Ja Morant Will Continue To Be Away From Grizzlies
Ja Morant is set to continue his stay away from basketball. The Memphis Grizzlies’ superstar will now undergo a counseling program in Florida. As such, the former No. 2 overall pick will remain away from the team indefinitely. ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski had the news first:
While disheartening to some, this should be seen as good news. Morant is getting help, which should not be seen as a sign of weakness. If no one intervened or, even worse, enabled his previous behavior, who knows what would have happened next. Along with showing a gun on Instagram Live, Morant had a wild and graphic night in the Denver nightclub.
This extended absence comes at a difficult time for his team. The Grizzlies are currently in a dogfight for playoff positioning in a loaded Western Conference. They sit five games behind the first-place Nuggets and tied with the Sacramento Kings for second place at 40-26. While Memphis has shown the ability to thrive without Morant, having everyone available would certainly help for the last 16 games of the regular season.
Looking Ahead
As previously stated, things will remain up in the air for Morant. He already missed the Grizzlies’ last five games. They’ve gone 2-3 during that span. Furthermore, they have some more important matchups coming up. Along with playing Dallas tonight, they have another game against the Mavericks next week, another against the Golden State Warriors, a two-game set at home against the Clippers and a road matchup against the Milwaukee Bucks.
The Grizzlies are still treading water. However, they need Ja Morant. It is sad to see the tightrope they find themselves on now. Morant should continue to take the time he needs to recuperate and get help. They’ve been able to keep it together somewhat recently, but the playoffs are around the corner. One thing we can all agree on is the sooner he’s back and this is behind him, the better it is for the game of basketball and all parties involved.
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