Lakers vs. Grizzlies Point Spread: NBA Odds, Prediction
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Charlie Grant
The Los Angeles Lakers haven’t travelled well this season and are coming off another road loss as they land in Memphis to take on Mike Conley and the Southwest division-leading Grizzlies. LeBron James and Co. will have to put in a much better defensive effort one night after they surrendered 44 fourth-quarter points to the San Antonio Spurs.
NBA Point Spread and Betting Analysis
Both the Lakers and Grizzlies played on Friday night; the former at San Antonio and the latter at New Orleans. Los Angeles failed to cover as a 1-point road favourite against the Spurs while Memphis won outright as a 5.5-point underdog against Anthony Davis and the Pelicans.
The Lakers dropped to 5-6 straight up and 4-7 against the spread away from Staples Center. The club hasn’t been a great ATS bet despite being five games over .500. LA is just 10-14-1 against the number in its first 25 regular season games.
Memphis owns a similar straight up record (15-9) but its ATS mark is much better. The Grizzlies 3-1 ATS in their last four games and 15-9 against the spread for the year.
Both Memphis and LA have been good Under bets this season but for different reasons. The Grizzlies’ defence has its bite back while the Lakers haven’t been able to consistently match the high point totals they hit in the first few weeks of the campaign. The Under is a combined 29-19-1 in games involving either the Lakers or Grizzlies.
Los Angeles Lakers
Few could have guessed the Lakers’ season would take a dramatic positive turn because of the arrival of a 36-year-old centre who was playing backup minutes for the worst team in the league before arriving in Tinseltown. But Tyson Chandler isn’t your average NBA veteran either.
The same man who was thwarting LeBron James and Dwyane Wade’s attacks at the rim in the 2011 NBA Finals is now protecting the paint and making an impact for James’ newest team. The Lakers are allowing 94.6 points per 100 possessions with Chandler on the court and 106.5 without him in the 16 games since he arrived.
Memphis Grizzlies
Last year, with Mike Conley injured and Marc Gasol playing like a shell of his former All-NBA self, the Grizzlies seemed like a team that needed to hit the reset button. But club management insisted things would improve the following year when Conley returned healthy.
The club officials can take a bow if the first quarter of the campaign is any indication of how the rest of the season will go. Conley is playing like an All-Star, Gasol is back to his regular productive self, rookie Jaren Jackson Jr. looks like a franchise cornerstone and the Grizzlies appear to be a playoff lock in the West.
