Cleveland Cavaliers vs Memphis Grizzlies Prediction, 1/7/2021 NBA Pick, Tips and Odds

Game: Cleveland Cavaliers vs Memphis Grizzlies

Date: Thursday, January 7, 2021

Location: FedExForum in Memphis, TN

TV: Fox Sports Southeast

Odds/Point Spread: Cleveland (+3.5)

FedExForum is the site where and the Memphis Grizzlies (2-5) will play the Cleveland Cavaliers (4-3) on Thursday. Memphis opens this matchup as 3.5-point favorites. The total is set at 214.

The Cleveland Cavaliers played the Orlando Magic and took a loss by a final of 103-83 in their last game. Cleveland ended the contest with a 38.8% FG percentage (33 of 85) and buried 10 of their 28 three-point shots. When they shot from the charity stripe, the Cavaliers converted 7 of their 12 tries for a percentage of 58.3%. In terms of rebounding, they compiled 35 with 9 of them being on the offensive end. They also recorded 20 assists for this game while getting 12 steals and 4 blocked shots. Concerning the defense, Cleveland allowed the other team to go 43.2% from the field on 38 out of 88 shooting. Orlando distributed 22 dimes and had 9 steals for this contest. Moreover, the Magic pulled down 54 rebounds (18 offensive, 36 defensive) and earned 7 blocks. Orlando finished the contest at 92.3% from the free throw line by knocking down 12 of 13 shots. They also buried 15 of 34 attempts from 3-point range.

Collin Sexton is a guy who was a major factor for the matchup. He scored 24 points on 10 out of 19 shooting. He saw the court for 38:51 minutes and also collected 2 boards. Sexton ended up shooting 52.6% from the floor and earned 2 assists. Another guy that was a factor in this game for the Cavaliers was Cedi Osman. He grabbed 7 rebounds and also accounted for 7 assists. He ended up going 42.9% from the field for this contest by connecting on 6-of-14 (18 points). Overall, Osman played for 38:27 minutes.

Cleveland comes into this matchup with a mark of 4-3 on the year. They turn it over 16.9 times per game and as a basketball team they are committing 20.3 personal fouls on a nightly basis. As a team, Cleveland is grabbing 44.7 rebounds per contest and has racked up 177 dimes this season, which ranks 14th in the NBA in terms of passing. The Cavaliers are hitting 36.9% from downtown (72 of 195) and 67.4% from the charity stripe. They are averaging 104.4 pts per contest (28th in basketball) while going 45.3% from the floor. When they are on defense, the Cavaliers have forced 20.7 turnovers per game and they draw 19.1 fouls. The Cavaliers defense is allowing a shooting percentage of 44.1% (145 of 134) and they relinquish 47.0 boards per game as a unit. They are ranked 16th in basketball in giving up assists to their opponents with 172 surrendered so far this season. They are giving up 39.7% on shots from beyond the perimeter and they are 5th in the league in PPG allowed (105.0).

The last time they took the hardwood, the Memphis Grizzlies took a loss by a final score of 94-92 when they played the Los Angeles Lakers. The Grizzlies recorded 33 defensive rebounds and 5 offensive boards for a total of 38 in the game. They blocked 4 tries while recording 14 steals in this game. The Lakers had 14 personal fouls for the contest which got the Grizzlies to the free throw line for a total of 13 attempts. They were able to convert 10 of them for a rate of 76.9%. In regard to shots from downtown, Memphis converted 10 of 26 tries (38.5%). When this game wrapped up, the Grizzlies went 36 for 87 from the floor which gave them a shooting percentage of 41.4%. The Grizzlies allowed the Lakers to bury 38 of their 87 tries from the floor which left them shooting 43.7% in the matchup. They finished 29.0% from downtown by shooting 9 of 31 and ended up going 9 of 11 at the free throw line (81.8%). Concerning how they cleaned up the glass, Memphis allowed Los Angeles to pull down 52 in total (9 on the offensive side).

Dillon Brooks was important for the Grizzlies for the contest. He knocked down 5 of 13 in this matchup giving him a field goal percentage of 38.5%, which got him 13 points. Brooks pulled down 5 rebounds in his 29:13 mins of time on the court and accounted for 2 assists for this contest. One more player that played a role for Memphis was Jonas Valančiūnas. He accumulated 13 points in his 25:42 mins played via 4 of 13 shooting for the matchup. Valančiūnas finished going 30.8% from the field in addition to contributing 2 assists and 11 boards.

Memphis has a win-loss record of 2-5 for the year. In terms of offensive execution, the Grizzlies are hitting on 43.9% from the floor, which has them ranked 24th in the league. Memphis has tallied 748 points on the year (106.9 per game) and they collect 46.6 rebounds per game. Their rate of dishing out assists is at 24.9 times per game (15th in the league) and they lose possession via turnover 15.0 times per contest. The Grizzlies are responsible for committing 18.1 personal fouls per contest and they hit 76.5% from the free throw line. The Grizzlies on the defensive side of the court are 17th in basketball in points allowed per game with 112.1. They are forcing their opponents into 15.0 TO's per game and have let teams shoot 45.5% from the floor (15th in basketball). The Memphis defense gives up 34.7% on shots from distance (83 of 239) and opponents are converting on 81.9% of their free throw attempts. They allow 25.3 assists and 48.1 total boards per game, which is 19th and 23rd in basketball.

Who will win tonight's NBA game against the spread?

Guy Bruhn's Pick: Take Memphis (-3.5)

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