Ja Morant finds deeper connection to veteran Grizzlies teammate off the court

Though connections between teammates are often formed on the hardwood, sometimes the strongest bonds can be made off of it. Recently, Memphis Grizzlies guards Ja Morant and Derrick Rose shared an off-court experience that could easily wind up bringing the two even closer than they appear to be ahead of 2024-25 already.

This past Sunday, PJ Rose, the son of the 2011 NBA MVP, called game with a buzzer-beating game-winner during an AAU championship bout for Morant's club.

What makes this all the more magical of a situation is that Rose has noted that his son had pestered him on numerous occasions throughout his first season with the Grizzlies about potentially joining the superstar's newly established travel basketball team.

Soon after bringing PJ's desires to Morant's attention back in March, he was quickly added to the roster. During his time under the guidance of the two-time All-Star, the youngster has gone on to showcase an impressive array of skills, with this recent highlight play serving as the cherry on top of his first season with Twelve Time.

Grizzlies guards Ja Morant, Derrick Rose strengthen bond with AAU win

Despite only being teammates for one season to this point and playing just two games with one another in 2023-24, both Morant and Rose still managed to form a close and meaningful relationship with one another.

Starting from the veteran's preseason comments suggesting that he wants to build bonds organically and that he wasn't brought in to "babysit", throughout their six months together in the 38103 the duo have grown quite an affinity for one another, with Morant noting in his exit interview that Rose has had a "tremendous impact" on him and his teammates and that he's "pretty much a big brother."

Now, with the way Sunday's game managed to play out, one can only surmise that the two Grizzlies guards will become even tighter as they head toward year number two of being on the same roster.