Thunder vs. Grizzlies - Who will win the Grizzlies Thunder 2014 Playoffs Match-up?

The No. 2 Thunder face the No. 7 Grizzlies in the playoffs for the second consecutive season, helping build the drama for what promises to be a very fun matchup. Last season, the Grizzlies easily defeated the Thunder in five games, but there’s one crucial difference this time around: the Thunder’s No. 2 superstar, Russell Westbrook, will be healthy and on the court. This will likely prove too much for the Grizzlies to handle.

Still, at No. 7, the Grizzlies are very under seeded. Why? Because the Grizzlies went 10-14 (41.6%) this season in the 24 games that Marc Gasol, last year’s Defensive Player the Year, was sidelined due to injury. With Gasol in the lineup, however, the Grizzlies have won about 70% of their games (40-18), which, if spread out over the entire season, likely would have resulted in a 56-ish win season, positing them in 3rd place (just a game behind the Clippers and only two-and-a-half behind the Thunder). Every team in the Western Conference knows this, which is why everyone wanted to avoid them. With elite defenders in Marc Gasol, Tony Allen, and Mike Conley, they are a grinding, top-7 defensive team. Gasol and behemoth Zach Randolph do a great job of pounding the ball down low and grabbing boards (ranked 3rd as a team in rebounding). Their roster is also full of high basketball IQ players, which explains why they keep mistakes to a minimum (top-10 in turnovers). Their major issues, however, come on offense, where they are average in offensive efficiency and a subpar shooting team. When up against an elite defensive team, like the Thunder, they really struggle to put points on the board. This is why the Grizzlies are ranked dead-last in pace: they want to slow the game down as much as possible and keep shots to a minimum … which is the opposite of what the Thunder want to do.

OKC is top-10 in pace, led by superstars Westbrook and (likely-MVP) Kevin Durant. The welcomed development of power forward Serge Ibaka is a huge reason why the Thunder have been able to remain elite despite trading away All-Star James Harden last year and despite playing without Westbrook for a good chunk of this season due to injury. Their offense is a blast to watch (ranked 6th in shooting efficiency), but they also get down and dirty: they are an elite rebounding team, countering one of the Grizzlies’ key strengths.