The Memphis Grizzlies could play themselves into a 6 seed in the West

The Memphis Grizzlies have a chance to play themselves into an NBA Playoff spot

Let’s rewind again. After the NBA All-Star break, the Grizzlies were hovering around the 10th spot in the Western Conference. The West was competitive, with a handful of teams in a dogfight for a spot in the play-in tournament. The Grizzlies were managing to hold onto the 10 seed, but not by much.

But an interesting set of circumstances may have changed the Grizzlies’ luck.

For starters, the Western Conference was attacked by an injury bug. The Los Angeles Lakers are currently playing without LeBron James and Anthony Davis, while the Nuggets recently lost Jamal Murray to a torn ACL. There have been a handful of injuries all around, which is never a good thing.

That said, the Grizzlies have been playing with injured players all year long — the playing field has just become more level. Here’s what the Western Conference standings look like just ahead of the Grizzlies:

• 4. Denver Nuggets
• 5. Los Angeles Lakers
• 6. Portland Trail Blazers
• 7. Dallas Mavericks

The Nuggets sit in the 4th seed in the West with the Lakers just behind them. Both of these teams were hoping to finish the year as a top seed, but have been sliding downward while being nagged with injuries. The Lakers will likely bounce back, but it’s hard to see the Nuggets stay afloat without the leader of their team.

Here’s how the Grizzlies can sneak ahead in this conference.