OUTLOOK:
Memphis comes to this game holding
the 10th spot in the West with a 9-13 record.
The Grizzlies have come out surprisingly above average in the first weeks of
the season and have started being physical and displaying rare rookie maturity
on everybody after a big draft night where they have allegedly added two key pieces
of the future puzzle in Jayson Tatum and Frank “Smokes” Ntilikina. One of the most
impressive additions to the roster was Kenneth Faried as he brings tenacity and
grit every night and the Grizzlies need that veteran leadership The new engine seemed
very kind to their bigs too and a team that was expected to being in the
running for the top picks in the draft but now boasts a record of 0.409 which
is close to average, and something GM Jesse Dunne would’ve certainly bargained
for if he had a choice before the season started.
Of course, with Dante Exum on the shelf again, sadly, the Grizzlies biggest
star is Jayson Tatum, who has fit into the league like velvet and now boasts a
rating of 81, which is very impressive for a rookie! He’s playing like a top
player in the league right now making people regret passing up on him 5 times
after Boston seriously considered taking him #1 overall in the NBA. Faried will
play a big part on motivating his guys, and making sure they make that extra
push to take this one. Furthemore Taj Gibson's leadership will be very
important for what they do up there.
Indiana currently sits at
the 14rd spot in the air tight East, with a 7-14 record just under
the Pistons and then the Raptors.
After a very below average start to the season, there already is some talk that
the Pacers would again be plodders in the hard and competitive Eastern
Conference after a couple of recent losses post the Blake Griffin injury, but
the season is still young and the sliders have been tweaked, so who knows how
this team will react going forward. One thing is certain, playing without Blake
Griffin will be tough and the team will have to come out motivated in order to
come out of this victorious. GM Sheed has yet to make a big trade, which must
be killing him, but they have proven themselves to be a competitive team over
the years and Griffin is a big reason why, but rumor has it there are trade talks
brewing from the Pacers camp involving Griffin, who’s a top talent, and I’m
sure it will take a good deal for him to leave Indiana after all these years.
When you take a look at
their roster, they have some veteran players that can contribute immediately,
and this was supposed to be a team built with the mindset try and compete now. A
rebuilding process is now slowly starting to take shape. I expect the domino
pieces to start falling soon.
Malik Monk is the
surprising rookie that GM Sheed drafted wanted and it fell right into his lap
in the draft to be their starting SG going forward the player to watch in this
one as he bombs threes. Next you have Tobias Harris who looks revitalized and will
be another great player to watch for the Pacers, a guy who’s one of the GM’s
favorite players in the entire league. We bet he will be extra motivated to
play well and prove he is definitely one of the league’s leading candidates for
MIP.
OUR PICK – Memphis Grizzlies:
Although the Pacers come into this one having a frontcourt advantage because of
how dominant Steven Adams and Tobias Harris can be in the lineup with
physicality, I believe the Memphis Grizzlies can compensate for that with the
play of their two sparkling rookies Tatum and Frankie and if they’re hot, watch
out. The Pacers will try to take this game inside to their bigs and Parker can
get them the ball like the best of them. Should be a great one and whoever
takes the inside shooting should take the edge imo.
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