Even without Randolph, OKC should not be laying 9.5 pts in a must win situation for both teams. Grizzlies mainly run their offense through Conley/Gasol, so losing Randolph isn't a big deal. But I know it's something OKC bettors will look into to justify them laying 9.5 here vs Memphis. Miller will get a bigger roll, J. Johnson will get more playing time (Johnson will need to have a big game tonight). Conley is banged up but he said he will play. Tony Allen is another player who will be key for the Grizz to have. Regardless if they play, the Grizz are perceived as a banged up squad with no hope to cover on the road let alone win.
Conley, Lee, TA, JJ and Gasol or Conley, TA, JJ, E. Davis and Marc are two line ups that can present some problems for OKC's style of offense.
I love the "nobody believes in us" theory. Everybody knows the NBA is a business and having Durant and CO. moving on is good for the brand. However, it doesn't mean that this game can't be competitive.
Randolph and Gasol together were clogging things up in the paint. Look for the Grizz to play a much more uptempo style of basketball and basically play shot for shot with OKC.
So we have a banged up squad that opened as +8 at Pinny....now shot up to 9.5, a squad that is 0-2 in Game 7's and I'd say out of all 3 match ups tonight this will be the most lopsided in terms of the betting public. Grizzlies also coming off a 20 pt loss at home when they were healthy. Headlines everywhere regarding the Randolph suspension will also scare people into backing the Grizzlies. Reading social media and the papers, the Grizzlies are basically "wiped out" and are "defeated". I see this game playing out a lot similiar to Game 4 of this series. Grizzlies battle hard and come close but falter at the end. If they do get the W, more power to them. Usually I'd sprinkle the ML but I'll just stick with the points.
$532 Memphis Grizzlies +9.5 -108
$139 M. Gasol Over 17.5 pts -139
Conley, Lee, TA, JJ and Gasol or Conley, TA, JJ, E. Davis and Marc are two line ups that can present some problems for OKC's style of offense.
I love the "nobody believes in us" theory. Everybody knows the NBA is a business and having Durant and CO. moving on is good for the brand. However, it doesn't mean that this game can't be competitive.
Randolph and Gasol together were clogging things up in the paint. Look for the Grizz to play a much more uptempo style of basketball and basically play shot for shot with OKC.
So we have a banged up squad that opened as +8 at Pinny....now shot up to 9.5, a squad that is 0-2 in Game 7's and I'd say out of all 3 match ups tonight this will be the most lopsided in terms of the betting public. Grizzlies also coming off a 20 pt loss at home when they were healthy. Headlines everywhere regarding the Randolph suspension will also scare people into backing the Grizzlies. Reading social media and the papers, the Grizzlies are basically "wiped out" and are "defeated". I see this game playing out a lot similiar to Game 4 of this series. Grizzlies battle hard and come close but falter at the end. If they do get the W, more power to them. Usually I'd sprinkle the ML but I'll just stick with the points.
$532 Memphis Grizzlies +9.5 -108
$139 M. Gasol Over 17.5 pts -139
