Memphis Grizzlies (30-30) vs New Orleans Hornets (31-30)
New Orleans has lost four of five and struggled in the month of February going 5-8 and sportsbook followers know Chris Paul is still a couple weeks from returning; they might be too far away to sneak into the playoffs by then. The Grizzlies are coming off a tough month where they played nine of 13 games and 12 of their last 13 home games against teams with a winning record. Even with the tough stretch they are only 4.5 games out of the last playoff spot and with teams around them in the standings like Portland and Houston either beat up or just struggling, they have a good chance of closing the gap with an easier schedule in March.
Primetime Performers
Grizzlies: Since the break, Zach Randolph has shown that his All Star selection was warranted averaging 21.5 points and 13.4 boards including a 31-point, 25-rebound game on Saturday against the Knicks. Going up against a softer rebounder in David West, he should be expected to have another huge game on the glass.
Hornets: David West has seen his numbers slip to 18.6 points and 7.6 rebounds with the absence of Paul and the rebounding presence of Emeka Okafor. He is now the offensive leader of this team and has pushed his assist numbers to almost four a game during February; which is nearly two more than his average over the past three season. The Hornets need him to be solid at the defensive end as Okafor will have his hands full with the much larger Marc Gasol so West will be forced to go one-on-one with Randolph for the majority of the game.
X-Factors
Grizzlies: Betting services experts know that Rudy Gay has started to be more consistent on the offensive end since the break. In the six games leading up to the break he scored, 9, 10, 25, 15, 11and 27 points; not what a team wants from their second leading scorer. Since the break he has had 19 plus points in seven games while shooting over 50 percent over the 10 games. He should have a big game as Peja Stojakovic will not be able to deal with his athleticism.
Hornets: Darren Collison has filled in amiably in the absence of Paul, scoring 18.6 points and 8.4 assists as a starter this year. The problem during the last two losses is that the rookie point guard is either scoring (35 points and 3 assists on Feb 28) or assisting (10 points and 15 assists on Mar 1) and not the two combined.
The Matchup
An expert sports handicapper will bet on the young Grizzlies team beating the old and beat up Hornets. Though New Orleans have won both meetings between the teams, the first was with Paul in the line-up and the other came on the back of Collison's monster 17 point and 18 assists effort; that should not be expected again since he has five double-digit assist games this year.
Pick: Grizzlies
