Midway through the fourth quarter of the Grizzlies’ 128-112 loss to the Lakers on Sunday afternoon, star guard Ja Morant left the game with what seemed to be a hand injury.
Ja Morant’s hand injury is updated by the Grizzlies’ head coach
After the Ja Morant ‘gun scandal’, Memphis was able to save their season. Despite his absence, they finished second in the Western Conference.
Now it appears that they will face their most difficult challenge yet, and they will have to do so without their best player on the floor.
Morant injured his hand late in Game 1 against the Los Angeles Lakers and was unable to return.
After attempting a dunk and colliding in midair with Lakers big man Anthony Davis, Morant landed awkwardly on his outstretched right hand.
Morant, clearly in pain, subbed out of the game and returned to the locker room. He eventually returned to the Grizzlies bench, but he did not return to the game. When he returned to the bench, he appeared to have his hand and wrist wrapped.
Morant played 30 minutes before injuring his hand and finished with 18 points, 6 rebounds, 2 assists, and 2 steals.
The following is the play where the injury occurred:
Ja Morant headed to the locker room with an apparent injury after this play. pic.twitter.com/MZOrSN9Tmz
— ESPN (@espn) April 16, 2023
Grizzlies coach Taylor Jenkins said after the game that X-rays on Morant’s hand came back negative, which is good news for Memphis’ fans.
Morant will be evaluated further over the next few days before Game 2 of the series on Wednesday. The star guard told reporters that he is in “a lot of pain” and that his participation in the next game is “in jeopardy.”
X-rays on Ja Morant were negative, according to Taylor Jenkins.
— Tim MacMahon (@espn_macmahon) April 16, 2023
Morant’s health is obviously critical for Memphis moving forward. They are already without key contributors Steven Adams and Brandon Clarke for the duration of their playoff run, and they simply cannot afford to lose anyone else, especially their All-Star point guard, for an extended period of time.
Hopefully, Morant’s absence will not be too long, as the game is always better when the best players are on the court.
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