After an off day on Friday, the Grizzlies will wrap up their regular season by hosting the Pelicans on Saturday and the Celtics on Sunday. According to an Associated Press report, there’s hope that star point guard Ja Morant will be able to play in one of those games.
“He’s doing great,” head coach Taylor Jenkins said on Thursday. “All signs are in a really good direction, but he’s definitely getting close. … He did 5-on-5 for the first time today, so that’s really encouraging. (He) responded well afterward. We’ll see how he responds (Friday) obviously, as we go into this back-to-back back home.”
Morant has been sidelined since March 18 due to a right knee injury, but the Grizzlies had always been optimistic that he’d be ready to return in time for the postseason.
Since Memphis’ first-round series won’t get underway until April 16 or 17, the team could get Morant several extra days of rest by holding him out of the last two games of the regular season. However, Jenkins indicated on Thursday that he’d like to see the 22-year-old back in action and the roster at full strength once more this weekend, if possible.
“If that’s not what’s the recommendation of the medical team, (if) we don’t feel like that’s the smartest move, then we won’t do it,” he said.
At 55-25, the Grizzlies are locked into the No. 2 seed in the West and have nothing significant at stake in their final two games, so if Morant does play this weekend, the team will likely put him on a minutes restriction and not push him too hard.
The Grizzlies are better without him. A brilliant move would be to trade him to the Knicks for at least Quickley and their 2022 1st round pick.
You really think that’s all Memphis could get for Morant? If you’re going to trade him, you had better milk him for all it’s worth. Otherwise, a deal would be pointless
Boy oh boy! SMH!