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NBA Playoff Preview 2025: #1 OKC Thunder vs. #8 Memphis Grizzlies

Alex Chick III / NBA / April 20, 2025

NBA Playoff Preview 2025: #1 OKC Thunder vs. #8 Memphis Grizzlies

It’s another NBA Playoff Preview for the 2025 NBA playoffs.

This one could be a doozy despite the discrepancy in the seeds. It’s the Oklahoma City Thunder vs. the Memphis Grizzlies. This Grizzlies team is not a normal No. 8 seed and was only four games back from being a 2nd seed with Ja Morant missing 30 games.

The Thunder have by far been the best team in the Western Conference, the consensus is that there is very little doubt that they make the NBA Finals, and maybe they’re right. Without further ado, let’s get into the nitty gritty of this first-round NBA playoff preview matchup.

First, here’s the series schedule for this 2025 First Round playoff matchup:

GAME	DATE	MATCHUP	TIME	TV
Game 1	Sunday, April 20th	Grizzlies @ Thunder	1:00 p.m. ET	ABC
Game 2	Tuesday, April 22nd	Grizzlies @ Thunder	7:30 p.m. ET	TNT
Game 3	Thursday, April 24th	Thunder @ Grizzlies	TBD	TNT
Game 4	Saturday, April 26th	Thunder @ Grizzlies	1:00 p.m. ET	TNT
Game 5*	Monday, April 28th	Grizzlies @ Thunder	TBD	TBD
Game 6*	Thursday, May 1st	Thunder @ Grizzlies	TBD	TBD
Game 7*	Saturday, May 3rd	Grizzlies @ Thunder	TBD	TBD

*If needed

What to know about the Oklahoma City Thunder:

Notable starters:

F: Chet Holmgren
C: Isaiah Hartenstein

Other players in the playoff rotation:

There’s honestly more names that I could have added to the rotation, but I’ll leave it at 10. It just goes to show you that this Thunder team is DEEP. They’re basket(BALLS) deep on this rotation.

The name of the game for the Thunder is versatility. They can play their game or if you want to play it your way, then they’ll adjust and beat you that way too. Any player not named Shai could have their night and you wouldn’t guess who it was.

The main thing the Thunder will do is play defense, and they’ll play it better than anyone else in the NBA. They can guard individually and then work tremendously as a team. You have to be scoring at such an efficient rate to give this defense fits, it’s much more likely that this defense gives you fits and then a tantrum with their defense.

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What to know about the Memphis Grizzlies:

Notable Starters:

G: Ja Morant
G: Scotty Pippen Jr.
F: Desmond Bane

F: Jaren Jackson Jr.
C: Zach Edey

Other players in the playoff rotation:

Vince Williams Jr.

For Ja Morant to miss 30 games (the Grizzlies lost 14 of those games) and Taylor Jenkins being fired last month, being 48-34 is nothing to scoff at. This team has been riddled with injuries all year, including a blow of losing Jaylen Wells for the rest of the year right before the playoffs start.

It wouldn’t be crazy to say that the Grizzlies could have been the 2nd seed in the Western Conference, given that the Rockets are 52-30. This team isn’t anything to scoff at and even as good as the Thunder are, but the Grizzlies will give them a fight.

This team rebounds well and heavily relies on its starters. Staying out of foul trouble will be key to the Grizzlies, especially going against free-throw merchant in SGA. The Grizzlies do shoot well from the perimeter, which could cause problems for the Thunder despite how good their defense is.

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Questions For This NBA Playoff Preview

1. How are the refs going to officiate this series?

If the refs are going to reward shameless foul-baiting that Shai often participates in, then I don’t think the Grizzlies have a very good chance of winning this series. With how much they rely on their starts, they can rarely afford to be in foul trouble. With SGA playing like James Harden trying to get fouls rather than just playing the damn game, this could be a nightmare for the Grizzlies.

2. How does Zach Edey do against Chet Holmgren and Isaiah Hartenstein?

The Grizzlies are 3rd in offensive rebounding in the NBA and 3rd in 2nd-chance points due to that. Part of that is having 7-foot-4 Zach Edey in the paint and JJJ, Brandon Clarke, and Santi Aldama helping out on the boards. However, Edey usually doesn’t have to go against 2 bigs that can rebound like Isaiah Hartenstein and Chet Holmgren.

Throw in Jalen Williams and Lu Dort in there, and that’s a tall task even for Edey to find a lot of success on the boards. Zach Edey has to make it his personal mission to bring down every rebound he can to give the Grizzlies their best shot at winning. There’s nothing a great defense hates more than an offensive rebound after forcing a miss.

3. Can the Thunder disrupt the Grizzlies’ shooting on the perimeter?

Despite the Thunder being the best defensive team in the NBA, they will still have problems with the Grizzlies shooting the ball. The Grizzlies are top 10 and are closer to top 5 in shooting in the NBA. They can score well against any team.

Expect a lot of Dort on Morant, and the Thunder throwing a bunch of different looks at Ja to throw him off his rhythm. Caruso will probably play more minutes as well due to his defense on the perimeter and his hustle. If the Grizzlies live by the 3, you have to make them die by the 3 and just rebound the ball (basketball is easy).

Prediction: Thunder in 7

Maybe I am missing something, maybe I am giving the Grizzlies too much credit, maybe I am not giving the Thunder enough, or maybe I am just an idiot.

But I don’t think this series will come as easily as everyone is expecting for the Thunder. The Grizzlies can play and if Ja didn’t miss 30 games, we wouldn’t even see this matchup in the first round. The Taylor Jenkins firing was unique, to say the least, but the Grizzlies seem to be okay.

Now, I’m not saying we have a 8 seed upset over the 1 seed, but expect these games to be competitive and chippy. If SGA doesn’t get his shameless whistle, this series could even be closer. With that being said, I still have the Thunder in 7. Really, it could be Thunder in 6, but let’s be spicy and give the fighting Jackson Law’s a chance.

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