The Memphis Grizzlies vs Raptors preview centers on two teams trying to shake off rough stretches when they meet Monday at Scotiabank Arena. Memphis enters at 6-3 and has dropped three straight games, while Toronto is 5-4 and has alternated wins and losses over its last five outings. The series opener raises an immediate question: can either offense find consistency against a banged-up opponent.
Grizzlies Vs Raptors Game Information
- Date: Monday, Nov. 9
- Time: 7:30 p.m. ET
- Venue: Scotiabank Arena, Toronto, ON
- TV/Streaming: DAZN MEM
- Series: Season series begins Nov. 9
Can Memphis Snap Its Three-Game Skid
The Grizzlies opened the season 5-0 before dropping three straight, most recently a 128-97 loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder on Nov. 7. Memphis also lost 135-134 in overtime to the New Orleans Pelicans and fell 107-103 to the Indiana Pacers during the stretch, a slide detailed in Total Apex Sports’ coverage of the Pelicans overtime loss.
Ty Jerome leads Memphis at 26.6 points and 5.2 assists per game, numbers that reflect his role as the primary offensive engine since the Grizzlies started the year unbeaten, as chronicled in Total Apex Sports’ preview of that early winning streak. Cameron Boozer paces the rebounding at 10.0 per game. Memphis sits at 1.5 games back in the Southwest Division with a 6-3 record and a three-game losing streak, according to the standings.
What Is Toronto’s Injury Situation
The Raptors are dealing with significant absences up front. Center Nate Bittle is out with a right leg foot fracture and is not listed to return until Nov. 15. Forward Kawhi Leonard is out with left knee inflammation, with a return date listed as Nov. 23.
Guard Immanuel Quickley and forward Scottie Barnes both carry day-to-day designations, Quickley with a right hamstring issue and Barnes with left groin soreness, each with a return date of Nov. 9. Those statuses remain projections until the Raptors confirm active rosters before tipoff. Barnes leads Toronto in scoring at 23.5 points, rebounding at 7.6 and ranks second on the team in assists at 5.1 per game, so his availability is a projected factor in how Toronto’s rotation shapes up.
On the Memphis side, guard Scotty Pippen Jr. is out with torso and back soreness, center Isaiah Stewart is out with a right knee bruise listed with a Nov. 9 return date, and guard Richie Saunders is out recovering from right knee surgery with a Dec. 1 target.
How Do The Two Offenses Compare
Both teams rank near the top of the league in scoring. Toronto averages 118.2 points per game on 46.2% shooting from the field, while Memphis averages 117.9 points on 45.8% shooting. The Raptors generate more assists per game at 28.7 compared to Memphis at 26.4, but the Grizzlies own a clear edge from three-point range, shooting 37.8% as a team against Toronto’s 31.5%.
Memphis also controls the defensive glass more effectively, pulling down 35.9 defensive rebounds per game compared to Toronto’s 27.4. The Raptors counter with a significant advantage in takeaways, averaging 11.6 steals per game against Memphis’s 6.1, a gap that shows up directly in transition opportunities.
By The Numbers
- Points per game: Toronto 118.2, Memphis 117.9
- Field goal percentage: Toronto 46.2%, Memphis 45.8%
- Three-point percentage: Memphis 37.8%, Toronto 31.5%
- Assists per game: Toronto 28.7, Memphis 26.4
- Turnovers per game: Toronto 14.0, Memphis 15.8
- Defensive rebounds per game: Memphis 35.9, Toronto 27.4
- Steals per game: Toronto 11.6, Memphis 6.1
- Blocks per game: Memphis 5.1, Toronto 3.9
- Free throw percentage: Memphis 83.9%, Toronto 74.2%
Key Matchup To Watch
Toronto’s 11.6 steals per game against Memphis’s turnover rate of 15.8 per game stands out as the pivotal battle. If the Raptors convert those takeaways into transition points, it could offset Memphis’s rebounding and three-point shooting advantages. The Grizzlies’ ability to protect the ball against an active Toronto perimeter defense, anchored statistically by Barnes’ 2.2 steals per game when healthy, figures to shape possession counts on both ends.
On the glass, Memphis’s defensive rebounding rate of 35.9 per game, far ahead of Toronto’s 27.4, limits second-chance points for the Raptors. That edge matters given Toronto grabs 14.8 offensive rebounds per game, a figure that could translate into extra possessions if Memphis fails to finish defensive sequences.
What To Watch
Both clubs sit in the middle of crowded divisional races. Memphis trails San Antonio by 1.5 games in the Southwest, while Toronto is three games back of Philadelphia in the Atlantic with a 5-4 record and a one-game winning streak. A win Monday would snap Memphis’s three-game skid or extend Toronto’s modest two-game positive run following back-to-back victories over the Clippers and Bucks.
The health of Barnes and Quickley for Toronto, along with how Memphis’s offense performs without Pippen Jr. and Stewart, will determine which team’s depth holds up better over 48 minutes.
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