Portland Trail Blazers at Memphis Grizzlies
Time: 8:30 PM CST
TV: TNT
Spread: MEM -6
M/L: MEM -240; POR +200
Total: 190
Betting odds c/o Bovada
The Portland Trail Blazers emerged with its first series victory in Game 4, to pull the series to 3-1 Memphis. No team has ever come back from an 0-3 deficit, and NBA oddsmakers setting the live betting lines aren’t expecting this series to be a historic first. NBA odds showed the Grizzlies as 6-point favorites to close the series out, with the moneyline on Memphis at -240. For an explanation of how to bet these odds, and the 190 over/under, see our NBA odds explained.
Damian Lillard essentially willed the Blazers to its game 4 victory, hitting several clutch shots, including a four-point play which was followed by another triple. He had 32 points on 12 of 23 shooting while hitting all seven of his free throws. Lillard also had seven assists with just two turnovers, while posting a plus-9 for his 39 minutes on the court. LaMarcus Aldridge had an off-game hitting just 6 of 22 from the floor, while Nic Batum was 3 of 13, but Lillard and backup guard C.J. McCollum were enough to carry the offense.
McCollum saw starters minutes, as Arron Afflalo played just 19 and C.J. saw 35. In those minutes he hit 8 of 12 from the floor for 18 points while pulling down five rebounds, dishing two assists and coming up with a pair of steals. The Blazers were plus-23 while McCollum was on the court, essentially proving he made the difference considering Portland won by seven points.
For the Grizzlies, Zach Randolph could not find the range. He knocked down just 6 of 20 from the floor and the Grizzlies shot 30 of 62 outside of his horrible game. The offense needs to be more spread, and even concentrated in the hands of Marc Gasol, who hit a number of impressive shots in the post, and finished with a team-high 21 points. Gasol is capable of taking on a colossal role if its given to him, and the Grizzlies would be wise to do it. He played 41 minutes in the loss, while Courtney Lee was second in points with 19 and 37 minutes of play.
The Grizzlies didn’t get much from Jeff Green, but Beno Udrih came in with some solid shooting off the bench to score 13 points in 24 minutes. Ideally, Green steps up to provide the scoring that Tony Allen doesn’t, but that didn’t happen in Game 4, and that is a big reason why the Grizzlies lost. The Blazers bench produced 31 points from McCollum and Meyers Leonard, who also had a monster game with 13 boards and 13 points, on just six shot attempts.
The Blazers have the talent to win this series, which must make the 0-3 start all the more frustrating. These teams are very evenly matched, but the Grizzlies suffocating defense is well-suited for the postseason and the team’s enduring success attests to that. Look for the Grizzlies to close out this series, while betting the six-point spread is a bit more problematic and dicey.
The Blazers did win game 4 by seven points, but Memphis is back at the grind house on Beale Street, and a very dangerous team on its homecourt. Randolph will have to have better success shooting the ball for the Grizzlies to get by in this series, and being without Mike Conley is still a handicap, even with Nick Calathes (12 points) and Udrih producing.
