Ja Morant

Memphis Grizzlies guard Ja Morant sent a letter to Judge Kenneth C. Imes in Murray, Kentucky, on Thursday asking that a Confederate statue located in downtown Murray be removed.

Edward Alan Marlowe of the Paducah Sun tweeted the full letter sent by Morant:

Former Murray State point guard and current Memphis Grizzlies star Ja Morant has weighed in on the Confederate statue in the downtown courtsquare of Murray, Ky. pic.twitter.com/77oaSfmcmq

— Edward Alan Marlowe (@dreamarlowe85) June 13, 2020

Morant spent two seasons playing collegiately for the Murray State Racers from 2017 to '19 before getting selected second overall by the Grizzlies in the 2019 NBA draft.

Morant wrote that he is "extremely proud" of his ties to Murray State and that it "felt like a second home" as soon as he arrived. At the same time, Morant expressed concern regarding the continued presence of the statue:

"As a young Black man, I cannot express enough how disturbing and oppressive it is to know the city still honors a Confederate war general defending white supremacy and hatred. Given recent events and the Black Lives Matter movement, it's necessary to act now. We can't change the culture of racism unless we change the celebration of racism. Please help us take a stand and remove this symbol of hatred and oppression."

The statue, which stands on the grounds of the Calloway County courthouse, depicts Confederate general Robert E. Lee. Per Dalton York of WKMS, Morant's plea to remove the statue came after Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear called for it to be removed earlier this week.

Following the death of George Floyd in police custody in Minneapolis on May 25, there have been nationwide protests against racial inequality, police brutality and social injustice that have included renewed efforts to remove Confederate symbols.

Most notably, NASCAR announced this week that Confederate flags will be banned at all racetracks moving forward. The decision was made after Bubba Wallace, who is the only black driver in any of NASCAR's three national series, expressed his belief that it should happen.

If the statue at the Calloway County courthouse is removed, it will come on the heels of a statue of Confederate President Jefferson Davis being removed from the Kentucky state Capitol on Saturday as well.

The NBA has announced the 2019-20 season will restart July 31, beginning with eight games to wrap up the regular season and determine playoff seeding for the 22 teams that will relocate to Orlando, Florida. 

Since basketball's return is imminent, let's look at where things stood in the awards races when play was suspended because of the coronavirus pandemic March 11. 

Even though eight games don't constitute a significant sample size, that could be enough to change one or two of the close award votes. 

Here's a look at the top contenders for each of the NBA's individual awards.

      

Most Valuable Player: Giannis Antetokounmpo, F, Milwaukee Bucks; LeBron James, F, Los Angeles Lakers; James Harden, G, Houston Rockets

Even though the NBA has named three MVP finalists since it adopted the NBA Awards show in 2017, this year's race will come down to Giannis Antetokounmpo against LeBron James. 

Antetokounmpo is looking to become the 12th player in league history to be named MVP in consecutive seasons.

The Milwaukee Bucks superstar has been in the driver's seat since the first day of the regular season. He ranks third in scoring average (29.6 points per game) and rebounds (13.7 per game), and averages 5.8 assists per contest for a Bucks squad that owns the NBA's best record (53-12). 

Antetokounmpo's 31.63 player efficiency rating is on pace to be the seventh-highest single-season mark in NBA history. 

James was closing on Antetokounmpo when the season was suspended, though. The 16-time All-Star is averaging a career-high and NBA-best 10.6 assists per game, along with 25.7 points and 7.9 rebounds per contest. 

The crown jewel of James' resume was his two-game performance on March 6 against the Bucks and March 8 against the Los Angeles Clippers. He put up a combined 65 points on 19-of-38 shooting, 16 rebounds, 17 assists and three steals in two Lakers victories. 

James could have taken control of the MVP race if play hadn't been suspended, because Antetokounmpo was going to miss at least two games with a knee injury. 

A fully healthy Antetokounmpo is still the likely favorite for MVP, but James has a chance to surpass him if he continues to ascend and the Lakers (49-14) can catch Milwaukee in the overall standings. 

      

Rookie of the Year: Ja Morant, G, Memphis Grizzlies; Zion Williamson, F, New Orleans Pelicans; Kendrick Nunn, G, Miami Heat

The Rookie of the Year race was likely over even if the season had continued as normal, but Ja Morant has it wrapped up in this new scenario.

Zion Williamson has lived up to the hype as the No. 1 overall pick for the New Orleans Pelicans. The 19-year-old has averaged 23.6 points, 6.8 rebounds and 2.2 assists per game with a 58.9 shooting percentage since debuting Jan. 22. 

Therein lies the problem with Williamson's candidacy. He can only play a maximum of 27 games this season, assuming he appears in each of New Orleans' final eight contests when play resumes. 

Even if Morant doesn't suit up for the Memphis Grizzlies when they return, he'll still finish the year with 32 more games played than Williamson. The Murray State alum has led the Grizzlies to the No. 8 seed in the Western Conference by averaging 17.6 points and 6.9 assists per contest, while shooting 49.1 percent overall and 36.7 percent from three.

        

Most Improved Player: Bam Adebayo, F, Miami Heat; Brandon Ingram, F, New Orleans Pelicans; Luka Doncic, G, Dallas Mavericks; Jayson Tatum, F, Boston Celtics

The most exciting race could be for Most Improved Player, with four candidates who would have a strong case for the award in any year. 

If voters look at individual performance and team success, Luka Doncic and Jayson Tatum are likely the top contenders.

Doncic has improved across the board after his 2018-19 Rookie of the Year campaign. He ranks in the top 10 this season in scoring average (28.7 points per game), assists (8.7) and ranks 19th in rebounds (9.3) for a Dallas Mavericks team that already has seven more wins (40) than they did all last season. 

Tatum has ascended to superstardom since the Feb. 16 All-Star Game. The 22-year-old put up 29.9 points, 7.9 rebounds, 3.1 assists and 1.6 steals with a 46.8 three-point percentage in nine games coming out of the break. 

The Boston Celtics are the No. 3 seed in the Eastern Conference with a 43-21 record. Tatum has become the face of the franchise and looks like the player everyone expected him to become after his rookie season. 

Bam Adebayo has been instrumental in the Miami Heat's climb to the top of the Southwest Division. He's not as versatile as Tatum or Doncic but is one of 11 players averaging a double-double this season (16.2 points, 10.5 rebounds per game). 

Brandon Ingram has been a scoring machine for a Pelicans team that looks poised to take off next season as long as Williamson remains healthy. The 22-year-old leads New Orleans with 24.3 points per game and is shooting a career-high 38.7 percent from three. 

       

Defensive Player of the Year: Anthony Davis, F, Los Angeles Lakers; Giannis Antetokounmpo, F, Milwaukee Bucks; Ben Simmons, G, Philadelphia 76ers

Based on versatility, Ben Simmons has a tremendous case for Defensive Player of the Year. 

Per Krishna Narsu of Nylon Calculus and Andrew Patton of The BBall Index, their defensive metrics show Simmons has defended every position other than center at least 15 percent of the time he's been on the floor. 

Traditional metrics show Simmons has been a disruptive force. He leads the NBA with 2.1 steals per game and was limiting his opponents to a 41.3 field-goal percentage. 

Anthony Davis has been instrumental in the Lakers' having the third-best defense by points allowed (106.9) and efficiency (105.6). He averages 2.4 blocks and 1.5 steals per game, puts his body on the line with an NBA-high 105 loose balls recovered. 

Opponents only shoot 38.5 percent overall when Davis is guarding them, the second-lowest mark in the league. 

The only player ahead of Davis on that list is Antetokounmpo (36.1 percent). The 25-year-old could join Michael Jordan (1987-88) and Hakeem Olajuwon (1993-94) as the only players in NBA history to win MVP and Defensive Player of the Year in the same season.  

        

Sixth Man of the Year: Dennis Schroder, G, Oklahoma City Thunder; Montrezl Harrell, C, Los Angeles Clippers; Derrick Rose, G, Detroit Pistons

Sixth Man of the Year usually goes to the best bench scorer. Lou Williams has won the award three times because he represents instant offense for Los Angeles Clippers head coach Doc Rivers. 

Williams has seen his scoring drop to 18.7 points per game this season after averaging at least 20 points in each of the past two seasons. That is likely a function of the Clippers roster, with Kawhi Leonard and Paul George taking some of the opportunities that had been earmarked for him. 

Montrezl Harrell likely has a stronger case as Sixth Man of the Year among Clippers players. He's averaging career highs in scoring (18.6 per game), rebounding (7.1) and is a disruptive force on defense with 30 charges drawn. 

One reason the Oklahoma City Thunder have been so good this season is Dennis Schroder. The 26-year-old ranks second on the team with 4.1 assists per game and three-point percentage (38.1) and third with 19 points. 

Derrick Rose could be hurt because his season is over, as the Detroit Pistons aren't among the 22 teams heading to Orlando. He had a very good year with 18.1 points and 5.6 assists in 50 games, but he won't be able to do anything to improve his standing. 

           

Coach of the Year: Nick Nurse, Toronto Raptors; Mike Budenholzer, Milwaukee Bucks; Taylor Jenkins, Memphis Grizzlies

The basic formula to win Coach of the Year is simply to exceed the preseason expectations put on your team by the media.

While that could lead to a case for Frank Vogel with the Lakers, Rick Carlisle with the Mavs and Billy Donovan with the Thunder, the three likely finalists for the award seem set in stone. 

Despite coming off an NBA championship last season, Nick Nurse had the difficult task of leading a Toronto Raptors team that lost Leonard in free agency. They haven't skipped a beat, leading the Atlantic Division with a 46-18 record. 

Mike Budenholzer, who won the award last year, has taken a Bucks team that had the league's best record in 2018-19 (60-22) and made them even better through 65 games this season. 

Taylor Jenkins can't match the win-loss record of the other top candidates, as the Grizzlies are just 32-33 heading into the restart. Where he stands out, though, is taking a roster led by a rookie point guard (Morant), rookie power forward (Brandon Clarke) and second-year center (Jaren Jackson Jr.) and having it sit in the No. 8 spot in the Western Conference.  

Even if the 2019-20 NBA season resumes, the award races are likely over. 

According to ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski and Ramona Shelburne, the league's board of governors are considering bringing only 22 teams back for a modified playoff structure. While this involves only those competing for a title, awards are usually given for regular-season production with games against all 30 teams.

Regardless of what the league decides, the resumes for each player is mostly completed.

This provided ESPN with an opportunity to vote on each award with its panel of experts, creating some interesting results.

    

MVP: Giannis Antetokounmpo, Milwaukee Bucks

Rookie of the Year: Ja Morant, Memphis Grizzlies

Coach of the Year: Nick Nurse, Toronto Raptors

Sixth Man of the Year: Montrezl Harrell, Los Angeles Clippers

Most Improved Player: Bam Adebayo, Miami Heat

Defensive Player of the Year: Giannis Antetokounmpo, Milwaukee Bucks

    

In each case, the panel was asked who "should" win and who "will" win, but the answer was the same in each with the exception of Most Improved Player. Adebayo was considered the most deserving, but he split the vote with Brandon Ingram of the New Orleans Pelicans for the actual predictions.

MVP remains the most notable award and is once again the biggest debate among fans with Antetokounmpo and LeBron James each earning praise for outstanding seasons.

James helped the Lakers transform into a legitimate contender, going 49-14 as the current No. 1 seed in the Western Conference one year after the team went 37-45. He is also leading the NBA with 10.6 assists per game to go with his 25.7 points and 7.9 rebounds per game.

Of course, he also has Anthony Davis playing a significant role alongside him.

Antetokounmpo has been more dominant overall with averages of 29.6 points, 13.7 rebounds and 5.8 assists per game. He is also considered the favorite to win the Defensive Player of the Year award, which would make him the third player in history to win that and MVP in the same seasons, joining Michael Jordan and Hakeem Olajuwon.

The other top award race is for Rookie of the Year, which seemed like a lock for Ja Morant for most of the season. The No. 2 pick of the draft is averaging 17.6 points and 6.9 assists per game while leading the Grizzlies into a surprise playoff spot.

However, this became a tight contest when Zion Williamson returned from his knee injury to average 23.6 points and 6.8 rebounds in 19 games. If the year continued as scheduled, he potentially could have overtaken Morant for the award.

Still, 97 percent of ESPN voters believed Morant deserved the award after a productive first season in the NBA.

Nike announced on Monday that it is partnering with non-profit organization Good360 to donate 32,500 pairs of shoes and 95,000 pairs of socks to health care workers on the front lines of the COVID-19 pandemic.

A total of 30,000 pairs of Nike Air Zoom Pulse sneakers will be donated to health care workers located in Chicago, New York City, Memphis and Los Angeles as well as those working within the Veterans Health Administration. 

Furthermore, Nike is donating 2,500 pairs to workers in Barcelona, London, Paris, Milan, Berlin and Belgium.

In addition, 95,000 pairs of soccer socks will be donated to health care workers in L.A. and New York.

New York City health care workers have also received 1,100 Nike Sportswear kits. In addition, hospitals and shelters in Europe have been given 3,500 pieces of Dri-FIT apparel and 4,000 pairs of sneakers.

Nike is working with numerous professional athletes to promote the cause, including New York Liberty point guard Sabrina Ionescu, Memphis Grizzlies floor general Ja Morant and Los Angeles Dodgers outfielder Joc Pederson.

The Nike Foundation and Nike have committed over $25,000,000 to COVID-19 relief efforts. As TMZ Sports noted, the company has also produced protective masks for health care workers as well.

Lofty expectations come with going No. 1 overall in the NBA draft.

So, it's unsurprising that an anonymous NBA head coach projected New Orleans Pelicans 2019 top overall pick Zion Williamson to win a league MVP award at some point in his career.

ESPN's Tim Bontemps surveyed 20 people in and around the NBA about whether Williamson, Ja Morant, Luka Doncic or Trae Young is better to build a franchise around.

"I'm only taking Luka because of health concerns about Zion," a Western Conference coach told Bontemps. "If [Zion's] healthy, I think he'll win an MVP. That's how good I think he is."

Bontemps' survey resulted in 17 first-place votes and 77 total votes for Dallas' Doncic, the reigning NBA Rookie of the Year, while Williamson landed 11 second-place votes and 52 votes overall. Morant, who went second overall behind Williamson to Memphis, came in third with 47 votes. Atlanta Hawks All-Star point guard Young garnered 24 votes to finish last.

As for Williamson's health, the 19-year-old Duke product underwent arthroscopic knee surgery in late October, which delayed his regular-season debut until Jan. 22.

Williamson started 19 games before the NBA announced the suspension of its 2019-20 season because of COVID-19 on March 11. He scored at least 20 points in 16 of those appearances, breaking several records along the way:

Zion vs Lakers tonight:
35 PTS (career-high)
7 REB
12-16 FG

He ties Carmelo Anthony for the most points scored vs the Lakers by a teenager.

He also becomes the first rookie with 35 PTS on 75 FG% since Blake Griffin in 2011. pic.twitter.com/LmkMi7spxY

— StatMuse (@statmuse) March 2, 2020

Zion Williamson has extended his 20-point streak to 12 consecutive games, the fifth-longest active 20-point streak in the league and extending his own record for the longest by a teenager in NBA history. pic.twitter.com/BNwlxiWCCa

— ESPN Stats & Info (@ESPNStatsInfo) March 4, 2020

Zion Williamson is the 3rd player over the last 35 seasons with 3 30-point games within his first 15 career games, joining Allen Iverson (5) and Michael Jordan (6). pic.twitter.com/p9IH5o9DFZ

— ESPN Stats & Info (@ESPNStatsInfo) March 2, 2020

Zion’s been living up to the hype. His past 5 games:

29 Pts, 6 Reb
28 Pts, 7 Reb
25 Pts, 4 Reb
32 Pts, 6 Reb
31 Pts, 9 Reb pic.twitter.com/v3XRzAl8Bz

— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) February 26, 2020

At the time of the stoppage, Williamson was averaging 23.6 points, 6.8 rebounds and 2.2 assists on 58.9 percent shooting from the field.

However, that is a small sample size. The long-term durability of Williamson's 6'6", 285-pound frame seems to be a widespread concern.

"Health. He'd be [No. 1] otherwise," a Western Conference scout said to Bontemps. "Those other guys are going to be great for 10-plus years. There's just too much [injury] risk [with Williamson]. Now, if I want to just be great now? Take him. He's just unique and great for today's NBA."

Nobody hopes Williamson holds up more than the 28-36 Pelicans.

New Orleans is depending on Williamson to replace Anthony Davis, who was traded to the Los Angeles Lakers last summer, as the franchise's face. Beyond that, Williamson could do what nobody has been able to do and bring an NBA championship to the Bayou.

The Pels only made the playoffs twice since taking Davis No. 1 overall in 2012.

Dallas Mavericks star Luka Doncic was the overwhelming pick from a panel of 20 NBA coaches, scouts and executives who were tasked with ranking their preferences between four of the NBA's brightest talents.

According to ESPN's Tim Bontemps, the group had Doncic, New Orleans Pelicans star Zion Williamson, Memphis Grizzlies star Ja Morant and Atlanta Hawks star Trae Young from which to pick. Doncic collected 17 first-place votes, while Williamson had one first-place vote and 11 second-place nods.

The extent to which Doncic dominated the vote is surprising, but he's the safest choice from the quartet.

The 21-year-old's reputation preceded him before he arrived in the NBA. He helped guide Real Madrid to a 2018 EuroLeague title and was the EuroLeague MVP.

Doncic still exceeded expectations as a rookie, averaging 21.2 points, 7.8 rebounds and 6.0 assists. His game has gone a step further in 2019-20 as he's putting up 28.7 points, 9.3 rebounds and 8.7 rebounds through 54 games.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F_AmP0HIyK8

Williamson, meanwhile, has been exactly as advertised after finally making his Pelicans debut. He's averaging 23.6 points and 6.8 rebounds while shooting 58.9 percent from the floor.

The questions about Williamson's long-term health will continue to hover for the next few years until he proves he can stay on the court. He's a 6'6", 284-pound forward who lives above the rim, and he already underwent surgery for a torn meniscus.

Because he has missed so much of the season, Williamson has likely ceded the Rookie of the Year race to Morant.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jdNuVNqnrpw

One executive in the Eastern Conference told Bontemps he believes the Grizzlies point guard has more room to grow in the future than Doncic:

"I don't know if Luka can be any better than he is. He's really good. But I think this might be who he is -- which is very good.

"But Ja can get better in terms of his shooting, his team will get better around him and he makes players better around him. I think he can affect the game at both ends."

Young is the odd man out to some extent since he's the only one without a second-place vote and the vast majority of fourth-place tallies (16).

The Hawks point guard is averaging 29.6 points and 9.3 assists, and his three-point shooting has improved from 32.4 percent to 36.1 percent.

Young's poor defense continues to cancel out his offensive contributions, though. He's dead last in ESPN.com's defensive real plus-minus (minus-3.12).

One East executive questioned whether Atlanta can build around Young as the alpha dog and might instead have to make him the 1B to a different 1A, similar to the dynamic the Oklahoma City Thunder had with Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook.

While he'd be gracious in defeat, New Orleans Pelicans star Zion Williamson acknowledged he'd be disappointed to fall short in the 2019-20 NBA Rookie of the Year race. 

Memphis Grizzlies star Ja Morant is the favorite for the honor. Morant and Williamson are both South Carolina natives and briefly played AAU ball together, so the two share a tighter bond than most NBA rookies typically have.

In an interview with Ernie Johnson on the NBA's Twitter account, Williamson said he's "happy for Ja" and that the former Murray State star has worked hard for Rookie of the Year. But Williamson couldn't hide his desire to claim the award for himself:

#NBATogether with Ernie Johnson (@TurnerSportsEJ) begins now with No. 1 overall pick @Zionwilliamson. https://t.co/C03FCETeVK

— NBA (@NBA) April 27, 2020

"I'm just a competitor," he said to Johnson. "I want to win at everything. I'm not gonna sit here and say I don't want to win. ... My goal was if I could rally my team into the playoffs hopefully I could make a run for it. But it's just God's plan at this point."

Williamson only spent one season at Duke and made it count. He was a consensus first-team All-American and collected every major individual award.

Still, one of the lasting images for fans is seeing Williamson suffer a knee injury when his shoe fell apart. He told Johnson he "broke down" when his mom entered the locker room given both the injury and the fact he was missing a Duke-North Carolina game.

The 2018-19 season ended earlier than Williamson and his teammates had hoped after Michigan State beat the Blue Devils in the Elite Eight. He said he knew after the loss that he probably wasn't going to have another crack at a national championship.

"It's just that feeling of man, I'm probably only going to get one shot at this," he said. "As bad as I want to stay and try to get that second one, you know it's probably not going to happen."

Williamson added that it "hurt" to leave Duke but that playing in the NBA was his ultimate goal. He also couldn't pass up the jump to the pros when he was considered a possible No. 1 overall pick.

The 2019-20 season remains on hold during the COVID-19 pandemic. The NBA announced Monday it would allow for some teams to return to limited practices no earlier than May 8.

Williamson said he has a hoop at his home so he's been able to remain somewhat sharp during the indefinite hiatus and that he's "ready now" if the NBA were to officially resume play.

"Honestly, I'm ready now," Williamson said. "I've been staying in shape. Working on myself and just staying ready. You never know when the time is going to come when they're going to say, 'All right, let's resume.' I don't want to have to look around at my teammates and say, 'Sorry guys, I'm not ready.' So I'm staying ready for my teammates."

Howard Beck says the Rookie of the Year race has been a landslide. No. 2 overall pick Ja Morant is the clear-cut winner, despite a shortened season and Zion Williamson's return from injury.

Watch the video above for more about why Morant is the NBA's best rookie in the 2019-20 season.

   

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