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Two young teams in the Western Conference faceoff when the Memphis Grizzlies (6-16, 9-13 ATS) travel to take on the Houston Rockets (11-9, 13-5-2 ATS) on Wednesday night. The Rockets currently sit at 7th in the West, with the Grizzlies way back in 13th. The Grizz just lost at home to the Mavericks, 120-113 and failed to cover the 1.5-point spread as favorites. The Rockets are coming off a low-scoring win, defeating the Spurs 93-82, and covered as 8.5-point home favorites. This is the second matchup between these two teams, with the Rockets winning by 20 at home in the previous game. Tipoff is scheduled for 8:00 EST from the Toyota Center in Houston.
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The Grizzlies have to play three more games without their star point guard Ja Morant, but the team hoped to have more than six wins through this point of the season. Memphis has been forced to try different starting lineups to account for injuries and to attempt to replace Morant's contributions. Last game out Jaren Jackson Jr. showed his star potential in a 41-point game in which he made six three pointers. Memphis tried to close the gap in the 4th quarter, winning the period by 10 points, but it was not enough to catch Luka Doncic and the Mavericks as the Grizzlies took their third loss in four games.
Desmond Bane and Jaren Jackson Jr. have been the cornerstones of the Grizzlies season. They each played in and started every game in the short season. Bane is the leading scorer with 24.8 PPG, and also leads the team in assists (5.3 per game),steals (1.3 per game), and made three pointers (3.3 pe r game). Bane dropped 49 points in the team's most recent win over Detroit. Jackson Jr. is coming off a big game and is averaging 20.8 PPG with 5.8 rebounds and 1.8 blocks. He is an elite rim protector and can space out defenses with his three point shot. The next highest scorer has been forward Santi Aldama, he typically comes off the bench as he has only started five games this season. Aldama is averaging 12.7 PPG. Derrick Rose has been starting at point guard recently, he brings 8.8 PPG and 3.4 APG.
Marcus Smart has been out of the lineup with an injury, leading Memphis to start David Roddy on the wing. Roddy is a strong guard adding 8.4 PPG. The Grizzlies rank 27th in the league in offensive efficiency and 13th in defensive efficiency according to dunksandthrees.com. Memphis plays at the 20th fastest pace in the NBA.
Injury Report:
Out: Marcus Smart, Luke Kennard, Steven Adams, Brandon Clarke