As the Grizz turn: Dave Joerger stays, now 'married' to owner who reportedly wanted him to wear headset

So after all that ruckus — the firing of the guy who hired him, the ensuing front-office chaos that left him thinking he might be next out the door, the granting of permission for him to interview for another job, the meeting with Minnesota Timberwolves owner Glen Taylor that left him close to taking a new gig — Dave Joerger will remain the head coach of the Memphis Grizzlies. Feels like we traveled an awful long way just to wind up in the same place, doesn't it?

To hear Joerger and Grizzlies controlling owner Robert Pera tell it, though, we're not in the same place at all. They say their relationship has grown, blossomed and evolved over the course of the six days since Pera bid farewell to CEO Jason Levien and director of player personnel Stu Lash ... or, more to the point, that their relationship now actually exists.

After a week of deafening silence that left Grizzlies fans wondering what was happening and who was minding the store, Pera decided to get interactive on Sunday:

GrizzNation…I know it’s long overdue…I would like to do a Q&A session with you guys. What do you want to know? #FactsOnly — Robert J Pera (@RobertPera) May 25, 2014

Some of the questions were lighter in nature — he thinks "Graduation" (or, excuse me, "The Graduation") is the best Kanye record, so your mileage may very when it comes to #PeraAnswers.

As you'd expect, though, what most inquiring minds wanted to know why the coach picked to take over for ousted head coach Lionel Hollins last summer was reportedly a stone's throw away from taking over for Rick Adelman, and how he wound up back on the bench in Memphis:

@RaganSmash YES! And contrary to reports, I never had a conversation with Minnesota..it never got that far — Robert J Pera (@RobertPera) May 25, 2014

@JohnnyNBA I think Dave is a great coach. But, personnel has to want to be in Memphis. I know now Dave 100% wants to be here — Robert J Pera (@RobertPera) May 25, 2014

@thesulton25 I never really talked 1:1 with Joerger before this weekend. I think he's a great coach. — Robert J Pera (@RobertPera) May 25, 2014

Joerger, too, seems to have come away feeling #blessed to be taking his relationship with Pera to a new level after the two talked "more over the weekend than they had all season," according to Ronald Tillery of the Memphis Commercial-Appeal (subscription required):

“We understand each other a lot better and what we’re trying to do here,” Joerger said about his talks with Pera. “This shows his leadership. What’s between Robert and I now is like wow. This is how it’s supposed to be. There’s interaction and you talk about anything. This feels good.

"I’m excited. I’m really, really excited. We’re going to be fine. This is where I want to be. I have a lot invested here.”

The kicker, courtesy of the Commercial-Appeal's Geoff Calkins ($):

“This is where I choose to be,” said Joerger. “We’re married.”

Those eager to help the happy couple celebrate their nuptials with a gift are encouraged to visit their barbecue registry at Rendezvous. (NOT Central BBQ.)

Every marriage has its ups and downs, though, and it sounds like Joerger and Pera might have had quite a bit to hash out before getting back on the good foot. For one thing, according to Calkins, Pera's claim that they hadn't had any one-on-one time conveniently ignores an interaction after an early November game against the Golden State Warriors — one the Grizzlies won by 18 points — in which Pera was eager to fire his newly minted head coach.

Pera's beef stretched back further than that, though — according to Sports Illustrated's Chris Mannix, the schism stemmed from Pera's odd-even-at-the-time September challenge of Grizzlies guard Tony Allen to a game of one-on-one:

Allen, on Twitter, accepted. Pera, a Silicon Valley billionaire who bought a small controlling interest in the Grizzlies in 2012, poured tens of thousands of dollars into producing the matchup. He invited the media and instructed the public relations staff to issue a press release promoting the event.

The problem? Allen had lost interest. Joerger, a first-year head coach, didn't like the idea of the game — like many in the organization he found it goofy and unbecoming of a professional team, according to sources — but it was Allen's indifference that caused it to be called off. Yet Pera directed his frustration at Joerger and, according to a source, directed upper management to fire him.