Memphis Grizzlies: How Ja Morant can force into the 2021-22 MVP race

Ja Morant’s year-three shooting should be better than ever

For the first half of the 2020-21 season, Ja Morant was shooting on a basket that had a lid on it. No matter what he did, he couldn’t get his 3-point shot to drop with consistency. It was becoming a worry, as it started to impact his game as a whole.

His poor shooting allowed defenders to give him space, which, in turn, made it extremely difficult to create penetration. As a result of this, he couldn’t get to the paint with as much effectiveness as he had a year prior.

Fortunately for the Grizzlies, this doesn’t seem to be an issue anymore.

After spending over half of the season with his 3-point percentage below 25%, Morant has found a way to boost that number late in the season. It’s still not ideal at just 29%, but his shots have been falling lately. In fact, 29% doesn’t give an accurate representation of how well he has been shooting.

If Morant can continue this trend of good shooting into the 2021-22 season, it could be game over for the NBA. He doesn’t have to be an elite shooter, just a decent one. Decent enough to keep defenses on their toes.

In 2020-21, he has managed to increase his scoring and assist totals despite a drastic drop in his long-range shooting percentage. The reason that I’m bringing this up is to highlight the fact that Morant has improved in a huge way in year three.

These under-the-radar improvements will open the door for him to explode onto the scene next season. But there’s one more piece to the puzzle.