This year, Ja Morant spent a breakthrough season with the Memphis Grizzlies, and he deservedly won the Player of the Year Award for Most Improved Player of the Year, looking as if he had suddenly jumped to superstar. Today, the series Grizzlies vs. Warriors' G2 is the best proof!
Despite the early ouster of Grizzlies forward Dillon Brooks in this game, Jia Jr. led the Memphis Grizzlies to the final victory. He did a fantastic job, with 47 points, eight rebounds and eight assists, plus three steals. It's a great two-way display of a good point guard.
After the game, ESPN's reporter Ohm Youngmisuk revealed a surprising statistic about Morant. That's the third player in history to score 45 points multiple times in the playoffs before the age of 23 after Ja Morant became Kobe and James.
This made LeBron James, who was sitting at home watching the game, sigh: "Morant is too TM tough!!!! Morant simply shouldn't have gotten into the discussion of the most improved player (MIP). Morant is a full star, always been! People who really know the ball know it, but most of the idiots who go to the poll and don't watch the ball at all don't know. ”
Indeed, when we look at the history of selecting MIP Awards, it's hard to disagree with James.
Morant's MIP performance this season is strikingly similar to that of Luka Doncic in his sophomore season. Doncic didn't end up winning the MIP award, however, as he finished fourth in the MVP vote, and many believe the Rookie of the Year winner couldn't win the Most Improved Player Award in the season that followed. However, Morant won both awards during his three-year career.
Morant never needed the glow of the fastest-improving trophy. His performance on the pitch has already made everyone shine. However, voters rarely see all aspects of these players and how they should vote. James said something basketball fans had been skeptical about for years.
Being on the roster with Kobe Bryant and LeBron James is a great honor for any young player. Hopefully, Morant can continue along that trajectory, and his work isn't done yet.
Currently, the Memphis Grizzlies have equalised the series 1-1, and depending on the intensity of the first two games, the series is likely to hit the seventh. The Grizzlies knocked the Warriors out of the playoffs last season and stole a second-seeded spot this season after the Warriors experienced a winter slump. Considering Morant's excellent performance in crushing Stephen Curry, the young point guard let the thirty-year-old Curry know what "gas" is!
At the end of the game, Morant shouted at Curry, "We gonna have some fun." (We'll have a lot of fun later.) )
Since 2015, Curry has lost only two playoff series, both in the NBA Finals (2016 and 2019).
It's clear that now fans on both teams and the entire NBA are tightly watching this game. With the next series back on the Home of the Golden State Warriors, Steve Kerr will go all out to find a way to mitigate the damage Morant can do to them. While Gary Payton II's absence will certainly have an impact, the Warriors can also easily win games under Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson and Jordan Poole, so the third game will be a must-see for fans of the sport.
However, Morant is now unstoppable, and even if the Warriors send their best guards to keep an eye on him, the latter can still play an important game because his goal is the championship!
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