Pistons Host Grizzlies on Thursday
The Memphis Grizzlies travel to The Motor City to face the Detroit Pistons at Little Ceasar's Arena on Thursday.

The Grizzlies (33-32) are struggling a bit coming into this matchup, losing four of their last six games. The good news is that Memphis is essentially locked into the play-in tournament, and they really can't go up or down from here. What's equally as important is the fact that this club is finally getting healthy. Jaren Jackson Jr just made his season debut about a week ago, and if they can get him to play up to his sky-high potential, JJJ can be one of the most dangerous players in the NBA. They also need to get Ja Morant rolling like he was two weeks ago, too, with the young point guard barely cracking 10 points per game over the last five outings. A 37-point gem on Wednesday isn't included in that and that's the guy they need to see for the rest of the season.

The Pistons (19-47) come into this matchup losing four straight and seven of their last eight games in total. It's easy to understand why when looking at the roster, too, with Mason Plumlee, Jerami Grant, and Cory Joseph all resting regularly. It has allowed some of these youngsters to develop, and they continue to give guys like Killian Hayes, Hamidou Diallo, and Isaiah Stewart big minutes. Some of them have shown flashes of brilliance, too, with Diallo dropping 35 points in that loss on Tuesday. He's shown that ability in his days with the Thunder, and they might have snuck a steal out of him in what's been an otherwise disappointing season from a management and roster perspective.

These teams played back on February 19, with Memphis prevailing, 109-95. That gives the Grizzlies three straight victories in this series, with all of them by double-digit margins.
Posted on: 5/4/2021 10:46 PM