Grizzlies' Fizdale hopes to use Parsons in LeBron-type role

Memphis Grizzlies head coach David Fizdale, formerly of the Miami Heat, sees great potential in free-agent addition Chandler Parsons.

Fizdale went as far as to draw parallels between Parsons and his former South Beach compatriot, LeBron James, as a comparison for Parsons' role in the Grizzlies' offense.

"When I said I want to play him like LeBron, I do," Fizdale told ESPN's Tim MacMahon. "I really do want to use him, because there's not many guys in the league at that size that have that skill set, and there's no reason why I should put a cap on his abilities because his name isn't LeBron James.

"I just see the same skill set. He's not a high-flyer like LeBron obviously, but he can pass it, he can shoot the three, he's huge, he can post guys and he moves great without the basketball, so I can move him around in a lot of different spots."

In terms of being able to play the role of point forward, Parsons has shown a tremendous amount of versatility throughout his five-year career. As Fizdale noted, the 6-foot-9 Parsons can handle the rock, can make plays off the dribble, and connected on 41.4 percent of his looks from deep last season.

He represents a dimension that the Grit-and-Grind Grizzlies have sorely lacked. But alas, Parsons on his best day is still a ways away from James.

"I do not want to put a ceiling on him. I want to see how far we can go with him and put him in a role that is positionless ..." Fizdale added. "I think all it takes is a coach showing that he has the confidence in a guy to do it and develop him according to the system and then it can take place."