The Memphis Grizzlies need two wins without a loss over the Portland Trail Blazers this weekend to reach the NBA playoffs – and oddsmakers don't see them getting even halfway there as the teams face off in their first of two potential meetings Saturday. The Sportsbook of the unique play-in format will face the Western Conference-champion Los Angeles Lakers in Round 1.
Sportsbook Odds Analysis
The Trail Blazers opened as six-point favorites, and has held steady at the majority of sportsbooks. The total opened at a sky-high 233.5, but most books have adjusted it down a point (with the UNDER and OVER installed at an identical -110).
Memphis News & Notes
The Grizzlies sputtered to the finish line, going 2-6 SU and ATS in eight games in the Orlando bubble; it took a 13-point victory over a Milwaukee Bucks team minus Giannis Antetokounmpo for Memphis to earn a spot in the play-in series. But Memphis played Portland tough during the season, earning a seven-point win Feb. 12 and dropping a five-point OT decision July 31.
One key for the Grizzlies will be their ability to Portland's dynamic backcourt duo of Damian Lillard and C.J. McCollum; the other will be how they exploit Portland's 26th-ranked defense. Three Memphis players averaged better than 20 points per game in those two regular-season meetings between the team, led by reserve Brandon Clarke at 24.0 points.
Portland News & Notes
Lillard only played 66 regular-season games, but that doesn't cheapen his scoring achievement whatsoever. Lillard became the first player in franchise history to average 30 or more points per game thanks to an incredible tear that saw him average 51.3 points over the final three games of the season (including a career-high-tying 61 in a 134-131 win over Dallas on Aug. 11.)
But the Grizzlies were one of the most defensively responsible teams in the league when facing Lillard this season. He averaged only 24.5 points in the two regular-season meetings while shooting a dismal 41.9 percent from the field. Lillard struggled in particular from beyond the arc, making just four of his 16 attempts from 3-point range against Memphis.
Betting Pick: Memphis ATS
Portland played much better than Memphis in the bubble, but these teams are more evenly-matched than those summer results would indicate – and six points is too many to give a Grizzlies team that can hang with the Blazers.