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I want to remind you of something. This season, the Grizzlies had 20 wins and just 5 losses in games without Ja Morant.
That includes a whopping 123-95 victory over the Warriors on March 28. In fact, during the regular season, Memphis had a better net rating with Morant off the floor (6.9) than when he was on (4.7) in 2021-22.
That doesn’t suggest anything negative about Morant or his game, for what it is worth. It just shows that this team, which had the second-best record in the league this past season, was incredibly deep.
Morant is the obvious floor general and spiritual leader of this group. He is their bona fide star, and Memphis has its back against the wall without him. But this series is far from over, even if Morant has to miss some time as he recovers from his latest injury setback.
The Tip-Off
We released the sixth edition of our 2022 NBA mock draft, and we’ve got both rounds projected with picks for teams around the league.
I’m not going to spoil any of the best fits, but I’ll get you started with our write-up on the first overall pick: Duke’s Paolo Banchero:
“The Rockets would be thrilled to pair a player as dynamic as Paolo Banchero with an explosive scorer like Jalen Green.
Banchero is a prospect who will offer NBA athleticism and fluidity from day one as a pro, and as he develops, he will continue to unlock new strengths as well. He was tough to stop, especially on the left baseline, at Duke. He also found ways to add value as an above-average passer and playmaker for his position.
Banchero, with guard-like skills, could easily go No. 1 overall. However, if he falls to lower in the top 5, it wouldn’t shock me, either.”
Once the NBA draft lottery and combine is complete, we’ll have an even better idea of how the draft class will look. But until then, this is our best (educated) guess.
One to Watch
Bucks (-1.5, -107) vs. Celtics (-115), O/U 211.5, 7:00 PM ET
(All odds via Tipico.)
I know that Nikola Jokic just won the MVP, making him a rare back-to-back winner. Not take away from his accomplishments, but my goodness, it seems clear as day that Giannis Antetokounmpo is playing the best basketball on the planet right now.
Milwaukee took the advantage in the series after another otherworldly performance from Giannis this past weekend, in which he recorded 42 points and 12 rebounds with 8 assists, 2 steals, and 2 blocks.
Yet despite his incredible performance, the Celtics were still within a tip-in putback of taking the game into overtime. I’m not counting out Boston in this series just yet, and the winner of this match will have some real momentum.
Who’s in and out?
— Warriors: Otto Porter Jr. (hand) is probable against the Grizzlies
— Grizzlies: Ja Morant (knee) is doubtful against the Warriors
— Bucks: Khris Middleton (knee) is out until mid May
Shootaround
— Leonard Miller is suddenly the most intriguing NBA draft prospect
— Wings’ Isabelle Harrison rocked an iconic outfit after signing with Jordan
— HoopsHype caught up with Rockets rookie big man Usman Garuba
— Sixers, NBA Twitter react to Joel Embiid losing MVP to Nikola Jokic
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