The Oklahoma City Thunder had an impressive regular season, finishing with a 68-14 record. Their dominance set a new franchise record and nearly reached the historic 70-win mark—something only two teams in the NBA’s history have done.
The Thunder are now enjoying the payoff from that regular-season run, holding a comfortable 2-0 lead over the Memphis Grizzlies in their first-round playoff series. The Grizzlies, on the other hand, are facing tough times. They recently fired head coach Taylor Jenkins and haven’t found much momentum since.
Memphis was once solidly in the No. 3 spot in the West but dropped games late and slid down to the No. 8 seed. While they still made the playoffs, their play hasn’t been inspiring.
Zach Lowe Calls Out the Memphis Grizzlies
Despite making the playoffs, the Grizzlies haven’t rubbed everyone the right way on and off the court. NBA insider Zach Lowe provided some thoughts on how some view the Grizzlies, noting that they’ve talked a lot but haven’t had the success to back up their claims.
“This team has talked a lot of s***, and they’re going to get rocked in this series. And we’re going to be four years into this, and they’re going to have won one playoff series. If they get smoked in this series, what does this mean for them?”
Lowe brings up a good point about the Grizzlies and their future. The core of Desmond Bane, Jaren Jackson Jr., and Ja Morant has experienced some regular-season success, but that’s it. They don’t seem ready for the big moments yet, which is a tough look for a team hyped up in recent years.
Can The Grizzlies Even The Series Up?
The Thunder have blown out the Grizzlies in both games so far in their series, but that’s what you expect for the No. 1 seed against the 8th seed. But now the series heads to Memphis, and home court advantage could give the Grizzlies a much-needed reset. Game 3 will be a major test.
If Ja Morant is aggressive and Jaren Jackson Jr. crashes the boards harder, there is a chance they could steal Game 3. Desmond Bane’s three-point shooting could also end up critical in this game, but there’s no telling what to expect.
The Thunder have an amazing defense, while the Grizzlies have a middle-of-the-road offense, which could spell impending doom. Can the Grizzlies survive Games 3 and 4? Or will the Thunder make easy work of the Grizzlies? Time will tell.