Early-season drama has become a Grizzlies theme over the last three seasons, as they have dealt with the fallout from a situation involving Ja Morant. He began the season serving a 25-game suspension in 2023, which led to a horrific start for the team, with a 6-19 record. He had X (formerly Twitter) spats with a fan about players playing through injuries at the beginning of last season.
Now, he is battling frustrations with the coaching staff over a situation that blew up last weekend with his effort, postgame comments, and one-game suspension. In his return from the one-game absence, Morant looked lethargic throughout the game, but overcame his shooting struggles (5-16 from the field) to finish with a double-double of 18 points and 10 assists.
Like his return from a one-game absence close to this time last season (out with injury), the Grizzlies lost a home game when he provided a double-double due to defensive breakdowns down the stretch by the team. It shows a reminder of how Halloween night yielded different results for him and the team between the two seasons.
Halloween night this year brought the exact opposite from last season
Ja Morant answered questions with the media during a postgame interview following their loss to the Pistons last night, and seemed to be trying to move forward past last weekend's issues. However, when asked if he has his usual joy he plays with, he answered "no." That shouldn't come as a surprise due to what just transpired.
Last season, the Grizzlies were 2-3 heading into Morant's return game at home against the Brooklyn Nets on October 30. The Grizzlies had just blown a double-digit lead to lose to the Chicago Bulls at home in a game he missed due to an injury. Following that game, he went back and forth with a fan on X (formerly) Twitter about players playing through injury.
After returning and losing at home to the Nets, Morant powered through on Halloween night against the Milwaukee Bucks with the eighth-fastest triple-double in NBA history, in only 21 minutes. The Grizzlies destroyed the Bucks to even their record at 3-3, providing a spark to their early-season success that saw them near the top of the Western Conference standings.
However, this season has been the opposite as Morant helped the Grizzlies to a 3-2 record following another game-winning shot heading into their Halloween matchup against the Lakers. The rest is history of what has transpired to where Morant and the team stand today. Things look bleak at the moment for Morant and the Grizzlies, but only time will tell if they are able to move past this year's early drama as opposed to last year's.