Latest news with #BrandonClarke
Forbes
20-04-2025
- Sport
- Forbes
OKC Thunder First-Round Playoff Preview Against Memphis Grizzlies
The Oklahoma City Thunder and Memphis Grizzlies will take the court at noon today to kick off a first-round series in the Western Conference. It's the top-seeded Thunder against a Grizzlies team that snuck into the playoffs through the Play-In Tournament, but that doesn't mean it won't be a competitive series. Paycom Center in Oklahoma City will be a must-experience environment, as the city and fanbase has expectations for a deep playoff push. The franchise is set up for a potential trip to the NBA Finals, but the focus entering today is Game 1. Here's everything you need to know about the Thunder's first-round series against the Grizzlies. Given how dominant the Thunder has been this season, this could be a series that only goes four or five games. In either case, the next week will provide much more clarity on the playoff outlook for both of these squads. *if necessary Oklahoma City and Memphis matched up four times in the regular season, with the Thunder coming out on top all four times. In fact, OKC had arguably its most success against any playoff team when playing the Grizzlies this season. It's worth noting that neither team was fully healthy when playing any of these four contests, but that's also the case now. Jaylen Wells was set to be a key contributor in a series like this, but both him and Brandon Clarke will miss the remainder of the season. As such, unless something dramatically changes, the Thunder should feel good about this matchup. It wasn't a tough test in the regular season and shouldn't be now either. Oklahoma City should comfortably win this series in five games. The biggest storyline entering this series is the status of Ja Morant. The Grizzlies' star has been dealing with ankle injury, but has been getting treatment to take the floor. He will undoubtedly play in Game 1 and likely beyond, but he won't be full strength. Regardless, Memphis is the significant underdog in this series. Oklahoma City also has elite guard defenders, so both Morant and Desmond Bane will have to work for every shot attempt they get. That means the frontcourt — notably Jaren Jackson Jr. and Zach Eddy — will play a big factor. Edey will be an important piece to watch, as the rookie could either be a difference-maker early in this series, or played off the floor. This could be a rhythm series for the Thunder. While the Grizzlies can't be overlooked, it will be important for OKC's role players to gain confidence and get into a groove for the later rounds of the playoffs. That's especially true given the Thunder hasn't played its standard rotation in more than a week.
Yahoo
22-03-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Brandon Clarke out for the remainder of the season
Michael Scotto: Memphis Grizzlies forward Brandon Clarke is expected to miss the remainder of the season after being diagnosed with a high-grade PCL sprain in his right knee, team says. Source: Bluesky Memphis Grizzlies PR @GrizzliesPR Brandon Clarke (RT Knee Soreness) is doubtful to return tonight at Portland. - 11:11 PM Drew Hill: BC and Vince are out tonight. -via Twitter @DrewHill_DM / March 1, 2025 Memphis has shown some cards around the league that it is looking into consolidation trades, as evidenced by the team's recent efforts to ship Luke Kennard and John Konchar to Brooklyn for Dorian Finney-Smith. But that would have been a much smaller deal than adding Marcus Smart or Brandon Clarke to the package as would be required for Butler. Smart and Clarke both rank as players Memphis values quite highly, sources said. -via / January 8, 2025 Michael Wallace: Grizzlies injury report grows to with LaRavia (ankle) and Clarke (knee) ruled OUT. LaRavia injured ankle late in loss to OKC, Clarke entered questionable but was ruled out with knee soreness. Now no longer in doubt vs Suns on Tuesday. -via / December 30, 2024 This article originally appeared on Hoops Hype: Brandon Clarke out for the remainder of the season
