Ja Morant’s sprained shoulder puts a hitch in the resurgent Grizzlies’ ride back to the playoffs.
On Monday, Memphis announced Morant suffered a right shoulder sprain during the team’s 132-124 Friday night win against the Pelicans and is considered week-to-week.
As the Associated Press noted, he suffered a torn labrum in the same shoulder last season, ending his season after only nine games on Jan. 5, 2024.
The Grizzlies had the league’s worst injury luck last season, resulting in their ugly 27-55 record, snapping the franchise’s streak of three consecutive playoff appearances.
Morant has started 20 games this season and is second on the team in scoring (21.2 points per game), trailing center Jaren Jackson Jr. (21.6 points per game).
Morant leads the Grizzlies in assists (7.9) while also averaging 4.4 rebounds and 1.1 steals per game.
The Grizzlies are 8-5 without Morant this season, but seven of those wins have come against teams with losing records.
Backup point guard Scotty Pippen Jr. has filled in admirably in 12 starts, averaging 14.6 points, 6.2 assists and 4.3 rebounds per game.
Still, losing Morant will be a key test for the Grizzlies (22-11, second in the Western Conference). Over the next week, they play the Suns (15-16, 11th in Western Conference), Kings (13-19, 12th in Western Conference) and Warriors (16-15, ninth in Western Conference) on the road and the Mavericks (20-12, fourth in Western Conference) at home.
If Morant’s absence extends beyond January 6, 2025, Memphis might also be without its lead guard for games against the Rockets (21-11, third in Western Conference) on Jan. 9 and 13 and the Timberwolves (17-14, eighth in Western Conference) on Jan. 11.
The Grizzlies were blown out, 130-106, by the Thunder (26-5, first in Western Conference) on Sunday in their first game since Morant’s shoulder injury.
Memphis flunked its first exam. The next couple of weeks will reveal Morant’s worth.
