It has been a brutal season for the Memphis Grizzlies. A 110-98 loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers on the road Wednesday night added to Memphis' woes. On the bright side, one player from the team stepped up big time and even made franchise history, as second-year forward Jake LaRavia came out of nowhere and came up with a stellar performance in the Cavs game.
The former Wake Forest Demon Deacons star got down to work and finished the contest with a team-high 32 points to go with seven rebounds, two steals, and eight 3-pointers. For what it's worth, it is the first time in the history of the franchise that someone posted such a stat line, per StatMuse.
Grizzlies' Jake LaRavia had a career game in loss to the Cavaliers
LaRavia found his stroke early in the contest, as he scored 14 of the Grizzlies' 29 points in the first quarter. He was sizzling from behind the arc, knocking down all four of his 3-point attempts in the opening period and going 5/6 from the field overall in the quarter. He finished the first half with 21 points and a perfect 6/6 shooting from the 3-point region before adding 11 more points and two 3-pointers in the final two quarters of the contest.
Perhaps nothing showed how much in the zone LaRavia was in the Cavs game than this ridiculous stepback, fadeaway triple he buried early in the fourth quarter.
His total scoring production against the Cavs set a new career-high for LaRavia, whose previous best was a 25-point output in last March's home loss to the Los Angeles Lakers in which he drained seven 3-pointers with six rebounds and four assists.
“It was one of those nights where anything I was throwing up was going in,” LaRavia shared after the game, per the Associated Press (via ESPN). “I’m playing with confidence in my abilities and I’m just trying to take advantage of my opportunities,” LaRavia added.
There were also just a ton of shots to be had for LaRavia and the other healthy Grizzlies against the Cavaliers, as the their team was missing many of their top weapons with Ja Morant, Desmond Bane, Marcus Smart, and Jaren Jackson Jr. all sidelined due to injuries.
Apart from LaRavia, the Grizzlies also got ample scoring from GG Jackson and Scotty Pippen Jr., who scored 22 and 18 points, respectively, against the Cavaliers. Lamar Stevens also chipped in 16 points. The big difference in the contest was the lack of bench scoring for Memphis, which only came up with six points from its relievers to 25 by the Cavs backups. That's not much of a surprise, though, considering that the Grizzlies had to start LaRavia and others who would normally be coming off the bench instead of getting duties to start.
LaRavia, acquired by the Grizzlies after pulling off a draft day trade with the Minnesota Timberwolves in 2022 before they signed him to a four-year deal worth $14.76 million, can ride his momentum and strike while his hands are scorching hot on Friday when Memphis meets the Lakers again at home. The Grizzlies will close the curtains on their regular-season campaign on Sunday when they host the defending NBA champions Denver Nuggets.
On the season, LaRavia is averaging 9.8 points, 3.6 assists, 1.5 assists, while shooting 37.0 percent from the field and 33.1 percent from 3-point range.
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