The Memphis Grizzlies had a rough go in the 4th quarter of Sunday’s game against the Los Angeles Lakers, but they received some reliving news regarding Ja Morant after the contest was over.
Game 1 of their series against LeBron James and company was a competitive one, until the fourth quarter, at least. Memphis was playing short-handed after the injuries to their front court players, and will be as long as they remain in the postseason.
X-Rays For Ja Morant Come Back Negative
Ja Morant headed to the locker room with an apparent injury after this play. pic.twitter.com/MZOrSN9Tmz
— ESPN (@espn) April 16, 2023
But they were able to hold their own during the first part of the game, and were actually leading by 6 going into half-time. But thanks to Rui Hachimura and Austin Reeves, the Lakers came storming back in the third quarter and were eventually able to put the game away for good.
And while the home loss to the 7th seed is a tough way to start the postseason for the Grizzlies, it could have been a whole lot worse after the injury to superstar player Ja Morant.
Midway through the fourth quarter and just before the Lakers began to pull away, Morant was doing his best to get his team back into the game. The Grizzlies were down by 4 with just under 6 minutes to play when Morant drove to the basket and collided with Anthony Davis near the basket.
Morant became parallel with the ground, and dropped hands-first from about 7 feet up in the air. The slow motion replay shows his hand and fingers enduring a gruesome bend, which he clutches afterward while writhing in pain.
Morant Questionable For Game 2 On Wednesday
Ja Morant says his status for Game 2 is “in jeopardy.” He was downtrodden and not even able to use his right hand to undo a balled-up pair of socks. “Feels like it’s one thing after another.”
— Tim MacMahon (@espn_macmahon) April 16, 2023
Morant was done for the day, and the rest of the Grizzlies team apparently decided that they were done, too. In about 5 minutes of game clock, the Lakers turned a 4-point lead into the 16-point margin of victory that they finished the game with.
The Game 1 loss is tough for Memphis, but losing Morant for an extended period of time would very likely mean the end of their chances at winning much of anything for the rest of the season.
But thankfully for Ja Morant and the Grizzlies, post-game x-rays on his hand came back negative, meaning that he avoided any long term damage. There is, however, a fear that he’ll be unavailable for Game 2. The injury may not keep him out for the season, but there is enough pain to put his status into question for the short term.
Game 2 is scheduled for Wednesday night in Memphis.
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