Five quick-ish and related observations on where the Grizzlies stand today:
1. The Race for #3: With the Dallas Mavericks beating the Los Angeles Clippers in overtime last night, the race for the third seed remains very tight with the Grizzlies, Clippers, and Nuggets all tied in the loss column at 23. Here’s how the schedules for all three teams set up the rest of the way:
Grizzlies:
at Knicks
Rockets
at Wolves (back to back)
Spurs
at Blazers
at Lakers
at Kings
Bobcats
at Rockets
Clippers (b2b)
at Mavericks
Jazz
Notes: 5/7 home/road split with two back-to-backs and 9/12 against teams currently in the playoff race. Grizzlies are difficult to project based on how they’ve played without Marc Gasol and the uncertainty of his return. If the team gets back on track, 8-4 seems like a reasonable finish, which would get them to 55-27, but it could easily be a little worse if their defense continues to flounder without Gasol. The “Hollinger Playoff Odds” on ESPN.com has them projected at 54-28.
Clippers:
at Hornets
at Spurs
at Rockets (b2b)
Pacers
Suns
Lakers
Wolves
at Hornets
at Grizzlies (b2b)
Blazers
at Kings
Notes: 5/6 home/road split with two back to backs and 6/11 against teams currently in the playoff race. But not included among those playoff-caliber opponents are the Hornets, whom the Clippers still play on the road twice. The Hornets have beaten both the Grizzlies and Nuggets in the past week, so the Griz will hope they can continue to play sleeper. I’m feeling a 7-4 finish against this schedule, which would also land the Clippers at 55-27, which is where ESPN also has them projected.
Nuggets:
at Spurs
Nets
at Jazz
Mavericks (b2b)
Rockets
Spurs
at Mavericks
Blazers
at Bucks
Suns
Notes: 6/4 home/road split with one back to back and 8/10 against teams currently in playoff race. Denver has to play better teams on average but with more rest and more games on their near-insurmountable home floor. Like the Grizzlies, there’s mystery here about the availability of their most important player, point guard Ty Lawson. I’m saying 7-3 the rest of the way, which would put the Nuggets at 56-26. ESPN has them at 55-27.
