3 teams that need to win now

Urgency is always a force in sports, but some teams deal with it more than others. Going into the 2016-17 NBA season, three expected playoff teams face situations where the time really is now.

Unfortunately for them, all three teams reside in the Western Conference, under the long shadow of the Golden State Warriors.

Memphis Grizzlies

While the Grizzlies aren't officially on a cliff, you can see how desirous the franchise is to shift narratives. The hiring of new coach David Fizdale may well put an end to the "Grit and Grind" era, a shift he's already started by deciding to bring Zach Randolph off the bench this season. The 15th-year power forward is in the last year of his contract, and turns 36 next summer. Longtime backcourt cog Tony Allen - the "Grindfather" himself - turns 35 in January and is also in the final year of his deal.

The Grizzlies locked up point guard Mike Conley to the richest contract in NBA history this summer, but he and fellow franchise player Marc Gasol come with some question marks entering the season. Injuries have derailed both players in the past two years, and barring trades, the pair remains the franchise's core at least through 2019.

Related: 2016-17 NBA Season Preview: Memphis Grizzlies

Adding Chandler Parsons supplements the attempt to change the team's personality, but he has injury concerns of his own. The floor-spacing forward's past two seasons were ended early by knee surgery. In all, Memphis has approximately $341 million tied up in three players who have missed a combined 106 games over the past two seasons.

Nobody is picking the Grizzlies to contend for the Western Conference title, but it's a team that, on paper anyway, could win 50 games. The likelihood is they'll win fewer, but Memphis can't afford to miss the playoffs - or to back into them like they did in last year's historically injury-plagued campaign.

Utah Jazz

The Jazz's moves this summer were intended to prod the team into a significant step up. It's arguable that anything less than a Northwest Division title for Utah will be a disappointment, and that's with leading scorer Gordon Hayward expected to miss at least the first two weeks of the regular season.

There are questions about the Jazz's offensive efficiency even with Hayward on the floor, but in terms of talent alone - specifically "fit" talent like veteran additions George Hill, Joe Johnson, and Boris Diaw - the team should be significantly improved over last year's 40-42 finish.

Yet the clock is ticking for the Jazz as well.

Hayward is expected to opt out of his contract next summer, and while he may choose to return to Utah, he might not. Hill will also be an unrestricted free agent, while Rudy Gobert will be restricted. In 2018, Derrick Favors hits free agency. In other words, significant fiscal decisions await the organization, and experienced postseason contributors like Johnson and Diaw are 35 and 34 years old, respectively.

Nobody expects the Jazz to knock off the Warriors, but if healthy and clicking, the conference finals are a legitimate possibility. This year is Utah's best shot before those impending financial realities set in.

Los Angeles Clippers

After Blake Griffin was knocked out of action last season because he broke his hand punching a team employee, there was a feeling that the Clippers as we knew them were finished.

Yet trade rumors turned out to be just that - rumors - and the core of Griffin, Chris Paul, and DeAndre Jordan returns for another run at the Western Conference.

This time, it could really be their swan song. Griffin and Paul have early termination options on their contracts, and both will almost assuredly exercise them next summer.

Given the Clippers' prior performance, saying they need to "win now" is a little misleading - they've averaged 56 victories a season since 2012, but have never gotten past the second round of the playoffs. Anything less than a conference finals appearance this season, though, has to be considered a failure. Even if they manage that, the way things shake out could influence owner Steve Ballmer's long-term vision for the team.

In 2014, the Clippers defeated the Warriors in a testy, seven-game, first-round playoff series. It was essentially the apex of one of the more entertaining NBA beefs of the last few years - a rivalry that's since become highly one-sided because of the Warriors' dominance over the league.

Golden State is not unbeatable. The Cleveland Cavaliers showed the world that in June, although that was before the arrival of one Kevin Durant. For the Clippers, mimicking the Cavs and stealing four games in a series from the Warriors would be the ultimate - and likely only - optimal success story.