Memphis Grizzlies vs. Oklahoma City Thunder Game 1 Preview, Prediction & Odds | April 20, 2025

The Memphis Grizzlies travel to Oklahoma City to play the Thunder in the first game of their playoff series this Sunday. The Grizzlies easily moved past the Dallas Mavericks after losing to the Warriors in the play-in tournament. That gives them the 8th seed and the chance to play against the team with the best record in the NBA in a seven-game series.

As I mentioned, the Thunder won a league-leading 68 games in the regular season. Oklahoma City has played great defense throughout the season, not exactly something that Memphis has been known for. The Thunder also have the MVP favorite in Shea Gilgeous-Alexander, all of which makes them heavily favored going into this series and, therefore, also game one in Oklahoma City. 

Memphis Grizzlies vs. Oklahoma City Thunder Lakers Odds

Memphis Grizzlies vs. Oklahoma City Thunder Match Details

• Date and Time: Sunday, April 20, 2025, 1:00 PM EST
• Location: Paycom Center – Oklahoma City, OK

Memphis is Still Dealing With Late Season Slide

Memphis had a strong start to the regular season. They were at one point sitting at 35-16 in February and looked to be in contention for the second seed in the playoffs. Things went downhill quickly for the Grizzlies, and they fell all the way to the eighth seed. This put them in the play-in tournament, where not only did they lose their first game against the Golden State Warriors, but Ja Morant seemed to get nicked with an ankle injury in that game as well.

These factors don’t exactly make Memphis look like a team ready to shock the world and pull off a huge upset in this series. Memphis is not going to develop an all-time caliber defense overnight that can match the Thunder. Therefore, expect the Thunder to hold home court in game one.

Oklahoma City Huge Favorites On Paper

The Oklahoma City Thunder are huge favorites in this game and in this series for a reason. They had the fifth-best record in NBA history during the regular season and never had a losing streak longer than two games. They also played their best against the best opponents, having a 36-12 record against teams with over 50% win rates. While the Grizzlies do have some advantage in size, many people will summarize this matchup into the two teams’ point guards.

Ja Morant is an undeniable talent, but in contrast to the historic level season that Shai Gilgeous-Alexander has had, it should go to show a lot for how this series is going to go. I actually think that Memphis should consider themselves on sweep alert until they prove they can win a game, and I don’t think that will happen in Oklahoma City at any point in the series.

Final Pick

Thunder to cover the spread -12.5 (-110)