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MEMPHIS — While helping his team build a 26-point lead in the first half, Memphis Grizzlies guard Ja Morant sustained a hard foul by Oklahoma City Thunder guard Lu Dort with 3:15 left in the first half, ending Morant's night.
When Dort slipped in an attempt to strip the ball, he bridged Ja in the process, which led to a nasty fall as he suffered a hip injury. The Thunder erased a 29-point deficit to win Game 3.
While the Grizzlies managed to stretch their lead to 29 without Morant, the Thunder outscored Memphis 36-18 in the third quarter before taking their first lead of the night with 1:20 left in the final frame and never looked back. Oklahoma City defeated the Grizzlies 114-108 to take a commanding 3-0 lead in their first-round NBA Playoffs series.
After the win, Dort addressed his foul on Morant in the first half, per the Memphis Commercial Appeal’s Jonah Dylan.
“Tough one,” Dort said. “Obviously, I hope he’s OK. I was running back, making a hustle play for my team; I was running quick, stopped on a dime; I didn't know he was behind me, and I was slipping. I tried to make a play on the ball, but we just ran into each other, and he fell down. But I hope he’s OK. I didn’t mean to hit him like that.”
The Thunder outscored the Grizzlies 27-13 in the final frame.
Mark Daigneault on Lu Dort’s foul on Ja Morant in Thunder's win
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Thunder head coach Mark Daigneault delivered his take on Lu Dort’s controversial foul on Ja Morant. Daigneault says he believes Dort’s foul was unintentional but also admitted it played a significant role in the Thunder’s historic comeback.
Daigneault revealed his honest take before stating he hopes Morant will fully recover.
“I never wanna see anybody get hurt. I hope he's OK. But you want everybody to be at full strength,” Daigneault said. “He's a great competitor. He was playing great.
“Obviously, that had something to do with the game as well. It would be wrong for me not to acknowledge that. But I think it was a clean play. I think everybody was playing hard. It's just unfortunate, and I hope he's all right.”
Morant exited the game with 15 points on 6-of-11 attempts and five assists. Grizzlies' Scotty Pippen Jr. scored 28 points to lead five players in double figures, including Jaren Jackson Jr. (22 points), and Sani Aldama's 14 points led the bench. With a 3-0 lead, the Thunder has pushed the Grizzlies to the brink of elimination.
