ja morant travel vs warriors

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Ja Morant got away with egregious travel against Warriors

NBA referees rarely call players for traveling or carrying these days, which in turn allows the players to routinely commit infractions. That said, what Ja Morant got away with on Tuesday was extremely egregious.

A video clip of a play that occured during Game 2 of the Western Conference semifinals series between the Golden State Warriors and Memphis Grizzlies went viral. The video shows Morant blatantly carrying the ball and then traveling two steps before dribbling again.

Ja Morant carries the ball on pretty much every possession…and it never gets called. This is pretty excessive too. pic.twitter.com/ho5JBPsh2l — Guru (@DrGuru_) May 4, 2022

Morant was running with the ball like he was playing lacrosse rather than basketball.

Some people pointed out other plays where players committed similar violations, such as when Steph Curry split some Grizzlies defenders in the first quarter.

Hey bruh, what's this? https://t.co/52nvHivbyx pic.twitter.com/Y4QhwlvuJc — Justin Lewis (@J_Timberfake_) May 4, 2022

Sure, Curry should have been called for a violation too. But that was nothing compared to how much of a travel Morant got away with.

It’s obvious the NBA has no problem with players skirting the rules to enhance the entertainment value of the product. But they still need to enforce the rules often enough to protect the integrity of the game. Allowing plays like that to happen reflects poorly on the sport.

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Ja Morant's 47 points carries Memphis Grizzlies past Warriors in Game 2 of Western Conference semis

• Oops! Something went wrong. Please try again later. More content below

Desmond Bane was hobbled. Dillon Brooks was ejected .

Ja Morant put the team on his back.

The Memphis Grizzlies' All-Star point guard took over with 18 fourth-quarter points and finished with a playoff career-high 47 against the Golden State Warriors. His last field goal came with the Grizzlies up by one point. He attacked the rim with fearlessness and finished over the raised arms of Golden State defenders.

Warriors shooting guard Klay Thompson traveled on the next possession and Morant put the game away to the tune of MVP chants on Tuesday night at FedExForum.

The Grizzlies defeated the Warriors 106-101 to tie the Western Conference semifinals series 1-1. Game 3 is set for Saturday (6:30 p.m. CT, ABC) in San Francisco.

Morant's historical performance puts him in rarified air. He joins LeBron James and Kobe Bryant as the only players to have multiple 45-point games in the NBA playoffs before turning 23 years old.

Here are some observations from Game 3:.

DRAYMOND GREEN: Draymond Green gives Memphis Grizzlies crowd double birds after taking elbow to face

EJECTED: Memphis Grizzlies' Dillon Brooks ejected for flagrant foul vs. Golden State Warriors

Live and survive by the 3-pointer

The Grizzlies ranked 23rd in the NBA with 32.7 3-point attempts per game in the regular season. They surpassed that total through three quarters.

Part of Golden State's plan was to make the Grizzlies shoot and limit their paint opportunities. Memphis made 16 of 40 3-pointers in Game 1. The efficiency wasn't the same, but Memphis got big makes when they needed them Tuesday. The Grizzlies made 14 of 45 3-pointers

Ziaire Williams missed the past two games due to right knee soreness. The Grizzlies trailed by three when he made two big fourth quarter 3-pointers to give them a 86-83 lead. Williams finished with 14 points and four made 3-pointers. Morant led the Grizzlies with five 3-pointers.

The Grizzlies also held the Warriors to 7-for-38 3-point shooting. Stephen Curry led Golden State with 27 points, but he made just 3 of 11 3-pointers. This was encouraging for the Grizzlies after Brooks left the game. The Warriors' 18.4% shooting from 3-point range was their lowest in franchise history in a game where they attempted 25 or more 3-pointers.

Lineup changes

Both teams started Game 2 with the same lineups as Game 1, but that only mattered for three minutes.

With 9:08 left in the first quarter, Brooks took a hard swipe across Gary Payton II's head and was ejected with a flagrant floul-2. Payton hit the floor hard and fractured his elbow. Warriors coach Steve Kerr talked before the game about expecting the Grizzlies to be more physical, but he took exception to that play by screaming at Grizzlies players as they walked back to their bench.

The Grizzlies lost one of their best wing defenders. and Payton — one of Golden State's best perimeter defenders — missed the rest of the game.

Jordan Poole started the second half of the Warriors and Williams started the third quarter in place of Brooks.

Jaren Jackson Jr . fouled out with 3:59 left in the fourth quarter. Jackson finished with 12 points and seven rebounds.

Desmond Bane is not 100%

Desmond Bane was listed as questionable with lower back soreness.

He didn't play with his same burst and couldn't create as much separation for his shots. Bane took a charge on Otto Porter Jr. with 6:33 left in the second quarter. After the play, Bane laid on the floor for a few seconds before getting up and walking gingerly to the bench.

Bane went scoreless in the second half but showed signs of life when he scored five points and grabbed three rebounds in the third quarter.

Contact Damichael Cole at [email protected] and on Twitter @damichaelc

This article originally appeared on Memphis Commercial Appeal: Ja Morant scores 47, Memphis Grizzlies even Warriors series 1-1

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a]:underline [&>a]:text-team-secondary"> Ja Morant has averaged 22.4 points, 7.4 assists and 4.1 rebounds in 11 games versus the Warriors in his career.

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What Ja being out for Game 4 of Warriors vs. Grizzlies means

By dalton johnson • published may 9, 2022 • updated on may 9, 2022 at 5:42 pm.

It's official: The Memphis Grizzlies will be without star point guard Ja Morant for Game 4 of the Western Conference semifinals against the Warriors on Monday night at Chase Center, Grizzlies coach Tayler Jenkins told reporters before the game. 

Morant has been ruled out with right knee soreness. 

Jenkins said that Tyus Jones will start in Morant's place

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The first-time All-Star and winner of the NBA's Most Improved Player award this season left the Warriors' Game 3 blowout win Saturday night early after appearing to hurt his right knee. Morant walked to the team bus on his own after the game, though he did have a clear limp. Grizzlies coach Taylor Jenkins then insinuated Warriors guard Jordan Poole triggered Morant's injury on a dirty play by grabbing his knee and yanking it. 

Morant even went to Twitter to tweet a clip of the play that Jenkins referred to, with the caption "broke the code" -- something Steve Kerr accused Grizzlies guard Dillon Brooks of when he wound up and clubbed Gary Payton II in the back of the head in mid-air during the Warriors' Game 2 loss, fracturing Payton's left elbow.

He later deleted the tweet.

However, a different angle of the play shows that Poole hardly grabbed Morant's knee while going for the ball as he and Andrew Wiggins double-teamed him. There also is evidence that Morant hurt the same knee earlier in the third quarter when jumping towards Klay Thompson and clanking knees, a play that looked to have caused much more pain for Morant than the Poole play in question. 

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Jenkins on Sunday dangerously doubled down on his feelings that Poole injured Morant, intentional or not.

"As I said last night, just trying to be matter-of-fact here," Jenkins said Sunday. "This is what Ja says, what our medical team has said after reviewing the play. I mean, Ja was playing great, feeling great all game and the grab of the knee is what triggered the potential injury and why we took Ja out of the game.

"Nothing has changed from there in terms of that was the play that triggered this and he's got further evaluation that's going on with his knee."

Morant played 36 minutes in Game 3 and still led both sides with 34 points. He also added seven assists, three rebounds and three steals before exiting early. 

The Grizzlies obviously are far less talented without Morant, but might not be far worse. At least that's what their regular-season record suggests. They went 20-5 without him, which amounts to an .800 win percentage. Memphis was 36-21 in games with Morant, good for a .632 win percentage. 

When Morant missed the Grizzlies' game against the Warriors on March 28, Memphis beat Golden State by 28 points. It should be noted that Steph Curry, Klay Thompson and Draymond Green also missed that game.

"Memphis went 20-5 without him," Kerr said Monday morning after shootaround when asked about Morant possibly not playing Game 4. "They're a hell of a team for a reason, they're really deep. While it may change a scheme or two in terms of how we're guarding, it doesn't change our respect for what they're capable of."

Minutes before the Morant news broke, the Warriors announced that Kerr has tested positive for COVID-19 and won't coach Game 4. Mike Brown will take over as acting head coach until Kerr is ready to return.

RELATED:  Ja's tweet, Grizzlies comments add fuel to fiery Dubs rivalry

With Morant stuck to the sidelines, the Grizzlies' offense might actually see more ball movement since Morant is so ball-dependent. They'll also need their role players to step up, like point guard Tyus Jones, as well as guards De'Anthony Melton and Brooks, who is returning from a one-game suspension but isn't much of an offensive threat anyway. 

Jones has scored just seven total points in the first three games of the second round, going 2-for-16 from the field and 0-for-8 on 3-point attempts. 

Yes, the Grizzlies had success without Morant in the regular season. These are the playoffs, though -- a whole new game compared to the previous 82.

Grizzlies big man Jaren Jackson Jr. was phenomenal in Game 1, scoring 33 points to Morant's 34 as they lost by one point in the final second to the Warriors. But in Game 2, rookie Ziaire Williams was the Grizzlies' second-leading scorer with 14 points off the bench while Morant was a one-man show with 47 points, and Desmond Bane was their second-leading scorer on Saturday night but put up just 16 points. 

Losing Morant is a huge blow to the Grizzlies, and Game 4 could look much different than past contests between these two teams.

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Warriors are giving Ja Morant the same playoff treatment they gave to prime Russell Westbrook in 2016

MEMPHIS, Tenn. — It took 20 seconds for the Golden State Warriors to declare their Ja Morant strategy to the entire viewing world. On the first possession of Game 1, the Grizzlies dialed up a high screen to get Draymond Green switched onto Morant, but Green didn’t get within eight feet of Morant as Morant circled the perimeter.

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The Memphis Grizzlies let the possession materialize. Dillon Brooks dumped it down to Jaren Jackson Jr. posting up against the smaller Andrew Wiggins . But Jackson didn’t have much room to operate. Green had collapsed into his area to take away the lefty drive, ignoring Morant. So Jackson kicked it out to the wide-open Morant and Green didn’t even pretend to close out, stopping six feet short and letting Morant take the 3.

You probably noticed: Morant hit it. Then the next possession down, the Warriors deployed a similar scheme. Gary Payton II went under on a high screen, Green didn’t hedge hard and Morant again buried an open left wing 3. The first six points of the series were on Morant 3s.

But that didn’t spook the Warriors away from their initial plan. This was Green later in that first quarter. Morant is trying to push the pace in transition. Three Warriors retreat into the paint to form a wall in front of the rim. Morant reluctantly backs it out. Green refuses to near the 3-point line. Morant lines up another wide-open shot. This one, he misses.

This is reminiscent of the defensive strategy the Warriors deployed against Russell Westbrook back in the 2016 playoffs. Mid-prime Westbrook was a runaway freight train in transition, an explosive finisher at the rim and still had touch in the restricted area. If you pressed up on him, he’d blow past. But if you backed up, you had more room to cut off his drive and could lure him into a lower percentage jumper.

Here are two examples from that 2016 West finals. Andre Iguodala sinks off Westbrook on the first clip and Klay Thompson goes under a screen in the second, even knowing Draymond Green is in drop coverage. Westbrook misses a pair of open 3s.

That late contest from Green on the second Westbrook clip is notable. There was some talk after Warriors practice on Monday in Memphis that they let Morant walk into too many batting-practice 3s.

“You want to get a late contest, I guess,” Green said. “But if you fly out there trying to get a late contest, he is very elusive and will fly by you.”

Morant went 4-of-11 total. Those 11 attempts were one off a career high. He only took 20 total in the six Minnesota first-round games, never more than five in a single game. The Warriors are just fine with him reaching double-digits. They’d just prefer there’s at least a hand somewhere in Morant’s shooting vicinity once it’s clear he’s taking the jumper and can’t beat you with the drive.

These are three quick screenshot examples on three of Morant’s misses. Stephen Curry , Payton II and Otto Porter Jr. all sag off enough to bait Morant into the jumper, but spring forward for a late contest to make the shot a bit more challenging.

Morant is capable of burning this strategy. He actually did it once to the Warriors in a do-or-die situation.

Remember the final day of last regular season? The Warriors and Grizzlies faced off with the eighth seed on the line. The Warriors sagged off Morant and he went 1-of-6 from 3, giving the Warriors home court in a Play-In game late in the week. They kept the same strategy. With a playoff spot on the line, Morant made a career-high five 3s on 10 attempts and the Grizzlies advanced in overtime.

“He led the league in paint points for a reason at 6 feet, 6-foot-2, however tall he is,” Green said. “When’s the last time a guard led the league in paint points? Allen Iverson? So you gotta do all you can not to let him get there.”

That means living with the results of Morant’s jumper, even if he’s capable of an efficient night out there. That’s how it was with Westbrook. He had a couple of hot nights from deep in those West finals. In a Game 4 Thunder win, Westbrook went 4-of-8 from 3. But he also went 0-of-5 in that Game 6 gut-punch OKC loss and was 30.1 percent total in the series.

Morant has already proven to be a slightly better 3-point shooter early. Westbrook is at 30.5 percent for his career, Morant is at 32.7 percent through three seasons. But if it’s about assessing threat levels, they’re treated the same.

“There’s a reason he’s an MVP player,” Green said of Morant. “You can’t take everything away. You know he can beat you at the rim. He’s done that since he came into the NBA . He’s the reason this (Memphis) franchise moved on from Mike Conley , who is a legend here. They moved on right away because they knew what they had. You know he can beat you getting to the rim. So you gotta try something different.”

Also similar to Westbrook, the Warriors are intent on making Morant work on the defensive end and exploiting some of his deficiencies. Morant, like Westbrook, has a tendency to lose focus off the ball and either fail to identify a cutter or box out.

When Morant is on Wiggins, they want him to attack the offensive glass. When Morant is on Payton, they want him to slash and cut and continually search for the open seam when Morant turns his back.

These two clips are from Game 1. In the first, Wiggins steps right past Morant for an easy rebound and putback. In the second — with less than two minutes remaining and Memphis up two — Payton slips behind Morant for a game-tying layup.

Here is Curry losing Westbrook on a cut back in that 2016 series.

When asked about those two Game 1 defensive miscues on Monday, Memphis coach Taylor Jenkins was defensive of his star. He said it was “completely incorrect” to pin the Payton back cut on Morant, saying that wasn’t his assignment, and then brought up the 26 second-chance points for the Warriors, believing it was a team-wide issue and not just Morant.

Fair. But this remains a targeted part of the Warriors’ strategy of attack. Morant had a productive Game 1. He finished with 34 points and 10 assists. But the Warriors were fine with the 31 shot attempts (and 11 attempted 3s) he needed to reach those numbers and will continue to drag him into the mix on the other end, testing him physically and as a team defender. It’s what they once did to Westbrook and survived well enough to deem it a success.

(Top photo: Noah Graham / NBAE via Getty Images)

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Anthony Slater is a senior writer covering the Golden State Warriors for The Athletic. He's covered the NBA for a decade. Previously, he reported on the Oklahoma City Thunder for The Oklahoman. Follow Anthony on Twitter @ anthonyVslater

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Grizzlies' Ja Morant: Bounces back vs. Warriors

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Morant posted 36 points (15-29 FG, 2-10 3Pt, 4-7 FT), seven rebounds, eight assists and one steal across 41 minutes during Sunday's 123-109 loss to the Warriors.

Morant had been held to 12 points on 4-for-14 from the field in his team's last contest Friday in Phoenix, but he showed up on Christmas Day. The star point guard couldn't fully lock in from three, but he shot 51.7 percent from the field and made an impact on the glass and as a passer. Morant has reached the 30-point threshold in two of his last three games, averaging 27.7 points, 4.3 rebounds and 9.7 assists over this brief span.

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Injury report: grizzlies' ja morant available vs. warriors on wednesday, share this article.

During the Memphis Grizzlies third consecutive road loss on Monday against the Sacramento Kings, Ja Morant was ruled out for the contest due to left ankle soreness.

Before the Grizzlies travel to San Francisco on Wednesday, Morant has been removed from the injury report and is expected to play against the Golden State Warriors at Chase Center.

Via @anthonyVslater on Twitter:

Ja Morant will return against the Warriors tomorrow night after missing the Sacramento game. Not listed on the injury report. Steven Adams is out again. Knee soreness. The Grizzlies are trying to avoid an 0-4 open to their road trip. — Anthony Slater (@anthonyVslater) January 25, 2023

During the 2022-23 season, the star point guard is averaging 27.2 points on 46.4% shooting from the floor with 7.9 assists and 5.5 rebounds per game.

In his previous appearance against the Warriors on Christmas day, Morant tallied 36 points on 15-of-29 shooting from the field with eight assists and seven rebounds in 40 minutes.

Prior to starting their current road swing, the Grizzlies cracked off 11 consecutive wins. They’ve since dropped three games straight heading into Wednesday night’s game against the Warriors in San Francisco.

Tipoff is slated for 7 p.m. PT at Chase Center on Wednesday night.

This post originally appeared on  Warriors Wire ! Follow us on  Facebook  and  Twitter ! 

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Ja Morant liked his last shot, but the Golden State Warriors knew it was coming

Ja Morant stood on the opponent's side of the court by himself as the Memphis Grizzlies were set to inbound the ball with 3.6 seconds left. Golden State Warriors guard Gary Payton II was his assigned defender. Payton stood near the Grizzlies 3-point line before looking at the Warriors' bench and then running up to faceguard Morant before the pass.

Morant took off past Payton and was met at the rim while he tried to squeeze a left-handed layup past Klay Thompson as the buzzer sounded. He missed, and the Warriors took Game 1 of the second-round NBA playoff series 117-116 on Sunday at FedExForum.

“I was actually beat to the play," Payton said. "Thank God Klay Thompson sniffed it out. He had my back and just tried to make it difficult for him at the end to make a tough shot, and he missed it.” 

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It was a play that Morant has converted multiple times. He did so against the Phoenix Suns in a December win and last series against the Minnesota Timberwolves. Each time Morant was inbounded the ball, he got downhill and made a layup through traffic. 

Morant said it was the same message the Grizzlies have had each time in that situation. In the past, he's described that message as, "get a bucket, Ja." 

"I just missed a layup," Morant said. 

"He had a great look," Grizzlies coach Taylor Jenkins said. "It just didn't happen to go in."

The frequency of that call is also why, as they Warriors put it, they were waiting on it.

“We've seen it," Payton said. "He's made that shot multiple times. Just trying to disrupt it. And Klay did what he needed to do to disrupt it.”

“We knew they were going to try and get him to go downhill; we had seen that a couple of times," Warriors guard Jordan Poole said. "Gary Payton II, Klay Thompson, Juan Toscano-Anderson, Otto Porter did a really good job.” 

It appeared that Thompson used his 6-foot-6 frame to disrupt and make Morant's layup difficult, even though Morant denied after the game that Thompson's contest had any impact on the shot. 

Against the Suns, Morant finished that shot over Devin Booker and defensive player of the year runner-up, Mikal Bridges. He was met at the rim by the 6-9 Jared Vanderbilt when he made the shot in Game 5 of the first round.

That's why during the timeout, Warriors player development coach Jacob Rubin alerted Thompson that the play was coming.

“Obviously I thought he was going to attack, and I did not think Brandon Clarke was going to be the one that shot the last shot," Thompson said. "I just knew it was going to go to the best player. He's an incredible player in the key, and I just tried to cut him off from getting an open layup and forced him to make a tough shot."

A lot of attention was put on Morant throughout the game. The Warriors started Payton so he could be Morant's primary defensive matchup. They also emphasized giving Morant space at the 3-point line and taking away his driving lanes.

Morant scored 34 points on 14-for-31 shooting and made 4 of 11 3-pointers. 

The Grizzlies didn't get their typical production from many of their impact players. Desmond Bane and Dillon Brooks both averaged more than18 points in the regular season but neither scored in double figures on Sunday.

Those numbers in part are why there wasn't panic from the Grizzlies after the Game 1 loss. After all, in the last two Grizzlies playoffs series, the team that won Game 1 loss the series. The Grizzlies won Game 1 last season against the Utah Jazz before losing the series 4-1, and they won a series 4-2 against the Timberwolves after losing the first game.

“Super proud of our guys," Jenkins said. "The effort that they gave tonight was phenomenal. There’s definitely some mental lapses that we had. We’ll easily clean that stuff up, watch the film tomorrow. Just got to recover, recuperate, get ready for tomorrow to be a big day to clean stuff up, and then get ready for Tuesday’s game."

Contact Damichael Cole at [email protected] and on Twitter @damichaelc 

Ja Morant Sends Strong Message After Warriors vs. Grizzlies

T he Memphis Grizzlies fell to the Golden State Warriors on Wednesday night, but rookie forward GG Jackson had another big time performance. Finishing with a career-high 35 points to go along with five rebounds and seven made threes, Jackson once again put the NBA world on notice that he has a bright future in this league.

Following this performance from Jackson, his teammate Ja Morant sent a strong message on X (formerly known as Twitter):

This seemed like a reminder to the rest of the league that not only will Jackson continue to get better, but he will be surrounded by much more talent next season than he has been surrounded by this season. While the Grizzlies have started to get some pieces back from injury, Morant remains sidelined for the rest of the season, but should be back to start next year.

With a full year of NBA experience under his belt, along with an entire offseason to work on his game, Jackson should enter next season even better than he is right now. Adding a player like Morant next to him will only increase the quality of looks he is going to get, which should elevate his play even more.

This has been a frustrating year for the Grizzlies, but they should be a very tough team to deal with next season.

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Lawyers for Teen Suing NBA Star Ja Morant Over a Fight During a Pickup Game Withdraw From the Case

A Tennessee judge has ruled that lawyers for a teenager who is suing two-time NBA All-Star Ja Morant over a fight during an offseason pickup game can withdraw from the case after citing irreconcilable conflicts with their client

Brandon Dill

FILE - Memphis Grizzlies guard Ja Morant stands on the sideline during the first half of an NBA basketball game between the Grizzlies and the Golden State Warriors, Jan. 15, 2024, in Memphis, Tenn. Lawyers for a teenager who is suing the two-time NBA All-Star over a fight during an offseason pickup game can withdraw from the case after the teen's attorneys cited irreconcilable conflicts with their client, a Tennessee judge ruled Friday, May 3. (AP Photo/Brandon Dill, File)

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) — Lawyers for a teenager who is suing two-time NBA All-Star Ja Morant over a fight during an offseason pickup game can withdraw from the case after citing irreconcilable conflicts with their client, a Tennessee judge ruled Friday.

Rebecca Adelman and Leslie Ballin had filed a motion in Shelby County Circuit Court asking a judge to allow them to withdraw from the lawsuit filed by Joshua Holloway against Morant, who hosted a daylong series of pickup games at his parents' home in July 2022 that ended when the Memphis Grizzlies guard punched the then 17-year-old Holloway once in the face.

Judge Carol Chumney granted the request during a brief hearing Friday. Adelman did not provide details of the nature of conflicts, only saying in court that she felt she was unable to exercise her “legal judgement” in support of Holloway. The judge gave Holloway's parents 30 days to report to the court with information on a new lawyer.

Myca Clay, Holloway's mother, said she was seeking new representation for her son, who plays college basketball for Samford. Clay said after the hearing that she is not open to settling the lawsuit filed in September 2022 and she did not agree with the way her son's lawyers represented him.

“I'm just trying to get justice for my son,” Clay told reporters.

The lawyers' exit from the case came about three weeks after Chumney ruled that Morant “enjoys a presumption of civil immunity” from liability under Tennessee law. Morant claimed he acted in self-defense when he punched Holloway after the teen threw a basketball at Morant, which hit the NBA player in the face.

Photos You Should See - April 2024

Morant testified during a December hearing that he was worried about getting hurt after the teen bumped him in the chest, balled his fists and got into a fighting stance before Morant punched Holloway.

The NBA player’s lawyers have argued Morant is protected under Tennessee's “stand your ground” law allowing people who feel threatened at their homes to act with force in certain situations. The law is used in criminal cases, but an earlier ruling by the judge cleared the way for Morant’s lawyers to apply it in the civil case.

A trial had been set in April, but it has been postponed indefinitely.

Morant tore the labrum in his right shoulder in early January, a injury that required surgery, ending a season that started with Morant suspended by the NBA for the first 25 games for a video of the guard flashing a handgun online.

The video showed Morant sitting in the passenger seat of a car and was posted after he finished serving an eight-game suspension in March for another video in which he displayed a handgun in a Denver-area strip club.

Morant apologized for both videos.

Copyright 2024 The  Associated Press . All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

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Lawyers for teen suing NBA star Ja Morant over a fight during a pickup game withdraw from the case

FILE - Memphis Grizzlies guard Ja Morant stands on the sideline during the first half of an NBA basketball game between the Grizzlies and the Golden State Warriors, Jan. 15, 2024, in Memphis, Tenn. Lawyers for a teenager who is suing the two-time NBA All-Star over a fight during an offseason pickup game can withdraw from the case after the teen’s attorneys cited irreconcilable conflicts with their client, a Tennessee judge ruled Friday, May 3. (AP Photo/Brandon Dill, File)

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MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) — Lawyers for a teenager who is suing two-time NBA All-Star Ja Morant over a fight during an offseason pickup game can withdraw from the case after citing irreconcilable conflicts with their client, a Tennessee judge ruled Friday.

Rebecca Adelman and Leslie Ballin had filed a motion in Shelby County Circuit Court asking a judge to allow them to withdraw from the lawsuit filed by Joshua Holloway against Morant, who hosted a daylong series of pickup games at his parents’ home in July 2022 that ended when the Memphis Grizzlies guard punched the then 17-year-old Holloway once in the face.

Judge Carol Chumney granted the request during a brief hearing Friday. Adelman did not provide details of the nature of conflicts, only saying in court that she felt she was unable to exercise her “legal judgement” in support of Holloway. The judge gave Holloway’s parents 30 days to report to the court with information on a new lawyer.

Myca Clay, Holloway’s mother, said she was seeking new representation for her son, who plays college basketball for Samford. Clay said after the hearing that she is not open to settling the lawsuit filed in September 2022 and she did not agree with the way her son’s lawyers represented him.

“I’m just trying to get justice for my son,” Clay told reporters.

The lawyers’ exit from the case came about three weeks after Chumney ruled that Morant “enjoys a presumption of civil immunity” from liability under Tennessee law. Morant claimed he acted in self-defense when he punched Holloway after the teen threw a basketball at Morant, which hit the NBA player in the face.

Morant testified during a December hearing that he was worried about getting hurt after the teen bumped him in the chest, balled his fists and got into a fighting stance before Morant punched Holloway.

The NBA player’s lawyers have argued Morant is protected under Tennessee’s “stand your ground” law allowing people who feel threatened at their homes to act with force in certain situations. The law is used in criminal cases, but an earlier ruling by the judge cleared the way for Morant’s lawyers to apply it in the civil case.

A trial had been set in April, but it has been postponed indefinitely.

Morant tore the labrum in his right shoulder in early January, a injury that required surgery, ending a season that started with Morant suspended by the NBA for the first 25 games for a video of the guard flashing a handgun online.

The video showed Morant sitting in the passenger seat of a car and was posted after he finished serving an eight-game suspension in March for another video in which he displayed a handgun in a Denver-area strip club.

Morant apologized for both videos.

How Ja Morant, Memphis Grizzlies fit into NBA's 'changing of the guard' | Giannotto

Charles Barkley said only four names. 

Anthony Edwards . Luka Doncic. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. Jayson Tatum. 

He stopped there to start TNT’s “Inside the NBA” postgame show earlier this week, when the discussion that’s all the rage in these NBA playoffs came up once again.

There’s a " changing of the guard " under way. That’s the prevailing theme through almost one round of this postseason. 

And if this were a couple years ago, Barkley probably would have included Ja Morant . He probably would have mentioned the Memphis Grizzlies as a group that could step into the vacuum the inevitable decline of LeBron James, Steph Curry and Kevin Durant leaves behind.

Except Barkley isn’t saying that. Nobody outside of Memphis is really saying that anymore. Nobody but Grizzlies fans, Grizzlies players and Grizzlies management are including the Grizzlies in that conversation at the moment.

That doesn’t make it right. That's just a function of not being a playoff team.

But making sense of that – of being not hated or loved, but largely just ignored – is what everybody with a rooting interest in the Grizzlies has been forced to do during this postseason.  

Where does Memphis fit into this “changing of the guard” in the NBA? Nobody can actually know the answer yet, even though the answer will define this group's legacy. Waiting on it is that much harder after having to sit through what this season became for the Grizzlies. 

Memphis got a taste of what Morant, Desmond Bane and Jaren Jackson Jr. might accomplish and it still can’t say for sure when the next bite will come.

These playoffs have shown the Grizzlies' trio to, theoretically, be of similar structure to the best teams in the West, particularly while Jackson is on a contract with declining salaries of about $25 million and $23 million the next two years. But the landscape seems more treacherous than before. James, Curry and Durant are still viable enough, but Gilgeous-Alexander, Edwards and Doncic seem ready now, too.

Just this week, New Orleans Pelicans General Manager David Griffin talked to reporters about the “historically great Western Conference” that emerged almost simultaneously with the Grizzlies’ unfortunate detour. He even alluded to teams like Memphis that aren’t in the playoffs but he expects to “get radically better this offseason.” 

In 2022-23, Memphis was one of just three Western Conference teams to win more than 45 games when it finished second in the West. This season, the Golden State Warriors were the last Western Conference play-in team with 46 wins. 

MORE: A son and a new AAU team shed light on the blossoming bond of Derrick Rose and Ja Morant

What’s obvious already is the NBA forgets quickly when you play only nine games in 370 days-and-counting like Morant, and the league moves on to new narratives when you aren’t in the playoffs. 

Guards like Edwards, Gilgeous-Alexander, Jalen Brunson and Tyrese Haliburton have all either done, or sit one win away from doing, what Morant and these Grizzlies did before them – win a playoff series. Teams like Oklahoma City and Minnesota — teams Memphis catapulted past not long ago — are the rosters NBA observers envy now. The Thunder have even inadvertently (or not?) copied the Grizzlies' postgame interview celebration gimmick.

If Morant can get back to playing 65 or more games per season, if he can stay healthy in the playoffs – and those ifs loom larger than anything Morant has or hasn’t changed off the court – the bet here is the NBA quickly remembers what it saw just a couple years ago.  

It’ll remember that Morant won a playoff series over Edwards. That he scored 47 points twice and 45 points once over 19 career playoff games, and has two 35-point performances in play-in games. That he has one playoff triple-double and three other playoff games in which he was either one rebound or one assist away from a triple-double. That his playoff averages in points (27.3) and assists (8.6) would rank among the top 10 in NBA history if he had played in enough games to qualify for those categories.

Hopefully someday soon, Morant and the Grizzlies can remind everyone they really started the changing of the guard.

You can reach Commercial Appeal columnist Mark Giannotto via email at [email protected] and follow him on X: @mgiannotto

Lawyers for teen suing NBA star Ja Morant over a fight during a pickup game withdraw from the case

A Tennessee judge has ruled that lawyers for a teenager who is suing two-time NBA All-Star Ja Morant over a fight during an offseason pickup game can withdraw from the case after citing irreconcilable conflicts with their client

MEMPHIS, Tenn. -- Lawyers for a teenager who is suing two-time NBA All-Star Ja Morant over a fight during an offseason pickup game can withdraw from the case after citing irreconcilable conflicts with their client, a Tennessee judge ruled Friday.

Rebecca Adelman and Leslie Ballin had filed a motion in Shelby County Circuit Court asking a judge to allow them to withdraw from the lawsuit filed by Joshua Holloway against Morant, who hosted a daylong series of pickup games at his parents' home in July 2022 that ended when the Memphis Grizzlies guard punched the then 17-year-old Holloway once in the face.

Judge Carol Chumney granted the request during a brief hearing Friday. Adelman did not provide details of the nature of conflicts, only saying in court that she felt she was unable to exercise her “legal judgement” in support of Holloway. The judge gave Holloway's parents 30 days to report to the court with information on a new lawyer.

Myca Clay, Holloway's mother, said she was seeking new representation for her son, who plays college basketball for Samford. Clay said after the hearing that she is not open to settling the lawsuit filed in September 2022 and she did not agree with the way her son's lawyers represented him.

“I'm just trying to get justice for my son,” Clay told reporters.

The lawyers' exit from the case came about three weeks after Chumney ruled that Morant “enjoys a presumption of civil immunity” from liability under Tennessee law. Morant claimed he acted in self-defense when he punched Holloway after the teen threw a basketball at Morant, which hit the NBA player in the face.

Morant testified during a December hearing that he was worried about getting hurt after the teen bumped him in the chest, balled his fists and got into a fighting stance before Morant punched Holloway.

The NBA player’s lawyers have argued Morant is protected under Tennessee's “stand your ground” law allowing people who feel threatened at their homes to act with force in certain situations. The law is used in criminal cases, but an earlier ruling by the judge cleared the way for Morant’s lawyers to apply it in the civil case.

A trial had been set in April, but it has been postponed indefinitely.

Morant tore the labrum in his right shoulder in early January, a injury that required surgery, ending a season that started with Morant suspended by the NBA for the first 25 games for a video of the guard flashing a handgun online.

The video showed Morant sitting in the passenger seat of a car and was posted after he finished serving an eight-game suspension in March for another video in which he displayed a handgun in a Denver-area strip club.

Morant apologized for both videos.

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Big Development in Ja Morant’s Court Case Revealed

Memphis Grizzlies star Ja Morant is hoping to put this case behind him

• Author: Joey Linn

In this story:

Memphis Grizzlies star Ja Morant was involved in an altercation in 2022 with then teenager Joshua Holloway. The incident took place over a pickup basketball game, and while no criminal chargers were filed against Morant, Holloway has been suing the star point guard.

There have been several developments in this court case that have gone Morant’s way, including his lawyers being granted the ability to argue self defense, which resulted in a win for Morant on that front. Another big development took place recently, with ESPN reporting that Holloway’s attorneys are withdrawing from the case.

“Lawyers for a teenager who is suing two-time NBA All-Star Ja Morant over a fight during an offseason pickup game can withdraw from the case after citing irreconcilable conflicts with their client, a Tennessee judge ruled Friday,” ESPN reported.

Including additional details, ESPN added, “Rebecca Adelman and Leslie Ballin had filed a motion in Shelby County Circuit Court asking a judge to allow them to withdraw from the lawsuit filed by Joshua Holloway against Morant, who hosted a daylong series of pickup games at his parents' home in July 2022 that ended when the Memphis Grizzlies guard punched the then-17-year-old Holloway once in the face.”

This is a big development in Morant’s court case, and another one that seems to suggest the Grizzlies star may be closer to finally putting this situation entirely behind him.

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