Blazers at Grizzlies- LJ's Keys to the Game

The 6 game home losing streak of the Grizzlies is a perplexing but important issue. That issue is extremely important tonight, especially because the Grizz haven't won at home in a month and the Trailblazers are coming into FedEx forum having won 3 of 4 on their current road trip and 6 straight at the Forum. Granted, the Blazers have faced New Jersey, Chicago, Toronto, and Minnesota on this current road trip which is not exactly top tier opponents. Regardless, the Grizzlies need to win tonight to end the home losing skid and gain a game on the Blazers in the playoff standings.

The Blazers are what many Grizz fans hope to be in a year or two. The Grizz and Blazers have a lot of similarities. They are both full of young talent and have tremendous upside. Also, both teams have a young center in Oden and Thabeet on whom they spent a top draft pick. Thabeet and Oden have underperformed, and both teams have taken criticism for taking them over picks like Durant and Tyreke Evans. The underperforming centers won't be playing tonight given Oden is yet again out with injury, and Thabeet is in the D-League.

If the Grizzlies want to make a push towards the play-off, they must beat times like the Blazers who are within reach in the standings. Here's how I think we do it:

1. Early confidence and momentum. The Grizz need to start well, and win the first quarter. The Grizzlies have struggled when they don't start well, and versus a equal or better team tonight, they have to get hot early.

2. Mayo vs Roy. In my opinion, Roy is one of the must underrated superstars in the NBA. I like every bit of his game and think he is a star. Mayo has scored double digits every game since the Lakers win and has provided defense and hustle stats all season. I don't think Mayo needs to match Roy point for point, but Mayo will have opportunities to score tonight and needs to fill up the rest of the stat sheet for the Grizz to win tonight.

3. Bench play. I know I have been harping on the bench lately, but they have been playing better lately. At the beginning of the season, the Blazer's bench was one of the deepest in the NBA, but with injuries (Oden and Pryzbilla) and trades (Blake and Outlaw), the talent on the bench is close to that of the Grizzlies. I think the Trailblazers have a small advantage because their bench play has been more consistent, but to win tonight, the Grizz bench needs to match the Blazers' bench.

Those are my keys to the game, but I think there are a few more points to notice for tonight's game. The Andre Miller vs Mike Conley match-up will be key because Miller is a bigger, physical point guard, and Conley has struggled versus that body type. Marc Gasol has had double doubles in the last 2 games versus the Blazers, but the Blazers traded for Marcus Camby who will be able to guard Gasol better. Gasol has struggled at home during the losing streak averaging only 9.1 ppg down from his 15 ppg average.

Go Grizz!