After Ja Morant scored a late go-ahead left-handed layup to lead the Grizzlies to a 116-108 win over the Golden State Warriors. Despite posting a game-high 29 points, five rebounds, eight assists, and two blocks, the budding superstar simply couldn’t fathom the apparent lack of respect from a young fan wearing a Stephen Curry jersey.
While Morant flexed in front of the Memphis faithful following his clutch bucket to ice the Grizzlies late victory, his joyful moment was interrupted by a young fan wearing a Stephen Curry jersey who extended his hand out for a dap. As if he were the Grinch who stole Christmas, Morant stared at the boy, talked his talk, and ultimately denied the fan a high-five.
LET EM KNOW, JA! (via @NBATV) pic.twitter.com/iBrgAB98TZ
— SLAM (@SLAMonline) January 12, 2022
During his regular postgame media appearance, Morant said that the boy showed an apparent lack of respect for the Grizzlies when he showed up to the FedEx Forum in the enemies’ colors.
“He was disrespectful with that jersey on,” Morant said per ESPN. “We Memphis. It looked like he wanted to cheer, but he had that jersey on. I apologize to him, but in that moment, bro, take that jersey off and then dap me up. Somebody find his information. I’ll send him one myself.”
“Number one, we’re one of the best teams in the league,” said Morant. “I feel like that’s number one. And number two, we’re showing how deep our roster is. No matter what’s thrown at us, we bounce back from it and come out and win games. We’ve got to keep it rolling, continue to play together, continue to battle.”
Now at 29-14 and in the middle of a 10-game win streak, the Grizzlies have undoubtedly gained the attention of the League’s elite after leapfrogging the Jazz for third place in the Western Conference standings. And that’s with Dillon Brooks in and out of the lineup due to injury and virus protocols and Morant missing 12 games after suffering a sprained knee in November.
CALL 12. pic.twitter.com/T7pnA9xzXO
— SLAM (@SLAMonline) January 12, 2022
“They’ve turned into one of the best teams in the league,” Warriors Coach Steve Kerr said, “Building this team from the ground up in the last few years.”
The Grizzlies have grabbed the minds of many due to Morant’s incredible exploits and have gained the attention of the League’s elite as they continue to build on their win streak. Curry, who had multiple entertaining moments with Morant last season, will surely keep this Memphis team on his radar as the Grizzlies grow.
“They’re obviously fueled by everything that Ja (Morant) does and how explosive he is,” Curry said. “They obviously got us last year in the play-in game and got us twice this year, and we got them once, so it’s a natural evolution of a team trying to take that next step.
