Courtside Players Club NBA 4-5 Units (12/26/24)

NBA

2 Pick (7 Units).

7PM: Heat +1.5 (3 Units).

A lot of speculation surrounding Jimmy Butler and the Heat right now. He was unhappy he didn't get extended before the season and now he may or may not want a trade. Doesn't really matter today because he's doubtful. He played just 7 minutes against OKC a few games back and hasn't played since, but we like what we've seen from Miami's without him. They hung tough with a very good OKC Team the rest of that game. They followed that up with a 114-121 loss to Orlando but were outscored 37-8 in the fourth quarter. Having Jimmy Butler certainly would have helped there but Cole Anthony went nuclear for a career day, sparking that comeback. The third and final game they handled the Brooklyn Nets. Worth noting that the Heat did have a better record without Butler last season and given his age it may be time to move on. This play's also about Orlando being shorthanded. They're without Banchero and both Wagner brothers. They've been without Banchero for a couple months, but the Wagner's were lost December 7th and December 22nd.

8PM: Grizzlies -11.5 (4 Units).

Prime rebound spot for the Grizzlies after an embarrassing home loss to a shorthanded Clippers team. Leading up to that loss they beat the Hawks by 16 in Atlanta and blew out the Warriors 144-93 at Home. All 4 of their most recent wins have come by 16 or more. Toronto's lost each of their last 3 road games by double digits and got smoked 125-139 at the Knicks their last time out. The Raptors will be shorthanded as their starting Center Jacob Poeltl is ruled out. It's a massive hole as he was the 7th best rebounder in the NBA. The Raptors are 6th in rebound rate this year at 51% but without him in these last 3 games they've dropped to 43.4%. OKC is the last in this category at 47.3%. Memphis is 3rd in rebound rate on the season and 1st when playing at Home. Rebounding was the only thing the Raptors were decent at as they're 22nd and 23rd in offensive and defensive rating. Memphis is 5th and 4th in those same categories and now they hold a major rebounding edge. All signs point to a blowout in Memphis. Toronto may also be without Scottie Barnes who's listed as questionable. He's dealing with some soreness and played 36 minutes in the blowout loss vs the Knicks for some reason.