The Grizzlies are on the road in Minnesota tonight for a matchup with the Timberwolves, who surprisingly sit atop the Western Conference currently.
The T-Wolves own one of the best defenses in the league, sealing off the paint from opponents with their dual 7-foot front court. The Grizzlies are now without their star point guard Ja Morant for the duration of the year, but are still finding ways to compete, winning three of their last five games without him, including victories over the Suns, Mavericks, and Warriors in that stretch.
They are heavy underdogs on the road in this one, but the Grizzlies are proving to be a tough out despite their circumstances on a nightly basis.
Grizzlies vs. Timberwolves odds: Point spread, moneyline, total
Check out the live NBA betting odds for Thursday’s Grizzlies vs. Timberwolves contest.
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Grizzlies betting news: Injuries to top stars crushing Memphis
In addition to the unfortunate news about Morant, the Grizzlies will also be without their starting shooting guard Desmond Bane, who is out for at least six weeks with a left ankle sprain, and Marcus Smart, who is out for at least six weeks with a severe right ring finger injury.
Given Morant’s small body of work this year, Bane was the team’s leading scorer, averaging 24.4 points per game on 47%, 38.4% and 86.6% shooting splits. Smart chipped in 14.5 points per game to go along with his stellar defense. Collectively, that’s nearly 65 points per contest missing from their lineup and their best perimeter defender.
In their absence, the team is leaning on power forward Jaren Jackson to lead the offense. Jackson is having a solid year offensively, but he isn’t managing the increased offensive responsibilities as well as they would have hoped for him to do. In the last two games, he hasn’t shot above 30% from the field or higher than 22% from deep. With teams being able to key in on him, he is struggling mightily to adapt.
Up against the best defensive front court in the league tonight, that spells bad news for the Grizzlies.
Timberwolves betting news: Edwards, KAT leading West's best
As of now, the Timberwolves have had much better fortune on the health front. Their entire team is healthy and available. Offensively, none have been more productive than Anthony Edwards, who is averaging 26 points, 5.4 rebounds, and 5 assists. He is doing so on shooting splits of 46.2%, 38.5%, and 84.8%. Consistency is still an issue for him as he is still likely to have single digit scoring games here and there, already having two in January halfway through.
Karl-Anthony Towns joins him in carrying the scoring load, chipping in 21.8 points per game, 8.8 rebounds, and 3.1 assists per contest. He is doing so on shooting splits of 51.4%, 43.5%, and 89.4%. However, the Grizzlies are at least healthy in the front court, so he may not have as easy of a go at it tonight as Edwards.
The T-Wolves own the best defensive rating in the NBA, a full two points higher than the Celtics, who own the second-best rating in the league.
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Grizzlies vs. Timberwolves player props
The game isn’t likely to be competitive, but there is still plenty of value in the player prop market for the contest. If you’re looking for wager action, we’ve outlined some of the best player props below from FanDuel sportsbook. Whether individual wagers or parlay plays, these are worth consideration.
Anthony Edwards prop bets
- OVER 25.5 points (-115)
- OVER 2.5 made threes (+116)
- OVER 5.5 rebounds (-113)
Karl-Anthony Towns prop bets
- UNDER 8.5 rebounds (+104)
- OVER 3.5 assists (+116)
- UNDER 21.5 points (-113)
Jaren Jackson Jr. prop bets
- UNDER 23.5 points (-106)
- OVER 5.5 rebounds (-118)
- OVER 2.5 made threes (+124)
Grizzlies vs. Timberwolves prediction
Memphis has no viable option to turn to for offensive production in this contest. It will be hard-pressed to keep pace with the T-Wolves who will be able to have their way on the perimeter thanks to the absence of Smart.
Prediction: T-Wolves
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