On December 27, Beijing time, the NBA regular season continued, and the Grizzlies challenged the Pelicans away. With Morant's return, the Grizzlies also began to chase with all their might, and they encountered difficulties in this game, trailing by 13 points after three quarters, but the Grizzlies launched a counterattack in the final quarter, and finally Jackson Jr. made one of two free throws and dragged it into overtime. In overtime, the Grizzlies seized their opportunity and beat the Pelicans 116-115 to make it four wins in a row.
The Grizzlies were second in the West last season and have a great future, but Morant, the core of the team, has been suspended for 25 games due to off-court incidents. After the start of the season, the Grizzlies also struggled and became a team that was bullied, but with the return of Morant, the team also began to catch up. Morant announced his return in his return debut, and with his joining, the team has also undergone earth-shaking changes, returning to the elite again.
This time in the face of the Pelicans, the Grizzlies also took some initiative, but then they fell into trouble, was suppressed by the Pelicans, and fell behind by 13 points after the third quarter, thinking that they were going to fail, but the final quarter suddenly began to erupt, coupled with the help of the referee, successfully caught up with the score and dragged it into overtime. In overtime, the Grizzlies did not miss the opportunity and began to take the initiative, and Morant directly killed the game with a dunk in the air. In the end, the Grizzlies defeated the Pelicans 116-115 to win four in a row.
Before Morant's return, the Grizzlies were on a five-game losing streak, and after his return, the team immediately brought about a qualitative change, and has won four in a row. Morant has always had a good performance during this period, this time facing the Pelicans, he shot 12 of 24 and got 31 points, 5 rebounds and 7 assists. With his comeback, Bane is also more comfortable on the court, scoring 27 points this time, Jackson Jr. also has 19 points and 10 rebounds, and the familiar Grizzlies are back.
After the defeat to the Pelicans, the Grizzlies were also demoralized and began to cheer for the victory, with some shadows of last season. The Grizzlies are now 13th in the West with 10 wins and 19 losses, 4.5 wins away from the 10th-place Warriors (play-in zone), and the gap is already narrowing, with 53 games remaining, there is still a lot of variability.