Grizzlies: Contributor score predictions vs. Oklahoma City Thunder

Somehow, the Memphis Grizzlies are 2-0 without Ja Morant in the starting lineup. Nobody wanted to see Morant go down, but the team is playing surprisingly well without its star point guard. That said, these two wins have come against subpar teams — neither the Kings nor Raptors have a winning record.

Fortunately for Memphis, they’ll have a third game in a row without a real test.

The Grizz will take on a 6-15 Oklahoma City Thunder team at home. The Thunder are 1-9 in their last ten games and have lost seven in a row — this is not a good basketball team. That said, Memphis lost to an even worse Thunder team a year ago with Ja Morant.

Can the Memphis Grizzlies extend their record to 3-0 without Ja Morant in the game? Our contributors weigh in.

Jack Williams (Site Expert): I picked against the Grizz last game and was forced to eat my own words. I won’t make the same mistake twice in a row. Clearly, Memphis is capable of holding its own without Ja Morant, so I can see the Grizzlies winning big against OKC before a tough contest in Dallas against the Mavericks. Based on nothing but a hunch, I’m predicting Desmond Bane to have his best game all season long, scoring via three-point barrage. I’ll give the Grizz a comfortable margin of victory.

Memphis Grizzlies 116, Oklahoma City Thunder 103

Noah Hancock: Memphis is without Ja Morant, but the Grizzlies have pulled out 2 wins in spite of that. As bad as it sounds, some of these guys have been playing in Ja Morant’s Shadow and Memphis has had to rely on him a lot. Which isn’t bad. He is the star. But now it’s time for the players to step up and find their footing without their star player. I see their play to continue to build, and while playing a franchise that has more draft picks than players it should be a sure thing tonight for the Grizzlies as we see another great game.

Memphis Grizzlies 112, Oklahoma City Thunder 97