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The Grizzlies got blown out by 51 points on April 20 against the Thunder, but it was what happened off the court that caught the attention of ESPN's Stephen A. Smith.
Memphis was down by more than 50 points when the camera cut to Grizzlies star Ja Morant on the bench in the fourth quarter. Morant was smiling with his teammates.
"I know the brother is an elite competitor," he said. "I know he's a star. But people don't want to see you laughing when you're getting your a-- kicked like that. You want to see somebody ticked off. Especially if you're a fan, because you're emotionally invested. And at that particular moment, it provides a question mark to you as to whether or not that cat's invested. You got vacation plans or something?"
The loss went down as the worst in Grizzlies playoff history and the fifth-worst in NBA playoff history. Memphis was only down by 12 after the first quarter, but things unraveled after that and the game was never competitive in the second half.
Smith said Morant was also smiling during the Grizzlies last playoff game, which took place in 2023 against the Lakers. The Grizzlies lost that game by 40.
"You lost by 51," Smith said. "Y'all down 50, and you on the bench laughing? I don't want to see that. I don't think anyone in Memphis wants to see that."
Morant vowed after the game that the Grizzlies would be more competitive in Game 2 on April 22 (6:30 p.m., TNT).
“We’ll never play that bad again,” Morant said.
This article originally appeared on Memphis Commercial Appeal: Stephen A. Smith takes issue with Ja Morant smiling with Grizzlies down 50
Continue reading...
Memphis was down by more than 50 points when the camera cut to Grizzlies star Ja Morant on the bench in the fourth quarter. Morant was smiling with his teammates.
"I know the brother is an elite competitor," he said. "I know he's a star. But people don't want to see you laughing when you're getting your a-- kicked like that. You want to see somebody ticked off. Especially if you're a fan, because you're emotionally invested. And at that particular moment, it provides a question mark to you as to whether or not that cat's invested. You got vacation plans or something?"
The loss went down as the worst in Grizzlies playoff history and the fifth-worst in NBA playoff history. Memphis was only down by 12 after the first quarter, but things unraveled after that and the game was never competitive in the second half.
Smith said Morant was also smiling during the Grizzlies last playoff game, which took place in 2023 against the Lakers. The Grizzlies lost that game by 40.
"You lost by 51," Smith said. "Y'all down 50, and you on the bench laughing? I don't want to see that. I don't think anyone in Memphis wants to see that."
Morant vowed after the game that the Grizzlies would be more competitive in Game 2 on April 22 (6:30 p.m., TNT).
“We’ll never play that bad again,” Morant said.
This article originally appeared on Memphis Commercial Appeal: Stephen A. Smith takes issue with Ja Morant smiling with Grizzlies down 50
Continue reading...
