Ja Morant

The Memphis Grizzlies held a team meeting following Saturday's 138-95 loss to the Minnesota Timberwolves.

"We have to be real with each other," Grizzlies star Ja Morant told reporters. "We know what kind of team we can be."

The meeting may have had its intended effect, as Memphis edged out the Utah Jazz 119-118 Monday night. Morant and Co. scored the final seven points, including a Jaren Jackson Jr. three-pointer with 6.7 seconds left.

The Grizzlies exceeded expectations in 2020-21, going 38-34 and claiming the final playoff seed in the Western Conference. With Monday's result, they sit sixth in the conference at 9-8.

But hovering at or around .500 isn't good enough following last season's success. Nor is losing by 43 to Minnesota.

Looking ahead, Memphis closes out November with two games against the Toronto Raptors and meetings with the Atlanta Hawks and Sacramento Kings—not exactly a murderers' row of opponents.

A pair of young star point guards in the Charlotte Hornets' LaMelo Ball and the Memphis Grizzlies' Ja Morant got boosts to their overall scores in the first NBA 2K22 player rating update of the season.

A full list of changes three weeks into the season dropped on Friday, with Morant notably jumping from 85 to 89 overall.

Morant has been spectacular so far, averaging 27.0 points on 52.2 percent shooting, 7.5 assists and 5.5 rebounds for a 5-3 Grizzlies team currently sitting tied for fourth in the Western Conference.

The former Murray State star is in his third NBA season. He led Memphis to a playoff appearance last year after a three-season absence.

Morant was one of 10 players to get boosts of four or more points, with the others as follows:

• Toronto Raptors forward Scottie Barnes (76 to 82)
• Indiana Pacers guard Chris Duarte (73 to 79)
• Charlotte Hornets forward Miles Bridges (78 to 83)
• Sacramento Kings forward Harrison Barnes (78 to 83)
• Toronto Raptors wing OG Anunoby (79 to 83)
• Cleveland Cavaliers big man Evan Mobley (78 to 82)
• New Orleans Pelicans guard Nickeil Alexander-Walker (75 to 79)
• Oklahoma State Thunder wing Josh Giddey (75 to 79)
• San Antonio Spurs guard Dejounte Murray (82 to 86)

Ball jumped from 84 to 87 points.

The explosive playmaker has a tendency to fill up the box score quickly, like when he had 31 points, nine rebounds and seven assists in just 29 minutes in a season-opening win over the Indiana Pacers. The second-year pro has scored 25 or more points in four of his nine games.

Charlotte has fared well to start the season, going 5-4 in its first nine games thanks in part to Ball's efforts. The 20-year-old is looking to lead the Hornets to the playoffs for the first time since 2016.

Memphis Grizzlies star Ja Morant got off to a hot start this season, averaging 35 points through three games, and the third-year point guard thinks it's helping him get the respect he always deserved.

"I feel like it took me averaging 35 points a game to finally get some All-Star recognition," Morant told Yahoo Sports. "But I really can’t speak too much on that. I feel like my chip will never leave."

Morant said he was disappointed he wasn't selected to the All-Star Game in his first two seasons, but it forced him to focus less on individual recognition and concentrate on his team's success.

"I was in position to be an All-Star my first two years and didn't make it. That bothered me a lot," Morant continued. "So I just stopped focusing on that and just focusing on my play. I'm a winner, and that's the main goal. If I do that, everything else will take care of itself. I just got to control what I can control, and that's my play on the floor."

The Grizzlies are 2-2 and coming off a 116-96 blowout loss to the Portland Trail Blazers on Wednesday. Memphis wraps up a four-game road trip Thursday against the Golden State Warriors.

Morant had 17 points in Wednesday's loss, dropping his average to 30.5 points. He added 10 assists for his second double-double of the year, but he also had a season-high nine turnovers.

Led by Morant, the Grizzlies have a young core that gained valuable experience in last year's postseason run. Memphis fell to the Utah Jazz in the first round of the playoffs after defeating the San Antonio Spurs and Golden State in the play-in tournament.

If Morant can continue to play at a high level, it wouldn't be a surprise to see the Grizzlies make a second straight trip to the postseason.     

PORTLAND—Ja Morant is making the superstar leap in front of the world.

Every six months or so, Morant sends a reminder that he should be getting anointed as one of the next faces of the NBA. Drafted No. 2 overall in 2019 behind the much more hyped Zion Williamson, Morant won Rookie of the Year and drew comparisons to MVP-era Derrick Rose for his explosive, can't-take-your-eyes-off-him play style.

Last spring, Morant and the Memphis Grizzlies upset the Golden State Warriors in the play-in tournament, then won the first game of their first-round series against the top-seeded Utah Jazz. They put up a fight during the rest of the series, well ahead of when most people thought they'd be a playoff team.

A week into his third season, Morant has been the story. He scored 37 points in Memphis' season-opening win over the Cleveland Cavaliers, then put up 40 points and 10 assists in a close loss to the Los Angeles Lakers on Tuesday. 

Morant had a case to be an All-Star in his second season. With the cred that comes from having led the Grizzlies to the playoffs and some big performances against marquee teams early in the year, it feels inevitable that he'll make that jump this season.

On the surface, Morant appears unaffected by all of this newfound attention and doesn't seem to have much interest in feeding the hype machine. He's been vocal about his dislike for social media, even though he's one of the most engaged young stars on it.

Morant's less-is-more approach to NBA stardom suits a Grizzlies team that's progressing much faster than anyone anticipated. He let his play speak for itself at Murray State, a mid-major, and he's doing the same in Memphis.

Bleacher Report caught up with Morant at the Grizzlies' shootaround on Wednesday morning, ahead of their 116-96 loss against the Portland Trail Blazers, to discuss his hot start to the year, his dislike of social media and his expectations for a young team that may be ahead of schedule.

Bleacher Report: What has this week been like for you? Going off against the Lakers and then being a guest on ESPN's NBA Today, it feels like you're the talk of the entire league right now.

Ja Morant: Me personally, I don't really pay too much mind to it. I'm locked in on what I have to do with my team. Next game, next practice, whatever it is. To be prepared to go get a win.

B/R: You don't feel any of that attention when you're the guy everyone is focusing on?

Morant: I mean, I see it, but I don't really pay too much mind to it. I should have been getting that recognition already. But the way I'm playing right now is the reason I'm getting it.

B/R: You obviously work on everything, but is the shooting something you're focusing on this year? You hit five three-pointers in the Lakers game. Is that going to be a more regular part of your game now?

Morant: I just take what the defense was giving me. In the Laker game, they were sagging off me, and I was shooting the ball with confidence.

B/R: Something else I wanted to ask you about—you're really good at social media, but you tweeted in July that if you didn't have to be on there, you'd get rid of it. Is that still how you feel?

Morant: That's still my attitude. I just do stuff on there to engage with my fans on Twitter, Instagram, whatever it is. That's pretty much what I do. I don't really care for it too much.

B/R: You're really savvy on it, though. I remember when you got in a little back-and-forth with Stephen Curry and people tried to make it into a big thing, and you pulled up screenshots of your own tweets from when you were a kid about what a big fan of his you were, having fun with it.

Morant: It's not real life. People just hide behind keyboards and say whatever they want. I just do it because that's what the world runs through right now.

B/R: What are your overall expectations for this team this year and how good do you think you can be?

Morant: Championship. That's our main goal.

B/R: I look at a team like last year's Hawks, who were a young team that people thought could maybe make the playoffs, and out of nowhere they made the conference finals. Is that the kind of team you look to and say, 'Why can't that be us?'

Morant: Nah. I just focus on us. I don't base our expectations off other teams. We've just got to focus on us. I feel like that's what got us to the point we got to last year. We were able to get some experience against a good Utah team in the playoffs. We've just got to take that into this season and play together.

B/R: What's the biggest difference between last year's team and this year's team?

Morant: Chemistry and experience. That's probably the biggest thing.

B/R: How has Steven Adams fit in?

Morant: You see it on the floor. He's scoring for us inside and rebounding, and also his passing ability is big-time. He's averaging four or five assists for us right now. You don't really see that from a center.

B/R: Having Jaren Jackson Jr. back is also going to be huge for you guys. He played in only 11 games last year. How much better can you be if he stays healthy all year?

Morant: He just makes us better. All the stuff he's able to do—he can space the floor, score inside, post up smaller bigs, attack the bigger bigs, block shots, rebound. He does a lot of stuff on the floor. He makes us a better team overall.

B/R: Finally, are there any guys around the league, maybe in your age group, that you measure yourself against when you look at where you are and how good you want to be?

Morant: Ja Morant.

B/R: That's it? Nobody else?

Morant: That's my answer. That's the only one. I don't compare myself to nobody else in this league. I just focus on me. You see where that's gotten me?

Sean Highkin covers the NBA for Bleacher Report. He is a graduate of the University of Oregon and lives in Portland. His work has been honored by the Pro Basketball Writers' Association. Follow him on Twitter, Instagram and in the B/R App.

The Portland Trail Blazers bounced back from Monday's loss to the Los Angeles Clippers with a 116-96 win over the Memphis Grizzlies on Wednesday. CJ McCollum led the way with 25 points as Portland improved to 2-2.

The Blazers outscored the Grizzlies 36-20 in the third quarter and opened the fourth with a 20-4 run to put the game out of reach.

Desmond Bane had 19 points for the Grizzlies, who fell to 2-2 this season.

Notable Player Stats

G CJ McCollum, POR: 25 points

G Damian Lillard, POR: 20 points, 10 assists

G Desmond Bane, MEM: 19 points

G Ja Morant, MEM: 17 points, 10 assists, nine turnovers

Blazers Come Alive in Second Half

The Blazers started off slow as McCollum and Lillard struggled early. If it weren't for Anfernee Simons' 14 first-half points, Portland would've fallen behind in a big way.

Thankfully for the Blazers, everyone woke up after halftime. Jusuf Nurkic got more active, diving to the basket on pick-and-rolls and finishing at the rim.

Lillard finally got his shot going and did a great job as a playmaker. He scored 11 points and added five assists in the third quarter.

In addition to their offensive explosion, the Blazers also locked in on the defensive end. They did a great job of getting back in transition to limit the easy opportunities for the Grizzlies.

Memphis was forced to take contested shots and also struggled with Portland's activity in the passing lanes. In all, the Blazers forced the Grizzlies to commit 22 turnovers.

Starting games with the same aggression they came out of halftime with will be key to the Blazers' success going forward this season.

Grizzlies' Supporting Cast Struggles on Morant's Off Night

After his hot start to the season with an average of 35 points in three games, Ja Morant slowed down considerably on Wednesday night. He started off being less aggressive in looking for his shot, instead getting his teammates involved.

With Morant in pass-first mode, Bane took over the offense early. He had ten points in his first 10 minutes and finished with 15 points in the first half.

But besides Bane, the Memphis supporting cast was mostly quiet. Bane and Morant were the only players to score in double-figures.

Fourth-year power forward Jaren Jackson Jr., who signed a four-year extension worth $105 million earlier this month, was held to just seven points on 3-of-13 shooting in 18 minutes. Jackson struggled with foul trouble all night.

The Grizzlies will have to get more production from players besides Morant if they hope to succeed this season. Morant is one of the brightest young stars in the NBA, but he can't do everything himself. Memphis' supporting cast will have to step up if it hopes to make another run to the postseason.

What's Next?

The Blazers will remain home for a rematch against the Los Angeles Clippers on Friday. The Grizzlies will look to bounce back on Thursday in the final matchup of their four-game road trip against the Golden State Warriors.

NBA players often remember their best dunks, but a missed attempt is what still sticks in Ja Morant's mind.

The Memphis Grizzlies star point guard discussed his 2019 attempt over Kevin Love on Tuesday's episode of NBA Today:

The play came in a game against the Cleveland Cavaliers only two months into Morant's NBA career:

The announcers compared it to Vince Carter's famous dunk over Frederic Weis in the 2000 Olympics, but Morant just didn't get high enough.

Though the play resulted in zero points for Memphis, the close call helped Morant announce himself as one of the most exciting young players in the league.

The 2019 No. 2 overall draft pick went on to win the Rookie of the Year award, and he continues to thrive in his third season.

Memphis Grizzlies point guard Ja Morant had an outstanding performance with 40 points and 10 assists on Sunday against the Los Angeles Lakers, but he came up short in the game's biggest moment.

With Memphis trailing by three with 1.9 seconds left, Morant went to the free-throw line with a chance to tie the game. Morant made the first two free throws and missed the third. The Grizzlies went on to lose, 121-118.

After the game, Morant immediately took to Twitter and showed he was undeterred by the loss, tweeting, "failure builds character." He also challenged himself.

After Sunday's performance, Morant is averaging 35 points through three games this season. The Grizzlies will look to bounce back on Wednesday against the Portland Trail Blazers.