Ja Morant has missed three of the Grizzlies' last four games due to a calf strain he suffered six minutes into the one game he played during that stretch against the Cleveland Cavaliers. He is also expected to miss at least the next week of games as he recovers from the injury.
Before this recent stretch, Morant played 11 of the team's first 12 games, with the one missed game being due to a suspension by the team for conduct detrimental, following his comments about the coaching staff after the game. Morant appeared to be frustrated about playing shorter stints that coach Tuomas Iisalo implores, but suffered the injury shortly after being allowed to play longer stretches.
Morant played higher minutes after the suspension
The drama that unfolded between Ja Morant and Tuomas Iisalo stemmed from Iisalo's method of playing players in shorter stints, leading many to believe it cost the Grizzlies chances in winnable games. Even now, through 16 games played this season, no player is averaging more than Jaren Jackson Jr.'s 29.0 minutes per game.
However, when specifically dealing with Ja Morant, he averaged just 28:33 minutes played per game before the blow-up that led to his one-game suspension. His minutes played increased to 33:36 minutes in the five games he played before his unfortunate injury, which has kept him out now.
Ja Morant's injuries have been well-documented over the last couple of seasons, as he missed 32 games last season and suffered a season-ending injury the season before, after only playing nine games. It doesn't appear that his lessened minutes load was because of that, but more of a coaching philosophy.
However, it is interesting to see that Morant suffered an injury once his minutes increased, although the two might not be correlated. The reality is that the Grizzlies need Morant on the court, and his frustration about minutes was warranted. However, his health is key to a successful season, so a common ground needs to be established.
Ja Morant currently ranks 109th in the NBA in minutes per game, and Jaren Jackson ranks 103rd. The two highest-paid players need to be on the court more often if the Grizzlies want to snap out of their early 5-11 hole. The disconnect between the coaching staff and players feels like it is starting to mesh in recent games, so the team should be positioned to make a run once Morant returns to the court.