MEMPHIS – With a hand injury leaving the status of star point guard Ja Morant in jeopardy, the Grizzlies must regroup to gain a grip on their first-round playoff series against the Lakers.
Having already seen homecourt advantage slip away with a stinging 128-112 loss in Game 1, Memphis will use the two days between games to recover and adjust entering Game 2 on Wednesday at FedExForum.
Morant underwent further testing and evaluations Monday on his injured right hand after suffering a fall in the fourth quarter of Sunday’s game. Morant immediately left the court for X-rays, which were deemed negative, and didn’t return to the game.
The Grizzlies did not practice Monday, and the team did not provide any additional updates on Morant’s status or the results of any further testing.
Morant had entered the playoffs already dealing with soreness on that same hand that stemmed from a collision with Jae Crowder on April 7 during the Grizzlies’ win in Milwaukee. He then sat out of the regular-season finale in Oklahoma City two days later to rest for the playoffs.
Although Morant was non-committal when asked if he would be available for Game 2, his Grizzlies teammates seemed much more encouraged about the prospects. If Morant is unavailable, Memphis would be without one of only five NBA players who ranked among the top-15 in the league in both scoring (26.2) and assists (8.1) this season.
“You pray for everybody to be healthy, you pray for the best all the time, but that just might not happen,” Grizzlies All-Star forward Jaren Jackson Jr. said. “At the end of the day, (Morant) feels fine. We push through anything.”
To push past the Lakers and even the series, the Grizzlies must hope for more than positive developments on the Morant injury front. They must also correct three areas where the Lakers dominated despite a relatively modest output from NBA career-leading scorer LeBron James.
The Lakers dictated Game 1 with a combination of balance, bench and control of the boards. Memphis can’t afford to have multiple Lakers get going the way they did on Sunday, when James was one of five Los Angeles players to contribute at least 19 points. James had 21 points and 11 rebounds, Anthony Davis added 22 points and 12 boards, D’Angelo Russell finished with 19 points and seven assists, Austin Reeves put up 23 points and Rui Hachimura chipped in 29.
Hachimura’s breakout effort came off the bench, where he single-handedly outscored the Grizzlies’ reserves by a 29-24 advantage. Memphis ended the regular season with 50-plus wins and the No. 2 seed in the West for the second straight season partly because of its bench boost.
Morant, Jackson and Desmond Bane combined for 71 of the team’s 112 points, but there wasn’t much of a consistent offensive punch among the reserve group of Luke Kennard, Tyus Jones, Santi Aldama and David Roddy. Grizzlies coach Taylor Jenkins used eight players in the primary rotation who each logged at least 22 minutes.
And there wasn’t much of a margin for error regardless of the five-man group on the floor. The Grizzlies saw the Lakers capitalize on nearly every turnover they made, converting 12 miscues into 22 points off turnovers.
“We’ll continue to discuss the game plan,” Jenkins said of making Game 2 corrections. “We’ve got to continue to watch the film and see where we’ve got to make necessary adjustments. But if we’re going to give up 50 points in transition and on the boards, it’s going to be really tough.”
Reversing the outcomes in fastbreak scoring and second-chance points are priorities Wednesday after witnessing the Lakers hold 26-17 and 22-10 advantages in those respective departments. The Grizzlies entered the postseason leading the NBA in fastbreak scoring at 18 points a game. They also ranked among the league’s leaders in offensive rebounding and second-chance points before losing center Steven Adams and forward Brandon Clarke to season-ending injuries.
The Grizzlies have adjusted to the absences of Adams (out since Jan. 22) and Clarke (sidelined since March 4) to finish the season strong. But filling those physical voids is especially difficult against a rugged frontline such as the Lakers frontcourt anchored by James and Davis.
The intent for Memphis is to speed up the game, create more transition opportunities and use their advantages in speed, floor spacing and three-point shooting to offset the Lakers’ size.
Seeing a few more shots fall from beyond the arc would certainly help. Bane and Kennard, two of the top-five three-point shooters in the NBA this season, were just 4-of-14 from deep on a day when the Grizzlies missed 23 of 36 threes as a team.
“It’s going to be a challenge the whole series,” Bane said of neutralizing James and Davis by dictating a faster style of play. “I think ball-movement is going to have to be at a premium. We felt like we played well, but we can definitely play a whole lot better. We still had our chances.”
Bane then reiterated how the Grizzlies have taken this path before in the playoffs. Last season, they lost Game 1 at home in both the first-round against the Timberwolves and in the second round against the Warriors. Memphis bounced back to win Game 2 in each series before ultimately defeating Minnesota in six games and falling to Golden State in six games.
Resilience has been a strength these past two seasons.
“You’re definitely pissed off when you take a loss to start a series, but we’ve been in this position before,” Jenkins said. “We’ve just got to clean up. We didn’t execute priorities of our game plan. Let’s focus on Wednesday. Get back, executive halfcourt defense and get rebounds.”
Regardless of Morant’s status, the Grizzlies are confident they can get a handle on this series.
They get another shot in Game 2 in Memphis, where they posted the NBA’s best home record.
“You never shy away from it – that’s not how we’re built, that’s not what our program stands on,” Jackson said. “Every single time you’ve seen (adversity) happen, someone steps up and does what they need to do, with the help of everybody. That’s what this place is about for sure.”
Getting a bit healthier over the off days ahead of Game 2 wouldn’t hurt.
Because getting even Wednesday in this series is essential.