The OKC Thunder are thundering over the Grizzlies. It was always going to be tough for the 8th-seed West team, given the track record OKC had in the regular season, but playoffs are always supposed to be a different ball game. Alas, not always. Things have taken a terrible turn for the Memphis Grizzlies. They lost game 3 tonight to the OKC Thunder and are 3-0 down in the first round of the Playoffs! Time to regroup? Surely if everyone is willing to! But wait, not luck, and it gets worse. Ja Morant got injured and had to exit the game halfway. Thankfully, we’re not in the dark about his injury. That’s because interim head coach Tuomas Iisalo had an update post-game regarding Ja’s injury. However, even amid an injury, Ja did not miss the opportunity to jaw at an OKC Thunder player.
Morant went down in a nasty way with a little over three minutes remaining in the first half. Then, shortly after the second half began, he was ruled out of the remainder of the game. Luke Kennard replaced him in the Grizzlies’ lineup for the third quarter and beyond. And now, Tuomas Iisalo has revealed the latest update on Ja’s injury.
A reporter asked Tuomas post-game about the exact nature and extent of Ja’s injury. “He’s going through further evaluations tomorrow, and then we’ll know more. Which hip? I don’t know. I just know hip,” revealed the Grizzlies’ interim head coach. That means we’ll find out on Friday exactly how bad things may get for the Grizzlies.
Mar 9, 2025; New Orleans, Louisiana, USA; Memphis Grizzlies guard Ja Morant (12) looks on against the New Orleans Pelicans during the first half at Smoothie King Center. Mandatory Credit: Stephen Lew-Imagn Images
But Iisalo also had some thoughts about how Ja’s absence cost the Grizzlies. He said that once Ja left, the Grizzlies lacked a lot of qualities they’d shown during the game while he was on the court. A reporter asked him if anything had changed once Ja left the game. Here’s what Tuomas said, “I would say, quite drastically, from the end result, but not only the energy, but also the execution.”
And Tuomas has every right to feel this way. Morant put up 15 points in the 15 and a half minutes he played tonight. He also had 5 assists tonight. With only 6 points separating the two teams.
Perhaps that’s why Iisalo believes that there were plenty of positives that the Grizzlies could take away from tonight’s performance. Nevertheless, we’re sure Ja Morant allegedly picking a fight with Chet Holmgren wasn’t one of them. And things could’ve gotten much, much worse for both teams had cooler heads not prevailed.
What went down between an injured Ja Morant and Chet Holmgren tonight?
As if getting injured wasn’t bad enough, Ja Morant did himself no favors by attempting to pick a fight with the Oklahoma City Thunder’s Chet Holmgren. And after the game ended, Chet told us exactly what went down in the brief altercation between them. With his team down by 28, Chet made his way to join his bench at halftime. Just then, someone on the Grizzlies, who we now know was Ja, appeared to say something to Chet. And it didn’t seem as though the Thunder forward appreciated that interaction. Here’s what happened, according to Holmgren.
“No, he didn’t say anything. I mean, he had a breakaway done and then. He’s kind of yelling. Which we all do, and then he kind of like turned. And like he had space to avoid me, but I don’t think he even tried to. All I said was ‘Don’t do that.’ I wouldn’t say it was anything more than that,” said Holmgren about his interaction with Ja Morant at the end of the first half.
May 7, 2024; Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, USA; Oklahoma City Thunder forward Chet Holmgren (7) reacts after scoring a three-point basket against the Dallas Mavericks during the second half of game one of the second round for the 2024 NBA playoffs at Paycom Center. Mandatory Credit: Alonzo Adams-Imagn Images
It might seem like much ado about nothing. But with how heated the Playoffs can get, one wrong move may be enough to set off a brawl between the two teams. It’s a good thing that Chet managed to contain himself and keep himself calm. After all, the last thing you want is for the referees to eject you when your team’s losing. And this decision by Chet proved invaluable as his team went on to mount a huge comeback against the Grizzlies, narrowly winning the game.
As things stand, the Thunder remains primed to breeze their way past the Grizzlies into the second round. Naturally, Game 4 will be do-or-die for Tuomas Iisalo’s men. And whether Ja Morant will be there to back them up is something we’ll only learn on Friday.
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