Are the Memphis Grizzlies Really in the NBA?

I came across an article this week on the Grizzlies backup center Hamed Haddadi, the NBA's only player from Iran, in the Tehran Times (Tehran Times: NBA's Haddadi on vacation in Iran).  This picture makes me wonder how the Grizzlies expect to be taken seriously (that is Haddadi in the middle):

This guy is #2 on the Grizzlies depth chart at Center after last year's first-round draft pick Hasheem Thabeet (randomly from Dar es Salaam, Tanzania where I may be moving next year) was a total bust in his first year.  The NBA is more and more international these days, but the Grizzlies may have taken it too far with this guy...