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Ja Morant is known as a human highlight reel in the NBA today, but that may be coming to an end as he tries to prioritize his health. In the Memphis Grizzlies' win against the Dallas Mavericks, Morant was on a fast break and went up for a simple two-hand dunk, which caused the fans to boo him, as they probably expected something more spectacular.
“I'm not trying to dunk at all,” Morant said after the game via ESPN's Tim MacMahon. “Y'all think I'm lying. I'm dead serious.
“Sometimes I get knocked out the air and [a foul] don't get called, and now I'm out longer than what I'm supposed to be. Sometimes the foul might get called; I still hit the floor, but after the game, you might feel that little fall. So I just pick and choose, man. Hey, two points is two points. I get it done. That's all that matters.”
Morant has had several injuries that have caused him to miss a lot of time over the past two seasons, and it looks like he just wants to play it safe and find a way to maximize his time on the court. It wouldn't be a surprise if he pulls out a dunk every once in a while, but for now, it seems like there will be fewer highlights from Morant.
Ja Morant playing it safe to help Grizzlies
Ja Morant seems to be fine with being booed for not giving the fans what they want, especially if it's still getting the Grizzlies a win.
“Hey, I'm fine with that. Continue to boo me,” Morant said. “Hey, I got two points. It was still a dunk. It was just not the dunk they wanted to see. But if they boo me off a little rim-grazer, I'm fine with that.”
With no dunking, that means that Morant most likely won't be participating in a dunk contest, something that everybody was hoping to see at some point in his career.
“If I'm chillin' on the in-game, you ain't gotta worry dunk contest, either,” Morant said. “Man, my focus right now is do what I can with the team and continue to try to get to 100 percent [healthy].”
The Grizzlies have been rolling this season even with the several injuries they've had, but their depth has proven to be strong behind their stars. If they can stay fairly healthy throughout the season, they'll once again be a team in the Western Conference that others will have a hard time beating.