Julian Edlow shares an NBA pick for Wednesday, November 12.
We have a jam-packed 12-game slate in the NBA on Wednesday night, but I’m focusing in on one game here. I have some interest potentially on the Atlanta Hawks playing in Sacramento, but taking a side in that one will depend on the Kings’ injury report. There could also wind up being some props on the Kings worth betting if anybody sits out against Atlanta’s defense.
But I’m targeting the Grizzlies against the Celtics, in what I feel shapes up as a pretty good spot for the C’s.
Memphis Grizzlies at Boston Celtics
The Celtics have been a pretty back-and-forth team this season, taking some poor losses, and generally responding to them. After losing to Utah, they blew out the Wizards. After losing the first game in Orlando, they came back and beat the Magic on Sunday. Now, Boston is off a two-point loss in Philadelphia on Tuesday night, after blowing a late lead.
The Celtics return home to play on the second night of a back-to-back, but the Grizzlies also played the Knicks at Madison Square Garden last night. The Celtics injury report is clean, and it feels like a spot to go all-in on a win against a spiraling Memphis squad.
Joe Mazzulla and company have a bad taste in their mouths from Tuesday’s last second defeat, and don’t want to have to ponder another loss with multiple days to stew on it. The Celtics have had a busy schedule out of the gates, but get three full off days after this game, and don’t play again until they host the Clippers on Sunday afternoon. The culture of the NBA has taught us to expect less from teams on back-to-backs, but I think this is a pedal to the metal spot for the C’s given the time off.
Meanwhile, the Grizzlies come in a complete mess. After a decent start to the season, Memphis has now lost seven of its last nine games, going 1-8 ATS during that span — losing by an average of 11.6 points. The Grizz are also yet to cover a road game on the season, sitting at 0-4 ATS.
Memphis has been historically poor against Boston dating back years, with the C’s winning 17 of the last 19 matchups. Ja Morant is displeased, and he’s playing like it, while seemingly dragging his team down with him. I think the team with the motivational edge here is the Celtics, and combined with the better talent and the better spot, gives the C’s a chance to win in a blowout here.
NBA Pick: Celtics -6.5 (-108)
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