"I expected him to be kind of quiet and to himself, and kind of mad at me," Conley said.

To the contrary. In fact, from the moment the two first got together, a genuine friendship was born. Now, in their second season as the Grizzlies' one-two punch at the point, Conley and Lowry have become almost inseparable. They live about two minutes from each other. Every evening, they hang out and play video games.

"We're real close," Conley said. "We're always around each other doing something. It's good to have relationships like that with people who are your teammates, and especially with people you're going to be around all the time."

Privately, Lowry, who was at the Grizzlies' draft party when NBA commissioner David Stern called Conley's name, may have scratched his head a bit at the Grizzlies' pick. But it didn't take Lowry long to realize what a bright future the team could have with the two of them feeding off each other.

"I was excited to have two quality point guards on the team," Lowry said. "It's rare to have two young, quality point guards in this league on one team. We just get along. We think alike. He's a little bit more quiet than me, but we just hit it off from the jump.

"Everybody thought we were going to have egos, and he's coming to take your spot, and this and that. We just want to make each other better and be on a good team. You've got two guys who are willing to give and take. The sky's the limit."

Lowry quickly embraced Conley, making for some intense practices. Coach Marc Iavaroni likes the skills both bring to the team. Lowry is a physical, high energy player that likes to get to the basket. Conley is more of a conventional point guard, who also uses his speed to push the tempo and run pick-and-roll plays.

Conley began this season as the starter, but struggled early. He shot .400 or less in nine of the team's first 10 games. In his first 12 games, he shot .067 from 3-point range.

Iavaroni has since used Lowry as the starter, with Conley coming off the bench. The move has not only sparked the team, which is 5-3 with Lowry as the starter, but Conley has regained his confidence.

Conley has made 17 of his last 32 3-pointers (.531). In 18 games as a starter, he averaged 7.3 points on 43.2 percent shooting. Off the bench, Conley's numbers have improved to 9.9 points on 44.2 percent shooting.

"It's helped me put things in perspective a little bit," Conley said. "I think when I come off the bench I come out more aggressive, knowing that I don't know when I'm going to get back in. I don't know what's going to come the next quarter. I think I'm more urgent with my game and I think that's helped me realize that even if I'm starting, I've got to be the same way, and come out aggressive.

"I'm shooting with confidence and shooting when I'm open. I'm playing with a swagger, more than I did earlier in the year. Hopefully, I'll keep improving throughout the year, whether it's on the bench or starting. I'm going to be ready to go."

No matter who starts, or who is in the game, you will always see the other player cheering hard from the bench. A popular debate among Grizzly fans is which player should start. But it's a non-issue among Conley and Lowry, which is good news for Iavaroni when distributing playing time.

"It's one less thing to have to worry about," Iavaroni said. "Chemistry is so important. You never want to take it for granted. ... It just seems like they're always rooting for one another, yet they compete against one another very hard in practice. They want to win in games. You can see no matter who starts or finishes, they're cheering for one another, trying to help one another. I think it's all part of the fact that they have a good relationship off the court."

The competitive spirit embedded in both players has led to some fierce competitions in practice, with each trying to get the better of the other. They constantly push each other as they look to improve their skills.

But at the end of the day, it's off to play video games.

"He greeted me with open arms," Conley said. "He made sure I knew what was going on and kind of took me under his wing, really. I thank him for that, and he's been a good friend. That's the kind of relationship we've got now. I'll do for him whatever he does for me. He's just been a great competitor, a great teammate, and a great friend."

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Next for the Griz

Who: Grizzlies vs. L.A. Lakers

When, where: 7 p.m., Monday, FedExForum

TV, radio : Fox Sports Tennessee, WRBO-FM (103.5)

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