The NBA playoffs get underway on Saturday and one of the most exciting games on the schedule features the Grizzlies and the Thunder in Oklahoma City. The Thunder are the two-seed in the West, finishing the regular-season just three games behind the Spurs for the top spot. Memphis is the seven-seed in an ultra-competitive conference. This is the third time in four years that these two teams will meet for a playoff series. We like the Thunder in game one and to advance.
Thunder ready for another run at the title
After falling in the NBA Finals a couple of years ago, the Thunder are prepared to make another deep playoff run and in an effort to get back to the ultimate series of them all. They will need to get past the Grizzlies in the first round to begin this run, which could be an issue if they overlook their opponent. Kevin Durant is averaging 28.6 points-per-game during the playoffs in his career heading into this series.
Grizzlies want to grab a win on the road early
It is not easy for a seven-seed to take down a two-seed in the playoffs, but it still can be done. Memphis will need to steal one of the two road games to start the series if they want to be a seven-seed advancing to the second-round of this year’s playoffs. Memphis likes to slow down the pace of the game, which might not happen if they let Oklahoma City run the floor much like the Thunder did all season long against its opponents.
Oklahoma City is the favorite to win game one over at SportsBook.ag by 7.5 points. We are going to bet 15 percent of our bankroll on the Thunder as we lay the line on Saturday night. We are not betting for Oklahoma City because they are favored, but because they are wildly better than Memphis.
Chris Wassel
AA, AAS
CURRENTLY
Sports Writer and Journalist
RESIDES IN
Rahway, NJ
EDUCATION
Union County College, Montclair State University
EXPERTISE
Business, Writing, Sports, Food, Grilling, Olympics, Injuries, Politics, and more
Summary
Member of FSWA, FSGA, and a variety of Sports Betting Groups.
Lead arranger of news and injury reports for Rotoballer Hockey. Also did the news lead for NASCAR on the same site coming out of COVID.
Strategy and mapping out of various sports betting and sports articles for MyNHLTradeRumors and gambling.com.
Runs a hockey and fantasy hockey podcast that teaches fantasy hockey players how to improve their skills.
Experience
Chris Wassel has 20+ years of sports journalistic experience in various disciplines..
His ability to play sports is well documented. Most people in the business just write. However, Chris will race cars and even a super Moto bike from time to time. There is that fitness and hiking/cycling aspect too.
Chris has climbed mountains from Mount Washington to Mount San Jacinto in Palm Springs, California. For those that do not know. Chris also dabbles in food eating contests and challenges. Having a unique background with friends including Joey Chestnut and Casey Webb, Chris has the ability to eat a whole 16-pound turkey or a 32 inch meat lover's pizza.
Since 2013, Chris has primarily focused on sports writing and fitness. On social media, he will answer any question in many different aspects. Even Chris's ability to wager on Entertainment and US Elections is well documented. He was able to predict Joe Biden's inevitable dip in approval rating below 40%.
Throughout his career, Chris has worked at a lot of places from DraftKings to USA Today and much more.
Finally, Chris has been nominated for quite a few awards from the Fantasy Sports Writers Association for Hockey Writer Of The Year. Also, there have been a number of amazing fantasy hockey championships from expert to high-stake leagues.
Education
Chris received an Associates from Union Country College for business and accounting. Chris did sports journalism work at Montclair State University covering the hockey, baseball, and football teams.
Quote from Chris Wassel
"Do Not Think, Just Do.”
Education
1999 Graduate of Union County College
1993 Graduate of Rahway High School
Professional Achievements
Media credentialed member of the New Jersey Devils since 2010
Covered several NHL Drafts including the one day event in Newark in 2013
Been on countless podcasts, TV shows, and more including Sportsnet and even NHL Network