Had Ja Morant and Brandon Clarke not been informed of the threshold they’re approaching, chances are they would have blown through it without a second thought.
When the Grizzlies return from their current west coast trip on Monday, the dynamic rookie duo will have seen action in as many NBA games already this season than each had played all of last season in college. If the relentless schedule or wear and tear of the NBA is starting to catch up to Morant and Clarke, neither has checked the rearview mirror to notice.
They maintain a forward focus as they press into 2020, looking to build on breakout starts to their NBA rookie seasons. This week, Morant was named Western Conference rookie of the month for December after the No. 2 overall pick also snagged the honor for November. It’s the first time in franchise history a Grizzlies’ player has earned the award in consecutive months.
And while Morant continues to lead all rookies in scoring and assists, Clarke tops the NBA rookie charts in field goal percentage and rebounding. Together, Morant and Clarke give the Grizzlies arguably the NBA’s most productive rookie tandem. They combine to average 30.4 points, 8.7 rebounds, 7.9 assists, 1.5 steals and 1.2 blocks per game.
Morant has only heard rumors of the proverbial rookie wall. For the Grizzlies’ two first-round picks in last June’s draft, there’s not much evidence to suggest that wall is anywhere in sight.
“That wall, it’s never on my mind,” Morant told Grind City Media of carrying his dazzling play from 2019 into the New Year. “People say it, but I don’t pay attention to it at all. I feel like I worked hard enough in the offseason to come in and be prepared for this. And everything I do now on the court, I try to go hard and to be conditioned for 82 games of the season.”
Provided they stay healthy, don’t expect Morant or Clarke to slow down anything soon. Barring any setbacks, they are expected to play both ends of a back-to-back set for the third time in as many weeks when the Grizzlies (13-22) face the Clippers on Saturday and the Suns on Sunday. The Grizzlies will get back to Memphis on Monday with 37 games behind them, and a six-game homestand looming that will push the team past the midpoint of the regular-season schedule.
When Clarke was reminded that he played a total of 37 games last season during his breakout junior year at Gonzaga, it took a moment for the reality to set in. After shaking his head in almost disbelief, Clarke explained how adjusting from college to the NBA is equally as challenging mentally as it is physically.
People say it, but I don’t pay attention to it at all. I feel like I worked hard enough in the offseason to come in and be prepared for this. And everything I do now on the court, I try to go hard and to be conditioned for 82 games of the season.
Clarke said two of the biggest changes he’s made throughout his initial months in the league involved largely cutting out junk food and cutting down on staying up too late at nights.
“It’s much easier now, because you don’t have class,” Clarke said. “You can manage everything better. Being a pro, you learn to cut out the things that don’t really matter. You focus on knowing how to take care of your body, knowing how to take your off days seriously. It’s putting the right food into your body and learning to balance rest, because in college, you can get away with some stuff. But now, if you do that, you can feel everything on the court, really.”
But what I’m really proud of is my shooting, because it wasn’t something I’ve had consistently in my past. I still feel like I have even more steps to take with the shot and as a ball-handler, and that’s something this summer I’m going to take on a lot. But I’ve taken some steps already and there’s so much more to work on and grow on.
Instead, the Grizzlies are feeling the impact Clarke has made at power forward on a second unit that ranked among the NBA’s top 10 in bench scoring last month. Clarke’s 12.8 points per game leads all Memphis reserves, and he’s also shooting 64.4 percent overall from the field, including a team-best 45.7 percent on threes. That puts the 6-foot-8 forward on pace to lead the NBA in effective field goal percentage should Clarke meet the qualifications minimum for attempts.
So what’s been the biggest surprise about Clarke’s seemingly seamless shift to the NBA game?
“I really want to say nothing, because I’ve worked super hard on my game for a really long time and it’s not really surprising,” Clarke said. “But what I’m really proud of is my shooting, because it wasn’t something I’ve had consistently in my past. I still feel like I have even more steps to take with the shot and as a ball-handler, and that’s something this summer I’m going to take on a lot. But I’ve taken some steps already and there’s so much more to work on and grow on.”
Clarke’s consistency as an energetic, momentum shifting force off the bench has stood out on a team that has frequently played to the extremes this season. Coming off their best month after posting an 8-8 record in December, the Grizzlies stumbled through their first steps into 2020 by squandering a 20-point lead in Thursday’s 128-123 loss in Sacramento.
Those painful lessons come with balancing the ups and downs of an NBA season while managing the third-youngest roster in the league. Morant knows all about coping with the highs and lows and moving onto the next game, regardless of the outcome.
In Sacramento, just hours after he learned he’d be getting another rookie of the month nod, Morant struggled through a sluggish night on the court. He scored a team-high 23 points to keep the Grizzlies in striking distance late after they blew the big lead. But Morant was also haunted by a season-high seven turnovers that crippled his team’s chances to fully recover.
Therein lies the biggest lesson Morant has learned nearing the midpoint of his rookie season.
“Being able to turn the page quickly,” Morant insisted. “Because there’s a game the next day.”
Morant’s athleticism, quickness and explosive plays at the rim set the tone for his November rookie of the month campaign. His highlight dunks, 18.6 scoring average and fourth quarter takeover moments were plentiful through the initial weeks on the season.
But in December, Morant adjusted his game, established a floater in the lane, absorbed double-team defensive schemes and created more opportunities for teammates to make plays. Although his scoring, shot attempts and assists were down from November to December, Morant’s minutes, field goal shooting percentage and ability to read and adjust all increased.
“It’s just being smarter,” Morant said. “Really, it was just slowing down. I wasn’t shooting as many shots and forcing anything because of the defenses we were playing against. They were trying to pin me on the sidelines or blitz me off the screens to get the ball out of my hands. So the adjustment was just me trying to play smarter, read the defense and find the open man.”
That ability to read the game and provide whatever is necessary has been part of Morant’s approach since his days at Murray State. It’s why he blossomed from being primarily a facilitator as a freshman playing alongside senior scorers to becoming the first player in NCAA history to average at least 20 points and 10 assists as a sophomore focal point.
Morant played 33 games that entire historic season in college.
The Grizzlies passed that threshold before the New Year rolled in.
Really, it was just slowing down. I wasn’t shooting as many shots and forcing anything because of the defenses we were playing against. They were trying to pin me on the sidelines or blitz me off the screens to get the ball out of my hands. So the adjustment was just me trying to play smarter, read the defense and find the open man.
“If you think about it and look at the games and the records, you’ll be like, ‘Yeah, we’ve played a lot of games already, man,’” Morant admitted. “But in terms of how fast they’ve come, back to backs and everything, it’s like, ‘Wow, we really played this amount of games?’ From November to December, it’s just been me trying to adjust to what I’m seeing. It’s not that my aggression is leaving or that I’m tired or anything. I’m just doing what I know I can do.”
In many ways, the Grizzlies’ rookie duo is just getting started.
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