The Lakers lost 99-104 to the Grizzlies, James scored 37 points, 13 rebounds, 7 assists and 8 three-pointers on his birthday night, wei shao 16 points, 10 rebounds and 12 assists; On the Grizzlies, Morant cut a new season high of 41 points and 10 rebounds, which was his second season to cut 40+, the last time he also faced the Lakers, which also made him the second player in history to face James's team twice in a single season.
With 37 points, 13 rebounds, 7 assists, 2 steals and 2 blocks, 8-of-14 three-pointers, LeBron James played a dominant performance on the night he was about to turn 37. Eight three-pointers tied his career record, and the sixth consecutive game 30+ also continued to set the NBA record for players over 35 years old, but the Lakers star could not smile and leave the FedEx Arena arena, because the victory of this night belonged to the Grizzlies, and the protagonist also became the spirited teenager on the other side.
At 104-99, the Grizzlies defeated the Lakers at home, and Ja Morant blasted down 41 points, 10 rebounds, 2 steals and 2 blocks. Memphis trailed their opponents for most of the night, trailing by as many as 14 points, but Morant carried the team through the process until the final quarter helped them complete a comeback.
"That kid is a superstar... He is a tenacious superstar. Lakers interim coach David Fitzdale made this assessment of Morant.
Throughout the show, Fitzdale's words are apt. Tonight is the Lakers' back-to-back away game, but they are the ones who are in better shape. James feels hot, Wei Shao rushes to grab rebounds, and the Lakers double core continues yesterday's excellent performance. In contrast, the Grizzlies, in the absence of outside rotation players such as Dillon Brooks and Melton, the team lacked long-range firepower, and Bane and Jalan Jackson Jr. were simultaneously inaccurate.
After the first two quarters, the Memphis totaled 2 of 14 three-pointers, and the third quarter hit a certain point in time, the Grizzlies shot 5 of 20 three-pointers, and the Lakers were only James 7-of-6.
"In the first half we just couldn't shoot, and the Lakers, you all saw LeBron's performance, an incredible game, he can do anything. But we were also only single-digit behind in the first half, so I encouraged everyone and told them we were defending well. Grizzlies coach Tyler Jenkins said after the game.
The Grizzlies aren't known for their three-point range, but they're not the worst shooting team either. As of today's game, they averaged 11.7 three-pointers per game (18th) and shot 33.9 percent (21st) from three-point range. The reason why the Grizzlies were able to carry the three-point projection to 10 of 30 in this campaign was thanks to Morant's career night projection play - the Grizzlies point guard shot 6 of 7 three-pointers, and all the first 6 shots were hit, creating a career single-game three-point shooting record.
The Lakers have adopted the strategy of letting Morant shoot from a distance from the beginning, and when they encounter a block, they will go around the defense from behind the big man. There is no problem with this choice, and most NBA teams will target Morant in this way, because his projection is still a short board, much less threatening than a breakthrough. As of today, Morant is shooting 35 percent from three-point range this season, a career-high. But anyone who has seen Ja Jr. knows that his three-point shots are not fast, often coming from opportunity balls after opponents have let go, which means that he is not a high-level long-range shooter.
But on this night, Morant responded. The first two quarters each hit an arc-top three-pointer, but the Lakers are still choosing to let Morant shoot. In the third quarter, there were two more hits in the single quarter, including a final-minute counter-attack to suppress the whistle three-pointer, and the Lakers still did not go up to the defense. Ja Jr. hit two more three-pointers in the final quarter — a strong response after missing two free throws and being blown by the referee for an offensive foul. Those unexpected three-pointers were like nails nailed to the Lakers' death holes, and Morant bit the game in the way he might be least good at and then reaped the victory.
'I grab whatever the defence gives me, and the result is good for our team. Morant smiled after the game and said that he was obviously a little proud of his three-point night. "That's who I play, every night I try to attack and play my own performance."
Tonight's Morant not only threw a more than expected three-pointer, but every goal was crucial, which made his night even more brilliant. This is the second time the Grizzlies have cut a 40+ in the main season, and the last time he also faced the Lakers, which also makes him the second player in history to face James twice in a single season to shoot 40+ - the first was Anthony in 2011-12, when he cut 40+ once in the regular season and one in the playoffs. Meanwhile, this is also the third time in Morant's career that he has played 40+ in a single game, occupying the first place in team history (Miller and Gasol Grande each).
The young man is full of vigor and arrogance, and his heroism does not enter the eyes of the people. While everyone was locked on James on his birthday, Morant stole the spotlight, and he had the kind of youthful strength to fool the poor. Sending the Warriors to the first defeat of the season, picking out the Jazz, pouring out the sun... The Grizzlies have nibbled up many tough battles so far in the season, and they seem to be built for the big scenes, and Morant, who has cut 30+ in the above three games, is the star in the big scenes.
During Morant's absence, the Grizzlies scored to play the league's number one defense, which led to the sound of home fans letting him go when Ja Jr. returned to lose. And after a brief period of frustration and farewell to social media, Morant responded in such a way that tonight there was only one voice in the FedEx Arena for him, and that was "MVP"!
"You're witnessing something special, don't get too hooked." Jarren Jackson Jr. said.
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