Grizzlies star guard Ja Morant only played nine games last season after missing the first 25 games of the year due to a suspension and then his final 48 games with a shoulder injury. Speaking to reporters on Thursday (Twitter link via WPSD’s Logan Whaley), Morant asserted he was about 75% healthy ahead of next season and sent a warning to the rest of the league.
“I feel like that’s still scary for whoever’s in front of me,” Morant said.
Memphis suffered a litany of injuries last season, with 33 players seeing playing time for the organization after various hardship signings. Morant, Desmond Bane and Marcus Smart played just 71 combined games and only two players appeared in 60 or more games.
If Morant comes back healthy, the Grizzlies will almost certainly factor into the Western playoff picture. The team won 50 or more games in the two seasons prior to 2023/24 and although last season was disappointing, it allowed young players like Vince Williams and GG Jackson to emerge as rotation options.
We have more from around the Western Conference:
- Timberwolves two-way guard Jaylen Clark missed all of last season with an Achilles injury, but Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic writes the UCLA product was all smiles even amid a tougher-than-expected first summer league game with the team. The 53rd overall pick in the 2023 draft, Clark might not see much playing time on a contending Wolves team, but he’s happy to simply be back on the court. He earned praises from his coaching staff in Las Vegas. “What I like about him is he picks up early and he’s very strong,” Wolves assistant and summer league head coach Chris Hines said. “He stands up guys. For him, it’s just finding how to drive and kick and get back to respace, set his feet and shoot the ball.“
- Jerry Stackhouse was expecting to sit out a year from coaching after exiting from Vanderbilt, but the Warriors called him and he impressed Steve Kerr, The Athletic’s Anthony Slater details. “I don’t think the timing could’ve been more perfect for me,” Stackhouse said on joining the team as an assistant. The Warriors are reportedly excited to be bringing in a former player and plan on having Stackhouse run the team’s defensive schemes.
- The Suns‘ ’23/24 season went far from expected after bowing out in the first round of the playoffs following the formation of a “big three” consisting of Devin Booker, Kevin Durant and Bradley Beal. Duane Rankin of the Arizona Republic breaks down his predictions and projections for next season in a subscriber-only story. The Suns improved by adding Tyus Jones and generally did well in addressing their depth but as Rankin observes, it will be difficult to climb the standings if the likes of Minnesota, Oklahoma City and Dallas continue on their current trajectories along with mainstays like Denver.