

Jerry West returned to West Virginia six months after his alma mater retired the NBA great's No. 44 jersey to give the school's 137th commencement address Sunday.

Introduced as among "the most recognizable West Virginians ever," West also received an honorary Doctorate of Humane Letters.

West, wearing the traditional gold-and-blue cap and gown, talked about how he built his career from humble beginnings in his hometown of Chelyan.

"I had a God-given gift, but that alone was not enough," he said. "I needed character, determination and resolve. I never took myself very seriously, but I took what I did very seriously."

The Memphis Grizzlies' president led the Mountaineers to their only NCAA finals appearance in 1960.

The strain of playing with mediocre centers is beginning to wear on Pau Gasol and the problem has now become too evident to ignore.

"You need a big man that could take some of the load off him," says point guard Bobby Jackson. "He can't do everything. Not taking anything away from Ren and Jake -- they did a tremendous job -- but they weren't scorers.

"When you've got a guy like Pau, he needs somebody to complement him -- especially on the offensive end. That's what this team missed: a guy that could come in and rebound the ball and score points at the five position."

"If you have other offensive threats, it takes pressure off the main guy so he doesn't have to take every shot with an urge to make it," said Gasol.

GM Jerry West was quite candid with the Memphis media on Wednesday, one day after his club was swept by the Mavericks. While he is disappointed with their postseason performance, he is not expecting to make any major moves like he did last summer.

"You can't just go out and make (major) changes every year. Sooner or later, it's not going to work," West said. "There are areas we need to address, and we're going to try and do that."

He would, however, like to add a high-quality rebounder.

"You can't just go out and make (major) changes every year. Sooner or later, it's not going to work," West said. "There are areas we need to address, and we're going to try and do that."

West also made clear that he will continue to support and employ head coach Mike Fratello.

The Associated Press has announced that Mavericks forward Dirk Nowitzki was fined $15,000 and assessed a flagrant foul penalty two on Wednesday for a foul against Memphis' Pau Gasol in the final game of Dallas' first-round series sweep.

The league announced that Nowitzki's punishment was for "making unnecessary and excessive contact." The incident occurred with 6:11 left in the second quarter of Game 4 on Monday night and only drew a personal foul at the time.

In Game 3, Nowitzki was called for a flagrant foul when he tried stopping Gasol on a drive with a minute left in overtime. Replays clearly showed that he got the ball, an indication he wasn't merely going at Gasol, and the team asked the league to rescind it.

A successful 2005-2006 season was capped with a humiliating performance in the playoffs for the Grizzlies, as they were swept by Dallas in four games.

Pau Gasol is already thinking about next season and what is needed to improve the club.

"We need somebody to get us a few more rebounds, a little bit of extra toughness," Gasol said. "We need guys who will hold their ground, be a little more physical, get to loose balls, be able to defend this time of year."