A Western Conference battle is on tap for Wednesday as the Memphis Grizzlies will host the New Orleans Pelicans to start their respective 2023-2024 campaigns. These two teams picked No. 1 and No. 2 in the 2020 NBA Draft but the Zion Williamson vs. Ja Morant rivalry hasn't really come to fruition because of injuries for Williamson and a combination of injuries/off-the-court issues for Morant. They've only played each other six times and Morant will be absent on Wednesday as he begins a 25-game suspension.
Tip-off is scheduled at 8 p.m. E at FedExForum. New Orleans is favored by 1 point in the latest Grizzlies vs. Pelicans odds via SportsLine consensus and the over/under is set at 224.5 points. Before entering any Grizzlies vs. Pelicans picks, you'll want to see the NBA predictions from the model at SportsLine.
The SportsLine Projection Model simulates every NBA game 10,000 times and has returned well over $10,000 in profit for $100 players on its top-rated NBA picks over the past four-plus seasons. The model finished the 2022-23 NBA season on a 72-39 roll on all top-rated NBA picks, returning nearly $2,800. Anyone following it has seen huge returns.
The model has set its sights on New Orleans-Memphis. You can head to SportsLine to see its picks. Here are several NBA betting lines for the game:
- Grizzlies vs. Pelicans spread: Pelicans -1
- Grizzlies vs. Pelicans over/under: 224.5 points
- Grizzlies vs. Pelicans money line: Grizzlies -108, Pelicans -112
- Grizzlies vs. Pelicans picks: See picks here
What you need to know about the Grizzlies
Memphis is coming off a season where it went 51-31 to finish second in the Western Conference but exited the 2023 NBA playoffs in the first round after losing to the Lakers 4-2. The Grizzlies now have 107 wins over their last two seasons but they'll have a big hole to plug without Morant for the first 25 games.
Former NBA Defensive Player of the Year Marcus Smart joined Memphis as part of the three-team trade that sent Kristaps Porzingis to the Celtics. Smart should be an excellent fit with a team that ranked second in the NBA in defensive rating (111.2) in 2022-23 and Desmond Bane will have to carry the scoring load with Morant sidelined.
What you need to know about the Pelicans
The Pelicans are coming off a season where they went 42-40 to finish ninth in the West but lost in the NBA play-in tournament to the Thunder. Williamson only played 29 games last season but did average 26.0 points, 7.0 rebounds and 4.6 assists while shooting 60.8% from the floor.
CJ McCollum and Brandon Ingram give the Pelicans a trio of incredibly capable scorers when Williamson is healthy while Jonas Valanciunas and Trey Murphy III give the roster a couple of additional scoring threats. Williamson has already missed 214 games in his four-year career and his health will be critical to New Orleans becoming a contender in the Western Conference in 2023-24.
How to make Grizzlies vs. Pelicans picks
The model has simulated Grizzlies vs. Pelicans 10,000 times and the results are in. The model is leaning Under and it's also generated a point-spread pick where one side hits over 60% of the time. You can only see the pick at SportsLine.
Who wins Pelicans vs. Grizzlies and which side of the spread hits over 60% of the time? Visit SportsLine now to see the picks, all from the model that finished last year on a 72-39 roll on top-rated NBA picks, and find out.
