Social media’s rise has changed how sports bettors handicap games.

From tracking beat reporters for a player’s availability to accessing other nuggets or quotes from those close to the team, the information is available and helpful. 

But this is a first for me. 

Memphis Grizzlies point guard Ja Morant has deactivated his X account, and I am now analyzing the role that plays for their next game. 

Perhaps this is an individual’s version of when the players call a team meeting, serving as a hard reset. Or maybe it is nonsense. Time will tell. 

Morant is mired in a slight rut, scoring less than 20 points in four straight games, while shooting just 19-for-47 from the field (40.4 percent). 

The Grizz won three of those games, but they were just blown out 143-106 by the New York Knicks in a game that was as ugly as the score suggests. It’s not the end of the world, but for a team that sits third in the Western Conference standings and had been riding a six-game win streak, it was an eye-opener. 

Memphis leads the NBA in scoring at 123.3 ppg, but barely hit the century mark. The Grizzlies also looked inept under pressure, racking up a season-high 26 turnovers that led to 36 Knicks points. 

The postgame comments were expected, citing “physicality” and other coach speak. So is this a blip on the radar or does Morant’s social media hiatus warrant various wagers on his prop bets? 

The NBA is a long season, especially at this juncture. We are past the midpoint but have not yet reached the All-Star break. I am willing to write off that performance from a team that otherwise was in a great groove. 

The Houston Rockets visit Memphis on Thursday, looking to complete the season sweep of their four meetings. I am not quite ready to back Memphis as a small home favorite, although I do expect a strong effort off that ugly loss. 

Betting on the NBA?

My favorite play is Under 236 (-110, ESPN BET), even though the Over is 2-0-1 in the teams’ first three meetings. I expect better ball security than Memphis showed against the Knicks, and for the Grizzlies to play with more toughness. We should see plenty of points, but 236 feels a bit high for this specific situation. 

It’s been a nice run so far in this section. My official plays are 21-9, including seven straight wins. For more analysis, exclusive videos, betting news, in-game alerts and much more, please visit our page (onlyplayers.com/pluspost) solely dedicated to New York Post readers with a 50-percent discount. 

Why Trust New York Post Betting

Doug Kezirian is a New York Post contributor who currently serves as the Chief Content Officer for Only Players, a sports betting media company. Doug has over two decades of experience in the betting space, including spending 11 years at ESPN as a host, columnist and betting analyst. He’s also the rare personality who has documented success – 14th place in 2023 Circa Million and Las Vegas SuperContest ($37K), two top-10 finishes in 2022 William Hill College Football Challenge ($58K) and also grabbed headlines with a $297K win on the 2021 NFL Draft.