Ja Morant, Grizzlies receive way too early bold prediction for 2024-25 campaign

With a core of Ja Morant, Desmond Bane, and Jaren Jackson Jr. leading the charge, throughout the years this Memphis Grizzlies team has established themselves as one of the most ferocious squads in the entire league, let alone out in the West standings.

From claiming the organization's only two Southwest Division titles to embarking on just their fourth Semifinals excursion in franchise history, this core has accomplished quite a bit during their tenure together and, with the fact that they all are of the age of 25 years old and younger, the expectation is that they'll come across plenty more accomplishments between now and the conclusion to their careers.

Unfortunately, following an injury-plagued season for all three of them that, in turn, led to the Grizzlies wrapping up with the seventh-worst record in the association at 27-55 and had them miss out on the playoffs for the first time in four years, it seems many have succumbed to a bit of recency bias that finds the club on the outside looking in on the NBA's championship contention conversation.

Fortunately, however, not all have lost faith in Memphis' potential when at full strength, which is why Zach Badger-House, host of the Points In The Paint Podcast, sang their praise on a recent episode of the show, as he predicted that, with Morant back in the mix, this team will once again be a force to be reckoned with out in the stacked Western Conference.

Grizzlies, Ja Morant receive major praise and prediction for 2024-25

"I definitely believe that team's going to be one of the top six in the west next year with Ja Morant coming back. That's a 46 to 50-win team, no questions asked with him on the floor. It takes less pressure off Desmond Bane, it allows Jaren Jackson to really be himself on both ends of the floor and not have to lean on one side or the other too much [so] it could be more of a balance for him. You don't have to ask too much from him because he's already not going to give you too much on one end or the other. It can be a balance now. And, so, I think with the Marcus Smart addition, you'll really see him thrive over there in Memphis."

- Zach Badger-House

When Morant is available and on the floor, this Grizzlies squad is a completely different group than what was witnessed for the vast majority of this past season.

During the two seasons directly heading into 2023-24, they had accumulated a total of 107 regular season wins (including tying the franchise record for most wins in a season with 56 in 2021-22) and entered the postseason as the second-seed in back-to-back campaigns while the point guard received two All-Star nods and an All-NBA Second-Team selection along the way.

Even this past season, despite only playing in nine games, Morant's presence brought this slumping club (6-19 prior to his debut) back to a place of respectability, as he helped guide them to four straight wins right out of the gate following his 25-game suspension and to an overall record of 6-3 before going down with a subluxation in his shoulder during a training session that forced him to undergo surgery in mid-January that shut him down entirely.

Assuming Morant, Bane, Jackson, and Smart are all fully healthy for next season's campaign, there's no reason to believe Badger-House's bold, albeit way too early prediction for the Grizzlies can't wind up becoming a reality.