Ja Morant Needs to Step Up
Ja Morant has been the face of the Memphis Grizzlies since the team drafted him second overall in the 2019 NBA Draft. Since his inception into the league though, the Grizzlies’ superstar has been marred by numerous injuries whilst being riddled with both on and off-court antics resulting in several suspensions and fines for inappropriate behavior. However, the one aspect of Ja Morant that has never been in question is his game. His ability to fly through the air, his ability to take over entire games, and his ruthless tenacity on the court make him one of the most electrifying players the league has had over the last few seasons. Well, at least he used to have these qualities.
Following his season-ending shoulder surgery at the end of last year, many of us expected Ja Morant to come out with renewed energy as he attempted to put his previous suspensions and injuries behind him. This has hardly been the case. While on occasion Morant will erupt for 30 points, as he has done the previous two games he played, for the better part of the season we have seen a much more reserved Ja Morant. On the year, Morant has been averaging 22.9 points per game. This is down several points from the 2022 and 2023 seasons where he averaged 27.4 points and 26.2 points respectively whilst leading the Grizzlies to the number two seed in the Western Conference in both seasons.
Not only this but following his hamstring injury earlier in the year, Morant stated that he’s "not trying to dunk at all" to prioritize his health. While this is a respectable decision as injuries have seemed to follow him around like a plague, it seems this decision to limit himself is larger than just dunking. Overall, Morant’s field goal attempts per game have been down as well with the star only averaging 15.2 field goal attempts per game. This is also much lower than the 2022 and 2023 seasons where he averaged roughly 20 field goal attempts per game. This lack of aggression coupled with underwhelming performances by Morant has likely led to the position the Grizzlies currently find themselves in, an eighth-seeded team in the West desperately trying to avoid the Play-In Tournament.
If the Grizzlies are to escape from their current path, Morant is going to have to become the superstar that he once was. While he doesn’t need to be flying through the air, his passion, his aggression, and his killer mentality must come back. In the last two games he played we have seen that. The star even delivered a game-winning buzzer-beater against the Heat last week. These performances though must not become an outlier as they have all too often this season. With crucial Western Conference matchups against the Timberwolves and Nuggets coming up on the horizon, two major games in regards to playoff seeding, the Grizzlies will have to rely on Morant to step up to the plate and carry them to the finish line. To get to where they want to go, the Grizzlies need the Ja Morant of old, and they need him now more than ever.
