In this betting preview, we will check out a Western Conference matchup between Memphis Grizzlies and Utah Jazz. The match will take place at FedExForum, the home of Grizzlies on March 9th.
Memphis Grizzlies are currently sitting at 14th place in the West with a 26-40 record this season. However, despite a poor record, they are coming into the next match with 3 wins in the last 5. In the course of those 5 matches, Grizzlies lost to Chicago Bulls (107:109) and Oklahoma City Thunder in yet another close match (99:95), however, managed to defeat Los Angeles Lakers (110:105), Dallas Mavericks (81:111) and Portland Trail Blazers (120:111) on Wednesday night. While Grizzlies don't have a good season behind them, they are still a decent defensive team, currently ranked 6th most effective defensive team in the league. Furthermore, they are the most efficient NBA team in the last 3 matches. On the other side, Grizzlies are far from good when it comes to their offensive work. As it stands now, they are the least effective offensive team in the league, averaging only 101.4 points per game.
The away side tonight, Utah Jazz hold on to the 6th spot in the West with an overall record of 37-27 and a 4-1 record in the last 5 matches. During their last 5 fixtures, Jazz only lost to New Orleans Pelicans (112:115), while they managed to defeat LA Clippers (111:105), Denver Nuggets (104:111), Milwaukee Bucks (115:111) and New Orleans Pelicans on March 7th, only two days after losing to them (104:114). As of now, Jazz Jazz look like a strong candidate to finish in the playoffs spot, if they can continue with the good form they showed in the recent fixtures.
Heading into this match, Grizzlies will miss Anderson and Casspi, while Holiday and Bradley both listed as probable. Utah Jazz on the other side have Rubio and Udoh listed as probable and remain without Neto and Exum, who are both sidelined.
This match will mark the 3rd H2H fixture between Memphis Grizzlies and Utah Jazz this season. Out of all 3 matches, Grizzlies won two; 84:92, 100:110, while the most recent that took place on November 13th belonged to Utah Jazz (88:96). With all the injured players, Jazz look like they will enter the match without any real point guard, which ultimately puts the responsibility of ball-handling onto Mitchell. That surely won't help their offensive strength when they travel to FedExForum, where Jazz will face off against one of the best defensive teams in the league. As for Memphis Grizzlies, I don't think I need to express how bad they perform in the offensive end. While they are capable of defending their basket, when it comes to scoring points, they fail to perform. That will be a huge issue for the home side who will go against the 3rd best defensive team in the league. When two strong defensive teams with problems in the offensive end play against each other, we can not expect a lot of points, and I don't expect to see that here either.
Prediction: Under 210.00 points
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