On Wednesday, the Memphis Grizzlies’ rotation received a much-needed boost despite the fact that Steven Adams and Brandon Clarke remain out for the remainder of the season.
In the Grizzlies’ 130-125 victory over the Houston Rockets, All-Star guard Ja Morant came back from a nine-game absence and eight-game suspension to score 17 points, provide five assists, and steal two rebounds in 24 minutes off the bench.
Memphis (45-27), which extended its winning streak to four games with the victory, won the Southwest Division title and will play the Rockets again on Friday in the series finale. Houston is a 3-0 matchup for the Grizzlies.
The dynamism that has become a hallmark of his game was provided by Morant. His first two baskets were part of three-point plays and were scored with fouls.
Morant assisted on two baskets by Jaren Jackson Jr., who scored 37 points, after entering the game late in the first quarter. Morant also had a block, four rebounds, and the usual thrills.
Morant’s acceptance of a bench position demonstrated his readiness to rejoin a winning combination. With Morant out, Memphis won six of its final seven games.
The Rockets (18-55) were able to keep Memphis at bay thanks to their effective offensive play. Houston scored 20 fast-break points, grabbed 20 offensive rebounds, and shot 51.6% from the floor.
Despite their skill on the offensive glass, the Rockets’ 16 turnovers negated their plus-6 advantage in field goal attempts, and they only scored 12 second-chance points. Still, the Rockets made Memphis sweat out the victory with 88 points scored by Jalen Green, Kenyon Martin Jr., and Alperen Sengun on 64.7 percent shooting.
Green had his 13th 30-point game and scored a team-high 32 points. In his last four games, he has scored an average of 29.3 points.
On 12-of-18 shooting, Martin scored a career-high 31 points, marking the 34th time this season that he has shot at least 60 percent. In 28 of those games, he has scored at least two goals.
Stephen Silas, the coach of the Rockets, described Martin as “doing what he does.” He rolls and screens; He knows how to do it well. He was only assertive and hostile. At times, I thought he was even hit at the rim, but he kept going and finished or got to the free-throw line.
