The return of Ja Morant on the court after a 25-match suspension was the event of the night. The All-Star leader did not disappoint, finishing the game with 34 points, 6 rebounds, 8 assists and the winning shot at the end of an incredible “comeback” of which he was the main instigator.
No one could have imagined such a scenario, because even if the impact of Ja Morant was felt from the start of the match, the leader had not played an official match for eight months, and therefore had to expect to suffer physically after the break. The Grizzlies' good start (21-25), partly facilitated by Zion Williamson's exit for two fouls after two minutes, was quickly undermined by the McCollum-Ingram pair.
The Pelicans led by 24 points!
We then believed in the beginning of a butchery since the Pelicans lined up a resounding 26 to 2, series marked by four 3-point baskets from CJ McCollum and also six points from Brandon Ingram to bring the score to 56-33. A few moments later, Cody Zeller's dunk sealed the biggest gap of the game, at +24 40 seconds before halftime (36-60)!
Little by little, Memphis began its comeback, putting on a lot of pressure upon returning from the locker room to quickly get back below the ten-point gap, notably thanks to a 7-0 concluded by a 2+1 from Ja Morant (56-64). The return of Zion Williamson was nevertheless felt, notably by two alley-oops which allowed him to explode the circle, but the Grizzlies did not give up. There were notably 3-pointers from Desmond Bane and Vince Williams Jr, then a once again aggressive Ja Morant to hold off Brandon Ingram (87-77).
The Pelicans then thought they had done the hard part when Naji Marshall, Dyson Daniels and CJ McCollum hit the mark from afar (96-82). But Memphis held on, and responded with a 12-2 victory concluded by the inevitable Ja Morant. The pressure then changed sides when the Grizzlies came back to two possessions (98-94).
Ja Morant, hero of a crazy comeback
At the end of the effort, Ja Morant struggled to finish bringing his team back into the game, with the help of Jaren Jackson who was also very valuable at the end, since it was he who equalized at 109 -109 with less than two minutes remaining. Jonas Valanciunas and Herbert Jones responded in the final sprint until the two teams reached the last possession at 113-113 after an “air-ball” from CJ McCollum at 3-points.
Ja Morant then took responsibility by overtaking Herbert Jones at the head of the racket with a spin move to go to his left and score a victorious lay-up surrounded by Jones and Dyson Daniels, all at the buzzer! In a crazy atmosphere on the Grizzlies bench side, Memphis therefore achieved the perfect shot with Ja Morant as the hero of the evening, he who would undoubtedly not have imagined such a scenario even in his wildest dreams (113-115) .
WHAT YOU MUST REMEMBER
– A hero named Ja Morant. It was the event of the night, and for his return, Ja Morant did not disappoint. Propelled into the major five, he immediately gave another dimension to these Grizzlies. Everything was not perfect, far from it, but his presence had the gift of changing the situation, through his intensity, his vision of the game, his brilliant passes and of course his aggressiveness towards the circle. We felt he was on a mission at the end, and what was supposed to happen happened with this victorious drive which nailed the Pelicans' beaks in their room. Great art and one more line to add to the legend of the player Ja Morant, who we now hope will be able to stay on the straight and narrow until the end of his career to delight us as he did last night .
– The countdown begins ? The Grizzlies fell considerably behind in their first 25 games, with only six small victories on the clock. Can the return of Ja Morant change the situation? In this match, the answer is clearly yes since even diminished (Derrick Rose, Marcus Smart, Luke Kennard and Brandon Clarke were missing), Memphis was suddenly able to compete with the 7th in the Western Conference on its floor. The margin for progress seems enormous, since beyond the numerous absentees, we can highlight the delicate match of Desmond Bane, but also the fact that Ja Morant finished the match worn out. He sometimes lacked lucidity due to fatigue, like at the end when he refused to take a 3-pointer to try to find an easier basket closer to the circle, and ultimately lost the ball.
Ja Morant's teammates now have 56 games left to try to reverse the trend and secure a place to play in the post-season. If Taylor Jenkins' men succeed, history will remember that it all started on December 19 on the Pelicans floor.
