Ja Morant looked rusty.
And if this is rusty Morant, he is going to be a serious problem.
As the game went along Morant shook off the rust of missing 25 games because of a league suspension and scored 14 points in the fourth quarter, 34 for the game, and when it mattered hit the game-winner to lift the Grizzlies past the Pelicans.
Ja's #TissotBuzzerBeater from inside the building! https://t.co/Iiu3bzFB9X pic.twitter.com/702RSle6v0
— NBA (@NBA) December 20, 2023
It’s incredible how much one player can change the fortune of a franchise. The Grizzlies came into Tuesday night 6-19 on the season, losers of three straight and on the second night of a road back-to-back. This would be a “schedule loss” for most teams.
Morant changed the dynamic.
In the first half he was getting his legs under him, scoring just seven points on 3-of-8 shooting. The rust of missing 25 games showed, he didn’t have the touch around the rim. For the game he was 0-of-5 from 3.
But in the second, half Morant found his touch. He was winded, but by the fourth quarter he scored 14 points hitting 5-of-6 shots in the paint.
34 points.
— NBA (@NBA) December 20, 2023
24-point comeback.
1 #TissotBuzzerBeater.
12 had a SPECIAL night.@JaMorant x @memgrizz pic.twitter.com/bcZ3P2k8YU
On the final play, Morant tried to defer to Desmond Bane or Jaren Jackson Jr., but they wanted the star with the hot hand to shoot.
Ja Morant came up to Desmond Bane in the huddle and asked if he wanted to run a post play for Jaren.
— Damichael Cole (@DamichaelC) December 20, 2023
Bane: “I was like no.”
Bane said he wanted the ball in Ja’s hands.
Morant sparked a comeback in a game where New Orleans was in control, up 19 in the half thanks to Brandon Ingram, who finished the game with 34 points on 11-of-18 shooting. Jonas Valanciunas added 22 points and 14 rebounds for New Orleans, and CJ McCollum had 18 points and was 6-of-7 from 3 until he had two big misses in the final minute.
And that’s just when Morant was taking over.
The Grizzlies are going to need wins like this if the goal is to climb back up to the playoffs.
For one night, Morant had them looking like a playoff team again.
