The Memphis Grizzlies and Oklahoma City Thunder seemed destined to meet in the 2013 NBA Playoffs. Despite losing Russell Westbrook, the Thunder rode Kevin Durant into Game 1 of the Western Conference Semifinals. The Grizzlies took advantage of Clippers injuries to eject the once favorite team to emerge from the West in short order.
Going in to today’s game, all eyes will be on Zach Randolph of the Grizzlies and Kendrick Perkins of the Thunder. This past November in a game of no consequence that was basically already over, both players were ejected in a confrontation that extended beyond the court and into the stadium tunnels. Randolph was ultimately fined a cool $25k for taking the argument to Perkins off the court.
The media is playing up this confrontation and the potential for more explosiveness between the two players in this series. In all likelihood, their distaste for one another will be a non-factor. This is the NBA Playoffs, not a regular season game, and both players are aware of the consequences doing something foolish could have to their team’s chances of reaching the Western Conference Finals.
Though the Thunder have the home court advantage, the loss of Westbrook could be felt more in this series than the Thunder’s win over Houston. The Grizzlies are a far deeper team than the Rockets with Gasol and Randolph up front, are and have been playing great ball since shuffling their lineup to replace Rudy Gay with a selection of other players including seasoned vet Tayshaun Prince.
It’s a given that Kevin Durant will score a minimum of 30 points as he takes his team on his shoulders. The x-factor could be Kevin Martin who exploded for 25 points off the bench in the decisive Game 6 win against Houston. He’s either been red hot or ice cold in the Playoffs thus far, and the Thunder will need a lot more hot than cold to compliment Durant’s offensive production.
Today’s NBA 2013 Round 2 Playoff Game 1 between the Memphis Grizzlies and Oklahoma City Thunder tips off at 1/12c on ABC in high definition. I cannot find an official free online live streaming version of the game on ABC to watch. Be wary of downloading software to watch unofficial versions due to viruses. With Westbrook out, I predict the Grizzlies will come out hungry and attack the Thunder inside, stealing Game 1 by a 94-92 score.
