Postgame Press: More respect for Morant

Ja Morant put the ball behind his back and hit the layup. He caught alley-oops. He assisted from underneath the basket. He soared for dunks. The Memphis Grizzlies won 107–106 over the Utah Jazz on Friday and Morant finished with 25 points, 4 rebounds, 8 assists and a nice highlight reel. This was the game after he hit his first game-winner, a layup over three fully-grown men.

Ja Morant is good. I know that sounds obvious, especially if you have been paying attention, but it is also worth saying. Zion Williamson was a star of rare caliber and a basically undisputed No. 1 pick in this year’s NBA draft. His shine was national news almost every day during the season, whether it was one dunk or pass or the next. No complaints either. He deserved the hype. If he did not get hurt at the beginning of this season, his name would still be in the headlines whether he played as well as expected or not. Once again, Ja Morant may have been overshadowed. Since Zion has not played yet, the No. 2 pick has shown his stuff and gotten the recognition he deserves.

Morant has been underestimated time and time again. He has cited some of his success to his dad, who he calls his “first hater." After he hit the game-winner against the Hornets, he went to his father and they shared a moment. 'Hated on' by his father, this was also a player who only had one chance to play college basketball. Only recruited by one school, Murray State found their investment returned tenfold. He played well in his first-year campaign but took a major leap in his second year and led Murray State to a second-round NCAA Tournament exit in 2019. His college career was over, but his NBA career was on its way. It was Murray State’s first loss since January, led by a player with one offer because he was under 6 feet and could not dunk at the end of his high school career.

When Morant was picked as No. 2 in the draft, he gave a shout out to his cousin, who was a big believer of his and had passed away in a motorcycle accident. Morant was making it, a dream that his cousin Trey Beverly told him that he could and should achieve. While his father gave him the negative energy to push him, Trey Beverly gave Ja Morant the positive belief in himself. Now, Morant has taken the belief that he had in himself and passed it on to NBA fans like me.

When Williamson comes back, the excitement about Morant may fade into the background. Hopefully, he has shown enough people that he deserves to be on the map and on the map for good. A threat in so many facets of the game, Morant will be making highlight reels and SportsCenter top 10s for a long time to come. Not bad. I highly recommend that no one underestimates Ja Morant.