When the NBA schedule was released this summer, I have to say I didn't think I'd care much about Thursday night's Memphis at Portland matchup. But it's a surprising battle between two of the last three unbeaten teams in the NBA and is also Trail Blazers guard Ja Morant's first game against his former team after the Grizzlies traded him this summer. I'd expect him to put up big numbers against his old team. Portland is a 7.5-point home favorite in the Grizzlies vs. Trail Blazers odds at DraftKings Sportsbook, and the Over/Under for total points is 232.5. Claim the best Kalshi promo code CBSSPORTS55, trade $25, and receive a $55 bonus here:

This is one of just three games on the Thursday NBA schedule, and it is the last tip at 10 p.m. ET. At -7.5, Portland is taking 86% of money and 82% of tickets, while on the total of 232.5 the Over is getting similar leans.

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Grizzlies vs. Blazers NBA same-game parlay

• Portland money line
• Alt Under 240.5

DraftKings: SGP price: +104 (subject to change)

Tom Condon is the fairly new Blazers owner, and he already is reviled in Portland for some penny-pinching moves and letting coach Tiago Splitter leave after he led the team to a surprise Western Conference playoff spot last season. Splitter was quickly snapped up by the Bulls. Condon then made the unprecedented decision to hire his full-time replacement, former Timberwolves assistant Micah Nori, on a deal with just the first season guaranteed. The second and third years feature team options that are held by the franchise, so Condon and the front office have all the leverage.

One wonders why Nori even took this job, but there are only 32 of them and this looks like a team on the rise. And boy is it a fun team now with the additions of Morant and future Hall of Famer and franchise icon Damian Lillard. It's only the second time in the last 15 seasons that the Blazers have opened a season 3-0.

Morant's value was at an all-time low in Memphis when he was acquired in June for forwards Jerami Grant and Kris Murray in a steal. When Morant is healthy and doesn't have off-court nonsense surrounding him, he's arguably a top-20 player in the league and definitely top 10 for most exciting. The 27-year-old has happily fit in as a team player, not trying to dominate the ball, and he's averaging 16.3 points on 58.8% shooting from the field and 6.3 assists. For tonight, he's set at O/U 24.5 points + assists and the model has him at 18.4 points and 5.9 helpers.

Lillard was on the Blazers last season but missed it due to an injury from his final year with Milwaukee. The 36-year-old looks great, putting up 21.7 points, 4.3 rebounds and 4.0 assists per night. What team has a more interesting backcourt than Morant and Lillard? Plus, two good backups in Jrue Holiday and Scott Henderson, and I haven't even mentioned arguably the best all-around player on the team in forward Deni Avdija (22.3 PPG, 7.0 RPG, 6.3 APG).

Portland leads the NBA in scoring at a whopping 129.3 points per game. It also leads in made field goals per game (45.7), and assist/turnover ratio (2.24). Last season, it went 21-22 in clutch-time games, which is when the score is within five points in the final five minutes. So far this year, 2-0.

Is the team ready to win the West? Probably not, as it's priced at +2800 and has a season wins total of 45.5, but the Blazers could make some noise. They won at the previously unbeaten Lakers on Monday night, 136-129. And, hey, Oklahoma City already has been seriously weakened, so you never know. Nori is among early favorites for Coach of the Year at +1500.

That Portland is 3-0 isn't completely out of nowhere, but that Memphis is 4-0 in the midst of a supposed rebuild after trades of Morant and Jaren Jackson (to Utah last season) is pretty surprising. Tuomas Iisalo is +1400 for Coach of the Year. It's only the second time the Grizzlies have started 4-0, after the 2014-15 team began 6-0 on the way to finishing 55-27.

No doubt the guy carrying the Grizzlies has been journeyman guard Ty Jerome, the reigning Western Conference Player of the Week. His career scoring average is 9.7 PPG, and that's up a few notches as he has posted a whopping 29.8 PPG number so far – Jerome is the +600 leader for NBA Most Improved Player. Jerome leads the NBA in second-half scoring average (19.0) and fourth-quarter average (10.0) among players who have played a minimum of three games. You are already hearing that teams are calling the Grizzlies about him. He's set at O/U 24.5 points here.

Might as well sell high on the 29-year-old, who has a player option for next season and is making only $9.2 million this year. Jerome isn't part of the team's future, which is built around the likes of rookie Cameron Boozer (+220 ROY favorite), second-year Cedric Coward and third-year but injury-prone big man Zach Edey, along with a few others.

I do think Memphis is playing quite a bit over its head, as its four opponents all are well under .500 and the Grizz also have caught some injury breaks on their foes – like in Monday's 110-105 win at Utah. The Jazz saw stars Jackson and Lauri Markkanen leave in the first half and not return. Memphis has led at halftime in all four games and have made more 3-pointers than its opponent in all four, shooting 39.1% while holding foes to 32.4%.

Portland won three of four in this series last season and has taken the past three at home in it. It's the end of a four-game trip for the Grizzlies, so a natural letdown spot. They haven't swept a trip of at least four games since November 2013. Jerome is due to come way back to Earth. The model has Blazers by a score of 117-111.  Check out other expert picks in the SportsLine daily newsletter.