SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA – MAY 07: Ja Morant #12 of the Memphis Grizzlies sits on the bench and reacts after a team trainer examines his knee during a time out against the Golden State Warriors in the second half of Game Three of the Western Conference Semifinals of the NBA Playoffs at Chase Center on May 07, 2022 in San Francisco, California. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images)
Ja Morant injured his knee in the Grizzlies’ Game 3 blowout loss to the Warriors and the star guard didn’t hesitate to call out Steve Kerr and Jordan Poole.
Injuries have become a storyline in the Western Conference second round series of the NBA Playoffs between the Memphis Grizzlies and Golden State Warriors. In Game 2, Warriors guard Gary Payton II was injured on what head coach Steve Kerr called out as a dirty play after the fact. So when Grizzlies star Ja Morant left Game 3 with a knee injury, he didn’t hesitate to respond.
Let the drama commence.
After the game — a blowout victory in favor of Golden State — Morant tweeted out a video of the play in question, on which Jordan Poole appears to grab at the Grizzlies superstar’s knee, which resulted in the injury. His caption read “broke the code”, a reference to Kerr’s words after Dillon Brooks injured Payton.
He deleted the tweet soon after, however.
Ja Morant calls out Steve Kerr after knee injury, Jordan Poole responds
Speaking with the media after the game, Poole was asked about the play and got a look at Morant’s tweet and the video thereafter.
“It was a basketball play,” Poole said. “We doubled him. I hit the ball — I was going for the ball. Obviously, you don’t want to see anybody get hurt. I’m not even that type of player. I respect everybody.”
Poole wished Morant a quick recovery and had no comment on Morant’s tweet when pushed on it by the media.
As if a playoff series didn’t add enough drama to the mix, there is a definite feud brewing between the Warriors and Grizzlies. Let’s hope Morant is okay for Game 4 and, for fans, go ahead and grab your popcorn for the remaining games in this series.