2025 Memphis Grizzlies Playoff Picture: Will Ja Morant and Co. fall into play-in tournament after loss to Thunder?

The Ja Morant-less Memphis Grizzlies fell 125-104 during Thursday's road matchup against the OKC Thunder. The blowout defeat put the struggling Western Conference playoff hopeful in further jeopardy of falling into the play-in tournament.

OKC superstar guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander tallied a game-high 37 points, six assists and three steals, shooting 60%. Meanwhile, his co-star Jalen Williams pitched in 20 points, five rebounds and four assists, shooting 50% as OKC pulled away behind a 34-15 fourth-quarter advantage.

Memphis, playing without Morant, couldn't match the league-best Thunder's (61-12) late-game offensive firepower despite star forward Jaren Jackson Jr.'s team-best 27-point showing.

Morant missed his sixth consecutive outing due to a left hamstring strain. The Grizzlies have gone 2-4 during that stretch and lost five of seven contests overall, raising concerns about their postseason standing.

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Memphis Grizzlies Playoff Picture: Updated standings

With Thursday's loss, Memphis (44-29) remains tied with the LA Lakers for the West's fourth seed with nine outings remaining. However, LA possesses the tiebreaker, holding a 2-1 lead in their season series.

Moreover, the Grizzlies are just two-and-a-half games ahead of the seventh-seeded Golden State Warriors (41-31) and three games ahead of the eighth-seeded Minnesota Timberwolves (41-32). So, they could conceivably slip into one of the West's upper-two play-in spots.

Fortunately for Memphis, it likely won't slip any further, with eight games separating it from the ninth-placed Sacramento Kings (36-37).

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Memphis Grizzlies Playoff Picture: Remaining schedule

While the injury-plagued Grizzlies have lost ground in the standings over the last two weeks, they won't get any favors from their schedule. They have the NBA's ninth-toughest remaining strength of schedule, with an average opponent winning percentage of .537.

Memphis' upcoming contests include clashes against the Lakers (44-29), Boston Celtics (54-19), Golden State (41-31), Detroit Pistons (41-32), Minnesota (41-32) and Denver Nuggets (46-28).

The Grizzlies kick off a three-game homestand on Saturday against LA in a game with massive seeding implications. The winner will assume sole control of the West's fourth seed. It's unclear if Morant will return for the critical showdown.

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