The Memphis Grizzlies had such a bright start to the 2009 season but they have been skating downhill ever since. They were five games over .500 on February 1st and were competing for a playoff spot in the Western Conference playoff race.

But they have been subpar since, winning just seven of their last 17 games and falling far behind in the playoff race.

The biggest culprit has been their young team and their draft class. The Grizzlies have never been this competitive this far into a season and while they were very fresh to start the year, they clearly lacked the depth to maintain it.

And when their front line players hit the wall, their depth was nowhere to be found.

Most of that depth is supposed to be comprised of their draft class but that group of players has been a big bust. No. 2 overall pick, Hasheem Thabeet, hasn’t been much of a contributor at all. As a matter of fact, he was sent down to the Developmental League because he was just taking up space on the Grizzlies bench.

Meanwhile, Sam Young and DeMarre Carroll have played like second-round picks: inconsistent.

On Wednesday, they’ll be in tough in Boston against the Celtics.

Memphis Grizzlies @ Boston Celtics
Sportsbook Odds: Celtics -8

The main focus when it comes to basketball this week is the college hard courts as the March Madness betting season is upon us.

But the focus in Boston will be the Celtics as the tricky Grizzlies visit.

The Grizzlies have the injury bug and that could be a problem for them. They will be going up against a tough frontcourt that includes Kevin Garnett, Kendrick Perkins, Rasheed Wallace and Glen Davis, and they may be without their All-Star, Zach Randolph.

Randolph is day-to-day with a back injury and the Grizz may be without another key member, Ronnie Brewer, as he is out nursing a hamstring injury.

The Celtics have some chemistry issues that they are dealing with and clearly, they are no longer a championship contender, but they are still a very good team. The Celtics play solid defense – something that the Grizzlies struggle to do – and that is going to be an issue.

Look for the Celtics to put the clamps down on the shorthanded Grizzlies and get a good win at home on Wednesday.

Betting Tips: Celtics -8

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This Wednesday, two teams that are fighting an uphill battle for the final playoff spot in the NBA Western Conference will square-off on Bourbon Street where the New Orleans Hornets play host to the Memphis Grizzlies.

Memphis Grizzlies (30-30, 11th in Western Conference) @ New Orleans Hornets (31-30, 10th in Western Conference)

NBA odds (*note lines are approximations as they have not been posted at the time of writing)

Bookmaker Review
Spread: New Orleans -3
Over/Under: 204
Money Line: New Orleans -150, Memphis +120

Positional Matchups

PG: Mike Conley vs. Darren Collison

- Mike Conley is a steadily improving young point guard. In his third year out of Ohio State, Conley has averaged just over 10 points and 5 assists a game. The Grizzlies have a lot of ball handlers on the team and play a lot of isolation and post up games so Conley’s assist total may be misleading of his performance. Conley has improved his assist total every year and his three point shooting has followed suit (43%, 149 attempts).

- Darren Collison has filled in remarkably for injured All-Star and team leader, Chris Paul. While Paul heals up from minor knee surgery, the rookie 2nd round pick has caught the brunt of the minutes and has performed better than anyone but maybe Collison himself has expected. Starting for the whole month of February, Collison averaged 21.6 points, 8.3 assists and 3.9 rebounds a game. That is hardly a performance expected out of a rookie second round pick. What is expected however is the 4.8 turnovers a game that Collison also averaged.
- Conley is good and improving and Collison seems to be a real steal for the Hornets, especially if Paul leaves via free agency after his contract is up. Collison is asked to do a lot for the Hornets and Conley is not the type of guy who can stop him consistently.
Advantage: Hornets

SG: O.J. Mayo vs. Marcus Thornton

- O.J. Mayo is an emerging talent in the NBA in his second season. Mayo has averaged 17.7 points with just over 3 rebounds and assists a game. Mayo is a 38% three point shooter but is becoming known as a great defender with his athletic 6-4 frame. Mayo is coming off a poor performance against the Trail Blazers Monday when he had 9 points and 4 turnovers.
- Marcus Thornton is another rookie second round pick (drafted by Miami) that has been a shot in the arm for New Orleans this year. In February, Thornton averaged 18.8 points with 3.8 rebounds and 1.8 assists while missing four games due to injury early in the month. Thornton’s defense is very raw and can be exploited if attempted.
- Thornton will have a real test in O.J. Mayo defensively in this game. If Mayo decides to spend a lot of time driving on Thornton in this game, it may be a big day for Mayo and a long night for Thornton.
Advantage: Grizzlies

SF: Rudy Gay vs. Peja Stojakovic

- Rudy Gay has been an enigmatic player in both his college and NBA career. His offensive skill is elite but his shooting is just average mainly because of his below average three-point shooting (32.6%) and insistence on taking them (144 attempts). Gay has the reputation of being a lazy defender and a bad decision maker with poor shot selection. Gay really is a great midrange player and is explosive going to the hoop which he should do much more of. Still, Gay averages 20.2 points and 5.8 rebounds a game and has to be accounted for when on the floor.
- Peja Stojakovic is on a noticeable decline now at age 32. The once great Yugoslovian was never a great defender, but is a liability now. He has always been known for being a great shooter but now is just above average at best (38.5% 3PT, 41% FG).
- Although Peja may get some open looks on Gay, Gay should have the better game as he is far more athletic and has a crazy wingspan. Gay can hit all of those crazy shots he takes, and if he’s on he can be unstoppable, much like Vince Carter in that way. Peja will offer little resistence.
Advantage: Grizzlies

PF: Zach Randolph vs. David West

- Zeebo has had a tremendous season after finally escaping the disaster that is the New York Knicks. After watching Zach play with no effort whatsoever for years it surprised a lot of people, but really pisses off a lot of Knicks fans… like me. Zach has averaged 20.6 points and 11.9 rebounds a game but the real improvement has been the incredible tenacity on the offensive boards where Zach gets 4.4 a game, a career high. Zach was an all-star this year to further irritate all remaining Knicks fans. Can’t really blame Zeebo I guess, the Knicks were a train-wreck…are…just counting down those days to LeBron hitting free agency…yeah, so…
- David West has put up another solid year but has seen his scoring and rebounds slip a little from last year. West’s ability to both bang down low and hit the 18-20 footers that stretch the defense. West had a 40 point 10 rebound night in a win against Orlando last week and if left alone, can do that again.
- Expect these two Power forwards to have an epic battle with both having a big impact on the game.
Advantage: Even

C: Marc Gasol vs. Emeka Okafor

- Marc Gasol has impressed in his second year in the NBA. Slimming down in the offseason, Gasol has been a big reason for the Grizzlies success. He has averaged 15 points and 9.4 rebounds a game. Gasol’s low post game is improving and has showed much of the talent that has made his Brother the All-Star that he is.
- Emeka Okafor was once a second overall pick the NBA Draft and was debated about being the top pick over Dwight Howard at the time. That all seems foolish now as Emeka has proved to be just an average center that can handle undersized and lesser athletes but not much more than that. Howard abused Okafor last week in te Hornets win, but that was in large part of what David West did, rather than anything Okafor did.
- Gasol is a top athlete, but has the size and scoring ability that Okafor will have trouble with. Okafor brings next to nothing offensively.
Advantage: Grizzlies

Prediction:

The Grizzlies are a better team than New Orleans without Chris Paul in the lineup. New Orleans will get an added boost from playing at home, but they have lost four of their last five. Both teams are on the outside looking at the playoff picture and oth need this game. Expect to see Memphis take this one over the young backcourt of the Hornets.

Final: Memphis 108 – New Orleans 99.
Sportsbook Review: Take Memphis and the over.

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The Dallas Mavericks made some moves to boost their sportsbook odds (betus reviews) before the trade deadline, and they did it with the Los Angeles Lakers in mind because to be the champs, you have to beat the champs. The Mavericks will host the Lakers on Wednesday night, but the Lakers have had their way in Dallas lately.

Los Angeles Lakers vs. Dallas Mavericks odds – Wednesday, February 24, 9:00 PM ET

This will be the second half of a back-to-back for the Lakers, who are 10-3 in the second half of back-to-backs this season. They play in Memphis on Tuesday, and they’re hoping that Kobe Bryant will be available to play, and that’s pretty likely when you consider how many injuries it took just to get Bryant to sit for five games, which also stretched around the All-Star break. The Lakers went 4-1 in the five games that Bryant sat, losing only a one-point game against Boston at home, and that has to be encouraging to Bryant and coach Phil Jackson. Bryant is still the leader of the offense, but maybe this will give him some more confidence in his teammates.

The Mavericks are hoping that the acquisitions of Caron Butler (whom Bryant lobbied to get here a couple of years ago) and Brendan Haywood from Washington for Josh Howard will improve their sportsbook odds, but we know for sure it’ll improve their locker room as Howard was immature and reportedly sat out games with hangovers. Jason Kidd now has a whole slew of weapons in Butler, Dirk Nowitzki and Jason Terry coming off the bench, but the pickup of Haywood may be more important to the Mavs’ chances. Erick Dampier is out for at least a month with a finger injury, and you probably couldn’t get a better replacement for Dampier as Haywood is very similar, and possibly better. He’s long, can rebound and block shots, and that will definitely help against the Lakers’ trio of Andrew Bynum, Pau Gasol and Lamar Odom.

The Mavericks should be the favorites at home, as they are 17-9 at American Airlines Center prior to Monday’s visit from Indiana. Bryant has averaged just 15.0 points in three meetings with Dallas, but two of those have resulted in wins. Butler gives the Mavericks a backup option if Nowitzki is getting extra attention. The Mavericks have lost three in a row at home to the Lakers, who were 16-9 on the road ahead of their game in Memphis on Tuesday, but they’ll probably still be trying to work Bryant into the lineup. Watch out for the Mavericks’ defense, as they hadn’t allowed more than 100 points since getting Haywood from Washington.

NBA betting pick: Dallas

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US sportsbooks (US sportsbook review) will surely have New York in the running for the free-agent bonanza of 2010, as they made a slew of moves at the deadline to clear cap space, but they made one very intriguing move as well. The New York Knicks will host Oklahoma City on Saturday night in Madison Square Garden, and they need to stop their current slide, perhaps with a new face.

Thunder vs Knicks odds – Saturday, February 20, 7:30 PM ET

The Thunder (31-21) have won seven straight, including a 99-86 win at home over Dallas on Tuesday. Kevin Durant’s 25 points gave him 26 games with 25 or more, and he added 14 boards while James Harden came off the bench to notch 17 points. However, what’s more impressive is the way that the young Thunder play defense as they’re sixth in points against, and only three of their last 15 opponents have scored 100 points or more. The Thunder held Dallas, who were integrating some new faces into the lineup, to 32.3% from the field, and they forced 12 turnovers.

The Knicks (19-34) have lost five in a row and eight of their last 10 overall, dropping the second half of a home-and-home with Chicago 115-109 at home on Wednesday. Al Harrington came off the bench to score 27 points, while Wilson Chandler dropped 26 points for the Knicks, who sat Nate Robinson due to an impending trade. The Knicks then sent Robinson to Boston for expiring contracts. New York then traded for Tracy McGrady in a three-team deal with Houston and Sacramento to get more expiring contracts. McGrady has yet to play this year after coming back from knee surgery, and his giant contract comes off the books this year, but what do the Knicks do if he starts to play well? It should be interesting to sports betting fans across the world.

The Thunder should be favored on the road, where they are 15-11, and they’ve won three of their last five trips to New York, where the Knicks are 12-17. The Thunder have won five of their last six overall against the Knicks, who are essentially a mess, but it’ll be good to see McGrady back on the court if he makes his debut on Saturday, which is a pretty good possibility. Still, the Knicks shouldn’t think that he’ll turn around this franchise, and he’s playing more to get a contract somewhere else next year. The Thunder are on a roll right now, and they’ve shown an ability to win both low-scoring games and offensive shootouts. The Knicks will try to draw them into a shootout, but we have more confidence in the Thunder’s ability to make a late stop when it’s necessary.

NBA betting pick: Oklahoma City

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Growing up I was huge fan of the NBA. I enjoyed watching basketball and enjoyed playing it just as much. In New York we had a team that was actually a contender every year and Michael Jordan was putting on a show every time he was on primetime back in the NBA on NBC days.

As time would go on the New York Knicks became worse and the NBA became more boring. There was a period of time in the NBA that after the post-Michael Jordan era there was no one that the country would really want to tune into and watch an NBA game. My love for the NBA became less and less.

My time as a Sports fan was spent more at watching Baseball and Football, the time I spent watching Basketball was almost non-existent. If it were not for College Basketball (which is still much more exciting then the NBA), I may not be watching anytime of basketball anymore. It just got way to boring. Call me a bandwagon fan for jumping off the Knicks ship, start arguing that Basketball is the most exciting sport in the United States but it has become to boring for me to even care about anymore.

I have tried to get back into it. I will watch Knicks when I can. I even tuned into the NBA All-Star Game this past Sunday. But I just can’t do it.

Case in point the NBA Trade Deadline; trade deadlines are one of the most exciting days of the year in sports like Major League Baseball because this is the point when teams that are contending for a Championship make a couple moves to kick their season into 4th gear as the post season gets closer. Did the NBA get the memo regarding the excitement and importance of this day? Because I’ve been watching ESPN try to make anything out of this day and they are failing poorly.

As I write this Antawn Jamison was traded to the Cleveland Cavaliers to join Lebron James and Shaquille O’Neal in Cleveland’s quest of keeping Lebron as a Cavaliar by winning a championship. I remember Jamison as a Tar Heel back in the 90s, he was a decent player but this is the big storyline so far? Caron Butler a couple days ago was traded to the Mavericks but once again I yawn.

The other big storyline of the day at the trade deadline is whether or not Tracy McGrady will be traded to the New York Knicks. Oh my god! Are you serious? The overweight and locker room problem T-Mac to the Knicks, what a match made in heaven! The Knicks are making a run at the championship to right? Well if you consider be the current 11th spot in the East and only 19 wins a contender then yes.

The NBA Trade Deadline is horrible, or as Charles Barkley would say “terrible.” If today means anything to the NBA they would more then likely cover it up until the deadline on their own network…right? Wrong yet again. I tuned into the NBA network and they were showing clips of last night’s games and were planning on doing so for the rest of the deadline. That’s how exciting it is!

When the NBA doesn’t care enough about one of its larger days of the regular season to even cover it on their own network we have a major problem. If you’re an NBA fan more power to you because you can put up with this stuff. The NBA needs a jolt of energy in its league and putting that jolt into puppets of Kobe Bryan & Lebron James just doesn’t do it for me.

Let’s be honest Kobe Bryant is an amazing basketball player but his cardboard cutouts have more personality then him. Oh and remember back in the first part of the decade when Kobe got into a little bit of trouble in Colorado? Ah not many people remember that, hence one of the reasons why I believe eight years from now we will forget about Tiger’s love fest. But I once again digress.

The NBA is by far one of the worst leagues out of the big four in the United States (NFL, MLB, NBA and NHL). It would be the worse if it wasn’t for the NHL not having a place they can really showcase their games on. Though I must admit I do watch the Winter Classic every New Years Day now. What can I say I like hokey bits like that; which is one of the reasons why I watched the NBA All-Star Game in Cowboys Stadium.

The NBA Trade Deadline is boring, no one cares. I feel bad for the NBA analysts that will have to break down the three trades that happen today. Very tough job they have. Though I am interested in how they will break down a player past his prime (Tracy McGrady) going to a team that is just waiting for Lebron James, Dwayne Wade and Chris Bosh to become free agents (the New York Knicks).

The Knicks have been throwing away their seasons for the past two years for this!? Let’s trade for T-Mac because I’m sure he will attract a big name player! Note to Knicks: Stephon Marbury, Steve Francis, Zach Randolph, Antonio McDyess and Penny Hardaway. Good work New York!

I can not wait for Baseball to start.

Jeff Peck is the producer for the “Wheelhouse Radio” program that airs every Sunday – Thursday @ 8pm ET/5pm PT at www.blogtalkradio.com/thewheelhouse and at www.errorfm.com @ 2am ET/11pm PT

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The Toronto Raptors have quietly been one of the hottest teams in the NBA but nobody is giving them much credit. Since the Raptors started 7-13 they are 22-10, which has allowed them to climb up to fifth in the Eastern Conference. Unfortunately for them, though, they are still just 29-23 and would still be set up with a matchup against the Boston Celtics in the first round of the playoffs.

The Raptors will be in tough against anyone in the first round of the playoffs if they don’t have home court advantage, so they’ll have to kick it up a notch if they are to make a run at the No. 4 seed. Furthermore, the Celtics are aiming to make a move to bolster their roster and bolster their playoff run whereas the Raptors very much look like a team that will stand pat.

Toronto will have a chance to get another win on Wednesday as they get going after the All-Star break. The Raptors will host the Memphis Grizzlies, who have already exceeded expectations this year, but are in a major funk right now.

Memphis Grizzlies @ Toronto Raptors
Sportsbetting.com Odds (Sportsbetting.com Reviews): Raptors -6

The Grizzlies are surprisingly above .500 this year but recently, they have fallen behind in the race for a playoff spot in the West. The Grizzlies have lost four straight games – and six of their last seven – and as is always the case with young teams, the Grizzlies have to be weary that they might not have the endurance for a full season run.

The Grizzlies are competent, but it’s almost like they have forgotten fundamentals recently. They have had trouble rebounding and playing defense, but that might not be so much of an issue against the Raptors.

The Raptors are one of the worst rebounding and defensive teams in the NBA and if there was a chance for Memphis to clear their minds and bounce back, Toronto would be the team for that.

Sports betting handicappers might have a tough time seeing the Grizzlies win on the road, especially since Toronto is 20-6 at the Air Canada Centre and the Grizzlies are just 8-17 away from home, but the Grizzlies should play this one close. Expect them to cover while the Raptors get the slight win.

NBA Betting Lines Pick: Grizzlies +6

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