James-less Cavs visit Memphis
To all those expecting the Cavaliers’ Big Three to rock Beale Street in a few short hours, get ready for something completely different.
Coach Tyronn Lue left behind LeBron James, Kyrie Irving and Kevin Love for Wednesday’s bout vs. the Grizzlies. Not surprisingly, then, online sports book Bovada.lv gives David Fizdale’s team odds of -310 to take care of business at home. Cleveland enters FedEx Forum as a +255 underdog.
One night after torching Memphis for 23 points, James will miss his second tilt of the campaign. Irving and Love are also being allowed to recharge. That means heavy minutes for DeAndre Liggins, Iman Shumpert and James Jones alongside rotation mainstays Tristan Thompson and J.R. Smith.
Meanwhile, the Grizzlies (17-9) should see Marc Gasol return to the lineup following a one-game breather. As the reigning Western Conference player of the week, he helped power Memphis to six straight victories between Dec. 1-10. Gasol continues to receive solid frontcourt support from Zach Randolph and JaMychal Green, too.
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This has all the makings of a going-through-the-motions-style contest for the Cavs (18-5). Of course, owning the Larry O’Brien Trophy means never having to apologize for basically blowing off a regular-season affair from time to time. Look for both clubs to struggle quite a bit on the offensive end.
WEDNESDAY NBA FREE PICK: CLEVELAND/MEMPHIS OVER 190 POINTS