Ja Morant
Why We Love the Grizz
The Memphis Grizzlies have made us proud. Truly, there’s nothing like the unity of a city fully committed to their team. All over Memphis, there’s an electricity in the air before a Grizz game; there’s the shared stress of losses and the incredible high of victories. There’s something just so Memphis about the Grizz…that underdog mentality that just keeps on surprising and that loud, proud attitude that keeps us confident. The Grizz defy expectations. They create a stir. They help keep us together and they make it fun. From the first yellow towel whip to the last scored point, the Grizz show us the best possible way to play b-ball.
Why We Love Ja
Ja Morant embodies that Memphis brand excitement with all he’s got. The 22 year old point guard was drafted onto the team in 2019 and nothing’s been the same ever since. Averaging 16 points a game (the highest average for a point guard in the history of the NBA), Morant continues to break franchise records and win over hearts. Speaking of records, as a 20 year old, he scored 44 points against the Spurs last year in the Grizzlies season opener, the youngest to ever put up as many points in a game. Speaking of hearts, when Ja was voted Rookie of the Year in 2020, he won 99 out of 100 possible votes. Everybody loves the youngster from South Carolina who was virtually unheard of in highschool and was recruited to Murray State unexpectedly. From such humble beginnings, we get Ja.
How We Got Ja
It all started at home. Tee Morant, Ja’s dad, played ball in highschool and college and was determined that his son would follow in his footsteps. A strong believer in tough love, Tee trained his son relentlessly in the sport starting from an early age. As a 6 year old, Ja was playing basketball in the backyard and analyzing plays. Throughout highschool, Tee would sit on the opposing team’s side of the bleachers and heckle his son along with the crowd. He’d listen to critiques in the stands and deliver them to his son after the game. In fact, Ja has often called his dad his “first hater” and then noted, with a smile, how that mentality has made him who he is today. After Ja won Rookie of the Year, his dad reportedly responded with “Good job. You still suck.” But all joking aside, it’s his dad who loves to be Ja’s biggest fan at this point in his career. He won’t play him in a pick up game anymore, either, and that’s got to mean some respect.
Ja’s Journey
Even though he played throughout highschool, Ja wasn’t widely noticed in the sport, muchless ranked. He was offered only two athletic scholarships before his senior year and ended up at Murray State only after a recruiter saw him playing 3-on-3 against the athletes he originally came to watch. There was undeniable talent there. Even at only 5’9’’ (Ja grew to 6’3’’ during college), he showed what he could do on the court. After two short years of college ball, Ja joined the draft and ended up with the Grizz.
The rest is history. Memphis fell in love with the humble, talented kid who shattered records and named a kangaroo after him at the Memphis Zoo. Simply put, Ja became part of our local culture. He scored an astonishing 47 points against the Jazz in last year’s play off game and in January, he was the youngest Grizz ever to make All-Star. Ja keeps reminding our city that he can do something great here. He doesn’t back down from the negativity and he’s not going to let himself get derailed with fame. As he’s noted on the bench, “I can fight. I can fight. I can fight.” Memphians feel that energy and resolve and we stand behind it. After all, anybody who elevates our city, elevates us.