If you thought Ja Morant was going to rebrand, think again – Gudstory

Ja Morant hasn’t skipped a beat since returning to the Memphis Grizzlies lineup a week ago. The city of Memphis couldn’t be happier. Without Morant, the Grizzlies’ holes were glaring. In his absence, Desmond Bane tried valiantly to press the fort, but the attack was poor without his backcourt partner. With Morant back in the fold, Payne continues his All-Star push, but with more help.

The Morant-less Grizzlies had the worst record in the Western Conference in the first third of the season. Since it was activated, Memphis is 4-0, and on Tuesday, Morant was named Most Valuable Player Western Conference Player of the Week. It’s a small sample size, but wins over the Pacers, Hawks and Pelicans twice exemplify the impact of dribbling and leadership on Memphis’ win total. He even finished a recent win over New Orleans on the receiving end of an alley-oop as a reminder of the extra turbo button he has.

You can tell opposing teams are wary by the way they interact with Morant. Defenses retreat faster than the Boyz in the Hood’s Ricky Baker When Morant handles the rock at half court. However, even when they know how he will score, the angle at which he dives into the room from defenses still irritates him, and he still has the blazing speed and finishing ability to beat defenders in the lane. If too many eyes are on Morant, he will cut down defenses Passes the skin to the baseline incisors.

Within a week, Morant put Tyrese Haliburton in his place, put Trae Young in a blender and then dispatched the Pelicans twice. Morant’s contributions of nearly 30 points and nine assists per contest were more than enough to boost the NBA. The worst crime in his absence. Memphis’ offense has never been overly dynamic, but last week, Morant’s presence improved Memphis’ production by 10 points for every 100 possessions, which was more than enough for a defense that was the second best in the league since the beginning of the season. Memphis’ four wins with Morant nearly equal their win total through the first two months of the season.

He wouldn’t be exposed to Morant without showing his affinity for Glock. This time, it was a harmless finger gun after finishing the aforementioned game seal alley that lit up the web. Even under stricter interpretations of the league’s regulations, finger guns aren’t enough to earn a reprimand from the league, even if they make NBA officials and the Grizzlies nervous.

There was briefly concern about the bazooka he was imitating, but to the relief of all concerned it was just part of the dance. If anything has changed, it’s that it doesn’t Longer hit Griddy.

Morant’s representation of the gun is the most controversial gesture since Gilbert Arenas He mocked his locker room gun showdown with Javaris Crittenton by using finger guns during pregame introductions and angered David Stern. For now, Morant is staying away from actual firearms and none of his crew members have been charged with menacing The lives of the Pacers’ personnel this timeIt is progress, but in the court of public opinion, it will always be under strict scrutiny.

After missing 25 games, Morant has only managed to catch a glimpse of the league, and sportswriters can’t help but weigh in on him when he catches us again. It’s not enough to get him put in the backburner by the league again, but it’s not a great sign that he hasn’t learned to stop giving the middle finger to the league. Anyone interested in this is not just clutching pearls. He did the league a favor after appearing to have learned its lesson before figuratively Shooting himself in the foot.

Morant’s gunplay on social media and in his personal life is the reason Memphis is in this position. Sometimes you wonder if he cares as much about going viral as he does about winning games. This is not a knock on his competitive spirit. He clearly cares deeply about being famous on Twitter as well.

Unfortunately, it distracts from his talented abilities. For an athlete who has so many opportunities open to him, you hope he finds something else to celebrate besides an element of his personal life that is still on the court. Testify aboutThis should have been a few hundred words about Morant’s ethereal athleticism or the gigawatts of energy he brought to the city of Memphis.

Ironically, when he is on the floor, it is his shooting accuracy that needs the most work. Outside of the paint, Morant’s hitting is still a major work in progress. In a league full of flamethrowers, Morant is the preeminent short-sighted offensive guard. Developing an outside game is integral to Morant’s promotion from small-market icon to serious MVP candidate, as is playing more than 67 games a season. And right now, he’s not on track to do that either.

Meanwhile, Memphis is giddy about the return of its franchise player to its aurora navy and white Grizz uniforms. Eventually, the Grizzlies will have to find that extra gear, whether it’s through trades, free agency or Morant making the leap by becoming a consistent point guard, but in 2024, they’ll settle for the status quo he’s established and tolerate it. Push the needle. For better or worse, this is the Ja Morant the league will get.

Follow DJ Dunson on X: @Brain sportss