The 21-35 Grizzlies will host the 30-28 Warriors tonight at 7:30 PM EST. The Grizzlies will be without Ja Morant, Cedric Coward, and Santi Aldama. The Warriors will be without Stephen Curry, Jimmy Butler, and Kristaps Porzingis.
The Warriors are 3.5-point favorites on DraftKings Sportsbook with the total for this game set at 226.5 points.
Grizzlies vs. Warriors prediction, preview
The Warriors are trying to stay afloat in the Western Conference after losing Jimmy Butler for the season, a terrible blow. Their defense is legitimately strong currently, sitting at 112.5 DEFRTG on the season. They’ve been getting production from their auxiliary pieces like Moses Moody and Brandin Podziemski, the latter of whom has put up two consecutive monster double doubles in a win and a loss. Gui Santos has also been hooping lately, averaging 14.8 PPG, 5.8 RPG, 3.7 APG, and 1.6 APG in his last 11 games while shooting 57.1% from the field. Currently, the Warriors are relying on ball movement and hoping for shot-making from their role players, but that’s not exactly a consistent approach to winning many games in the NBA. They’re trying to stay afloat while they wait for Curry to return. The Warriors are still slight favorites due to how poor the Grizzlies have been lately.
Memphis has been a dumpster fire all season as they continue to deal with Ja Morant’s situation(s). They shook things up at the trade deadline by moving Jaren Jackson Jr., signaling the start of another rebuild. Morant has also been involved in trade talks but nothing has materialized yet. It’s unclear whether Morant will rejoin the team by the end of the season, but for now, they’ve supplemented his production with Ty Jerome, Scotty Pippen Jr., and Cam Spencer. In the front court, they’ve replaced Jackson Jr. with Santi Aldama, GG Jackson, and Olivier-Maxence Prosper. We’re approaching the point of the season in which the bottom-dwelling teams are really grasping for straws to fill minutes, and we’ll get some wonky outcomes as a result of that.
These two teams have played just twice this season, with the Warriors winning both games.
Grizzlies vs. Warriors pick, best bet
Best Bet: GSW Warriors Moneyline -170
Due to the Warriors’ jostling for a playoff spot, I’m expecting their role players to continue putting in big minutes to stay afloat as they wait for Curry to return. The Grizzlies don’t have much to play for and are also just 20th in net rating on the season.
