Jump Ahead
The Memphis Grizzlies enter the NBA All-Star break with three participants in the weekend's festivities, and two players being honored at previous stops. Zach Edey and Jaylen Wells will represent the Grizzlies in the NBA's Rising Star Challenge tonight with a chance to face their teammate Jaren Jackson Jr. on Sunday in the new NBA All-Star game format.
Meanwhile, Luke Kennard will be visiting his high school in Franklin, Ohio to celebrate an official court dedication in his honor tonight. Desmond Bane will be returning to his college at TCU for the retirement of his jersey on February 18th.
While the Grizzlies players and coaches soak in some fun and relaxing times for the week before their next game on February 20th, let's preview what's to come for this team after a 36-18 start to the season.
Grizzlies' Playoff Odds
Currently the Grizzlies sit at the two-seed position in the Western Conference standings, a spot the team has become accustomed to with a relatively healthy roster. The Grizzlies ended the regular season with the two-seed in back-to-back seasons in 2021 - 2022 and 2022 - 2023 before their health meter hit rock bottom last season.
While they hang on to the two-seed the Denver Nuggets are lurking behind them with only a 0.5-game distance between the teams. The Grizzlies also trail the Oklahoma City Thunder by 8.0 games for the first seed in the conference, making that a long shot to cover in their 28 remaining games.
According to Basketball Reference, the Grizzlies are virtually a lock to make the NBA Playoffs with 100% odds. They projected them to go 18-10 in their final 28 games to finish with the two-seed in the Western Conference with a 54-28 record. They also predicted their best case to finish at 62-20 and worst case to finish at 44-38.
While they currently hold a 2.5-game lead over the Houston Rockets for first in the Southwest division their odds to win their division was 74.1%. Also, with a current 6.0 game lead over the seventh-seeded Minnesota Timberwolves to avoid the play-in the Grizzlies have a 99.8% chance to completely avoid that situation and remain in the top six.
The Basketball Reference odds also gave the Grizzlies the second-best chance at winning the Western Conference with an 11.4% probability after the Thunder's 72.5%. They are also fourth in the entire NBA in odds to win the Finals, only trailing the Thunder, Cleveland Cavaliers, and Boston Celtics.
Grizzlies' Injury Updates
The injury bug the Grizzlies faced for nearly two years has finally resolved to a minor injury report. Ja Morant and Vince Williams Jr. are expected back after the break after missing the Grizzlies' final game against the Los Angeles Clippers due to knee soreness. Newly acquired Grizzlies' forward Marvin Bagley III is listed as day-to-day with a distal ankle syndesmosis sprain that has kept him out since December 23rd when he was with the Washington Wizards.
Two-way guard Cam Spencer remains week-to-week with thumb surgery recovery and newly acquired guard Johnny Davis is away from the team as they decide whether they will waive or keep him on the roster for the remainder of the season.
Grizzlies' 2nd Half Schedule
The Grizzlies enter All-Star weekend having played the NBA's 24th-ranked strength of schedule. With a relatively easy schedule to this point comes the remaining fourth toughest strength of schedule for the West's two-seed. Here are some important dates for the team as they fight off the teams behind them to remain as the West's two-seed:
Date | Opponent | TV |
|---|---|---|
Sun, 2/23 | @ Cleveland Cavaliers | ESPN |
Fri, 2/28 | vs New York Knicks | |
Wed, 3/5 | vs Oklahoma City Thunder | |
Fri, 3/14 | vs Cleveland Cavaliers | |
Fri, 3/21 | @ Los Angeles Clippers | NBA TV |
Thur, 3/27 | @ Oklahoma City Thunder | |
Sat, 3/29 | vs Los Angeles Lakers | |
Mon, 3/31 | vs Boston Celtics | NBA TV |
Fri, 4/11 | @ Denver Nuggets |
All the above opponents are teams that the Grizzlies are either competing with for the title of the NBA's best or teams that are in competition with them for the two-seed in the Western Conference. They also have a record of 3-8 against these opponents this season meaning they will have these games circled as teams they want to prove they are worthy of contending against.