Cavaliers vs Grizzlies

PROJECTED STARTING LINEUPS: · MEMPHIS: Ja Morant, Desmond Bane, Dillon Brooks, Jaren Jackson Jr., Brandon Clarke · CLEVELAND: Darius Garland, Donovan Mitchell, ...

The Grizzlies need an offense spark. Brandon Clarke seems like a likely candidate to (inexplicably) come off the bench, so they could use his rolling abilities to put Love through pick-and-roll cycles. Santi Aldama can use his driving and slashing from the perimeter to initiate advantages downhill. It will be tough with the offensive prowess of Kevin Love and Ricky Rubio, but they can exploit them defensively. Fresh off an ACL return, Rubio is a defensive matchup Jones can attack with his 3-level scoring and his drive-and-kick attack. Starting with the floor general, Tyus Jones has cooled off, averaging 5.8 points on 30.8% shooting in the past 4 games. He can do so on either Garland or Donovan Mitchell, who didn’t play in the last meeting between the two teams. Since the Kings game on De’Aaron Fox, he hasn’t really had a signature “villain” game where he forces another team’s star player into an off-night. It was a thrilling matchup that looked like the championship preview that basketball savants desire and TV executives dread. It hasn’t been the case since it became 2023. Then, the losing returned, as they lost to the [Portland Trail Blazers](https://www.blazersedge.com) at home last night. [Indiana Pacers](https://www.indycornrows.com), exemplifying the energy and swagger we’re used to seeing from this team.

Find Cavaliers vs. Grizzlies predictions, betting odds, moneyline, spread, over/under and more for the February 2 NBA matchup.

NBA odds, picks, and predictions for the Memphis Grizzlies at Cleveland Cavaliers on February 2. NBA betting best bet and free pick analysis.

Given that Memphis is likely to be gassed for this one, I like Cleveland’s chances to dictate the pace of play. Unders are 5-0 in their last five road games, but a longer view has seen the Under go 20-6 in their last 26 away from FedEx Forum. The Cavs have just looked a little disjointed to my eyes, which is the only reason Cleveland -4.5 isn’t my best bet. For one thing, they’ve tended to bounce back following an ATS loss, which has seen them go 6-0 in the last six times they’ve faced that situation this season. That’s seen them go 2-6 ATS in their last eight games overall, as well as 1-4 in their last five on the road. For example, they allow an above-average amount of shots at the rim, and way above average for a good defense, but the threat of On average they’re undershooting their lines by 10.1 points per game per Cleaning the Glass, an almost impossibly poor number for a team as good as Memphis. The Memphis Grizzlies are still second in the Western Conference, but they’re in a challenging part of their season at the moment. He just literally takes up so much space, even schemes designed to stay in contact with Morant end up conceding him a runway to the hoop. The Grizzlies and Cavaliers are first and third in the NBA in D-rating respectively, but that only tells a small part of the tale of why they’re so hard to beat. Cavaliers for Thursday, February 2 believe that the combination of dead legs, defensive excellence, and Memphis’ recent offensive struggles will lead to a low-scoring affair. Thursday night’s game has all the makings of a good old-fashioned rock fight.

Jacob McKenna previews Thursday's NBA contest between the Memphis Grizzlies and the Cleveland Cavaliers, including a betting prediction.

[49.1%](https://www.nba.com/stats/teams/traditional?DateFrom=01/01/2023&DateTo=02/01/2023&dir=A&sort=FG_PCT) from the floor in January, a percentage that ranked in the top-10 for the month. That leaves Memphis vulnerable in the middle of the floor, which could pose a problem against a Cavaliers team averaging [51.0 points per game in the paint](https://www.teamrankings.com/nba/stat/points-in-paint-per-game). [Offensive Rating](https://www.nba.com/stats/teams/advanced?dir=A&sort=OFF_RATING) of 113.9, but in their past seven games that number has fallen to [108.4](https://www.nba.com/stats/teams/advanced?DateFrom=01/20/2023&DateTo=02/02/2023&Location=&dir=D&sort=OFF_RATING). The Grizzlies are shooting just [28.9% from 3](https://www.nba.com/stats/teams/traditional?LastNGames=7&dir=D&sort=FG3_PCT) in that same seven-game span. It was already going to be difficult for Memphis to score inside, but when you remove Adams from the picture, it becomes even more difficult. The biggest reasons for the low offensive output in that game was an inability to shoot from deep or at the line. Memphis is just 4-5 without Adams and has posted a 113.5 Defensive Rating in those games (per Adams has missed the past four games, a span in which the Grizzlies have posted a -34 point differential. During that seven-game span, Memphis has struggled tremendously on the offensive end of the floor. Get up-to-the-minute [NBA odds](https://www.actionnetwork.com/nba/odds)here. 2 seed in the Western Conference, but things haven’t gone nearly as smoothly as that seed would indicate. That record is good enough for the No.

The intensity level in Thursday's Cleveland Cavaliers vs. Memphis Grizzlies game escalated into a quick scrum, leaving the Cavs' All-Star ejected.

As Mitchell walked off the floor, he received a loud ovation from the Cavs fans in attendance. Mitchell fell over, seemingly in pain, and threw the ball at Brooks. As Brooks rolled over, he threw his hand back and hit Mitchell in the groin.

Things got heated quickly on Thursday night in Cleveland. By the time things settled, Donovan Mitchell and Dillon Brooks were ejected after a brawl in the ...

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Grizzliers, Feb. 2, 2023 (Tim Phillis - For The News-Herald)Photos from Cavaliers vs. 2, 2023 (Tim Phillis – For The News-Herald)By Tim Phillis 2, 2023 (Tim Phillis - For The News-Herald)Show Caption of ExpandTim Phillis Grizzlies, Feb.