Grizzlies star Ja Morant is a doubt in Game 2 against the Lakers after suffering a disconcerting hand injury in the fourth quarter of the opening defeat: “It feels like one thing after another.
- Morant was injured less than six minutes before the end of the fourth quarter
- He remained out until the end of the hard fought game, which the Lakers won
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Memphis Grizzlies star Ja Morant is a suspect in Game 2 against the Los Angeles Lakers after suffering a hand injury in a hard fall during the opening game.
If Morant is missing, it will be a huge blow to the second seed Grizzlies, who are already trailing 1-0 after a shock defeat to LeBron James and company in Game 1.
After the game, Morant said his Game 2 position was “in jeopardy”, as he struggled to use his right hand to back off a pair of socks. He also said that it “seems to be one thing after another”.
The injury occurred just under six minutes into the fourth quarter while the game was separated by just four points, and Morant headed straight to the locker room after a hard fall on the paint.
Morant stayed out for the rest of the fourth quarter as the Lakers would go on to win 128-112, with the Grizzlies star sorely missed by his teammates.
Ja Morant suffered a hand injury and was knocked out of the game in the fourth quarter
After being injured, he got up and ran to the locker room to be treated
Before leaving with the injury, Morant recorded 18 points, six rebounds, and two assists while productively leading the Grizzlies as we’ve seen many times before.
According to Grizzlies’ coach Taylor Jenkins, X-rays of Morant were negative and the medical team was still assessing his hand and wrist.
“He’s in some pain,” Jenkins said, as Morant was still being evaluated by medical staff.
Morant was already dealing with a hand injury that saw him sit out the last two games of the regular season.
If he ever has to miss due to injury, the Grizzlies have proven they can still pull off a win without him.
Earlier this season, when Morant was suspended for “conduct detrimental to the league,” after showing a gun on his Instagram Live while partying at a strip club, the Grizzlies went 6-3 in his absence.
Although he faced a multi-game suspension after willingly walking away from the team for several days, neither the NBA nor Colorado police could find which league laws or rules he had actually violated.
Last season when Morant was out for a long time with an injury, Memphis also went 20-5 while recovering.
Despite this ability to win games without their MVP, Memphis would still miss Morant and have the 26.2 points, 5.9 rebounds and 8.1 assists he scored during the regular season if he had to miss time.
Morant also recently made headlines out of court after the 17-year-old made numerous allegations against him and his buddies that likely played a part in the suspension while also playing a large role in unfair criticism and defamatory comments all NBA team points faced parts. Great from both the media and the general public.
Memphis is a hit even when Morant is out by putting Tyus Jones in the five-star category
