New Orleans Pelicans vs Memphis Grizzlies Prediction & Betting Tips - NBA

Prediction published on 19/12/2023, 02:00  by Joseph King | Modified on 19/12/2023 at 03:44 in NBA Predictions

A Western Conference clash in the NBA sees the seventh-place New Orleans Pelicans hosting the 13th-placed Memphis Grizzlies. The Pelicans will be looking to climb the standings with a win as their 16-11 record puts them just a single game behind the fourth-place Kings. The hosts are in their best form of the season as they’ve now strung together a four game winning streak. The Pels' most recent outing resulted in a dominant 146-110 victory over the San Antonio Spurs, the second time in the last three games that they’ve cracked the 140 point mark. Jonas Valančiūnas has been particularly impressive over this recent four-game winning streak, averaging 18.5 points and 15.0 rebounds per game during that time. While they haven’t played the best opposition over their last three games, they did kick off this winning run with a 121-107 win over the first-place Timberwolves.

The Memphis Grizzlies will welcome back star point guard Ja Morant to the team after the 2022 Most Improved Player winner finished serving his 25 game suspension. The Grizz desperately need their main man back as they’ve stumbled to a 6-19 record with nearly a third of the season already in the books. Memphis faces an uphill battle if they are to make the playoffs now and might be looking at a play-in spot as a best case scenario. It also remains to be seen if head coach Taylor Jenkins decides to throw Morant back into the starting lineup or if he will be on a minutes restriction. Morant hasn’t played an NBA game in nearly eight full months so the Grizzlies might be cautious until their star is up to full game speed. The visitors are on a five game losing streak following their 116-97 loss to the Thunder on Monday night.