Kings vs. Grizzlies NBA Picks: Sacramento Will Lack Motivation (Archive)

The Sacramento Kings beat the NBA odds Thursday, but now that they’re out of the playoffs race once, they might not show up for Friday’s rematch with the Grizzlies. Here’s a complete preview, including updated betting odds and NBA picks.

Sacramento Kings vs. Memphis Grizzlies

Friday, May 14, 2021 – 09:00 PM EDT at FedExForum

This game will be another sweet spot to bet on. The Sacramento Kings (31-39 SU, 32-37-1 ATS) visit the Memphis Grizzlies (37-33 SU, 43-27 ATS) in a repeat of Thursday’s game, which Memphis won 116-110 in Sacramento (8.5-point home underdogs). The loss knocked the Kings out of playoff contention in the West. The Grizzlies are 6.5-point home favorites on Friday at press time.

Now that the Kings are on the outside looking in for the 15th straight season (tying the NBA record for most consecutive years missing the playoffs), their motivation for tonight will be different. Now Sacramento can actually improve their chances in the 2021 NBA Draft lottery with another loss. With a win, the Grizz will have a better shot at reaching the eighth seed in the Western Conference, which would prevent them from having to beat teams like the Golden State Warriors, San Antonio Spurs and possibly the Los Angeles Lakers in the play-in tournament.

Memphis is Just Better and Healthier

The Grizzlies are the better team on Friday, that much is clear; though they needed a spirited effort in the fourth quarter to get a come-from-behind win in Sacramento on Thursday. Grayson Allen didn’t play because of a left abdominal strain. He’s now missed five straight games (Memphis went 4-1 SU and 2-3 ATS in those contests); however, Jaren Jackson Jr. returned after resting his sore left knee on Tuesday. The Grizz will be fine in this game and they have a lot to play for.

The Kings showed a lot of promise at times but their personnel issues caught up to them in the end and out their playoff hopes. Tyrese Haliburton (left knee) went down for the season last week and Harrison Barnes and Marvin Bagley are day-to-day with groin injuries. To make matters worse, their star point guard De’Aaron Fox is still in the COVID-19 list. That’s three of their best players – and Bagley. Richaun Holmes left Thursday’s game in the second quarter with a sore right knee and he’s also questionable tonight, which is not ideal.

Prediction

The Grizzlies would obviously have preferred to ice last night’s game early. Since they couldn’t, Ja Morant and Dillon Brooks both played over 37 minutes while the Kings spread their minutes around and only Delon Wright and Buddy Hield played over 35 minutes. Losing Holmes hurts though. As always, wait as long as possible before making your NBA picks, so you can know who’s likely to suit up but both teams are heading in opposite directions. Given that, I will make a small bet on the Grizzlies at -6, which is the prize on the board at press time.

NBA Pick: Grizzlies -6 (-110) at Bookmaker

Grizzlies -6(-110)

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