At the end of the 2018/19 NBA Season, the Memphis Grizzlies had a difficult decision to make. They had failed to qualify for the playoffs for a second successive season and the era known as 'Grit and Grind' had come to a close with 1 Conference Final loss, 2 Conference Semi-Final losses and 4 First Round losses the sum of their efforts.
Their first step was to replace coach J.B. Bickerstaff (who just quietly is doing alright in Cleveland at the moment) with Rookie Head Coach Taylor Jenkins. Jenkins had previously been an assistant at both Atlanta and Milwaukee working under Coach Mike Budenholzer.
The second and more defining decision was taken at the 2019 NBA Draft where "At Pick Number 2, the Memphis Grizzlies select Ja Morant out of Murray State."
With Morant set to help lead a younger and fresher Memphis team along with Jenkins giving them the freedom to express themselves, Memphis replaced Grit and Grind with Up Tempo. They were young and brash and given the remarkable pace at which Morant has developed, an absolute joy to watch. Memphis games have become must-see viewing for the inevitable trash-talk and outrageous plays that they generate.
That's jumping a little ahead though.
In his first season (2019-20) averaging 17.8pts and 7.8ast Morant would win NBA Rookie of the Year (2020) and make the NBA All-Rookie First Team (2020) while Memphis would finish 9th in the covid-shortened season and miss out on the playoffs after losing the play-in match against Portland.
In his second season (2020-21) averaging 19.1pts and 7.4ast Morant would lead the Grizzlies into the playoffs for the first time in 4 seasons losing in the first round to the Utah Jazz 4-1.
His third season (2021-22) though is where he really took off. Morant averaged 27.4pts and 6.7ast as he was announced the NBA's Most Improved Player, made the All-NBA Second Team and was nominated by the fans for his first All-Star Appearance. The Grizzlies would win their first divisional title in franchise history and they made it to the Conference Semi-Finals before losing to eventual champions Golden State Warriors 4-2.
It's Morant's 4th season (2022-23) though that needs to be looked at because something clearly had changed. Morant was still doing his business on the court averaging 26.2pts and 8.1ast as Memphis won their second successive division title however in the playoffs, they would lose 4-2 against the Los Angeles Lakers in the first round. Morant would also be named to the All-Star game for a second successive season.
While he was doing his business on the court, there were questions starting to emerge about his off-court behaviour. A lot of rumours started flying around social media which cannot be verified and as such don't deserve any mention but what we do know is that on March 4 2023, Ja Morant did an Instagram Live where he flashed a gun. Suddenly it was announced that Morant would be stepping away from team activities for at least two games; then announced he would be entering counselling in Florida for an indefinite period; then suddenly exiting counselling and being suspended for 8 games backdated. This meant he only had 2 extra games to serve as a suspension.
If you find that sequence of events confusing, don't worry, you're not the only one. What I can say is that something changed in Memphis when he came back. I'm not sure what it was but suddenly they went from cruising to suddenly limping towards the playoffs. Granted, they did have plenty of cushion but teams they should've beaten comfortably they struggled to beat.
Did Morant's off-court issues play some part in that?
I don't know the answer to that but what I do know is that less than 2 weeks after being bounced out of the NBA Playoffs by the Lakers, Morant was again on an Instagram Live (this time a friend's one) and again he chose to flash a gun.
This time, NBA Commissioner Adam Silver and the Memphis Grizzlies had had enough. The Grizzlies stood Morant down and the NBA came down hard on him with a 25-game suspension, basically ruling him out till December. In addition to that suspension, Morant has to fulfil a league-sponsored program addressing whatever issues it is that he has going on.
This leads to the big questions:
1) Is this a case of Morant being dumb and stupid on two occasions now?
2) Is Morant struggling with the pressure of being the face of the franchise? a) What support does Memphis have in place to help him navigate those challenges? b) Are those supports sufficient enough? c) Does Memphis need to look deeper at its player well-being program? 3) Is this a case of Morant possibly hanging out with the wrong crowd?
4) Is there a deeper mental health issue that is impacting him
These are just some of the questions that could be asked. If it is in any way related to mental health, I have no intention of going there because he deserves his privacy working through those challenges.
Whatever way you look at this particular situation, this is fast becoming the curious case of Ja Morant and whatever is going on with him at this moment in time. Basketball fans everywhere will absolutely hope that when he comes back, he will get back to his best and lead Memphis back for another playoff run.
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