Ja Morant, Desmond Bane, and Jaren Jackson Jr. are the undisputed leaders of the Memphis Grizzlies, forming a core that ranks among the best in the NBA.
However, in the team’s first 19 games this season, the trio has shared the court only three times.
Their last appearance together was during the Grizzlies’ 25-point home victory over the Portland Trail Blazers on Monday night.
In Wednesday’s 20-point home win against the Detroit Pistons, Morant was absent due to a knee injury, which head coach Taylor Jenkins didn’t consider too serious. Jenkins and the Grizzlies are eager to see how the team performs with Morant, Bane, and Jackson Jr. playing together for an extended stretch of games.
That opportunity might start on Friday when the Grizzlies face the visiting New Orleans Pelicans in an NBA Cup game.
Whether with or without their star trio, the Grizzlies have been on a roll recently. Wednesday’s victory over the Pistons marked their fourth consecutive win and their eighth win in the last 11 games.
Morant returned on Monday after an eight-game absence due to a hip injury, joining Bane, who had missed several games earlier in the month with a strained right oblique, and Jackson, the team’s leading scorer.
In the dominant win over the Trail Blazers, Morant showed no signs of rust, leading the Grizzlies to a wire-to-wire victory and scoring 20 of his 22 points in the first half. He finished the game with 11 assists.
In Morant’s absence, the Grizzlies have relied on their deep bench, led by backup point guard Scotty Pippen Jr. In last weekend’s road win at Chicago, Pippen Jr. scored a career-high 30 points and grabbed 10 rebounds. In Wednesday’s victory, he contributed 19 points and seven rebounds. The Memphis bench players combined for 71 points.
Facing a struggling, injury-plagued New Orleans team, Memphis will be seeking its first NBA Cup victory in the two years of the in-season tournament. The Pelicans are 2-12 in November and have lost six straight games.
In Wednesday’s 119-93 home loss to the Toronto Raptors, the Pelicans were booed by their fans in the third quarter as they fell behind by 30 points.
Dejounte Murray returned after missing 17 straight games with a fractured left hand, which he sustained in the October 23 season opener against the Chicago Bulls.
New Orleans remains without star Zion Williamson (hamstring) but hopes to have Brandon Ingram (right calf soreness) and Trey Murphy (left knee contusion) back against Memphis.
