• A new colorway of the Ja 1 sneakers have been announced by Nike
• The colorway is called ‘No Smoke’ and features Ja Morant’s ‘We Ain’t Ducking No Smoke’ line
• Morant said that in a postgame interview and it has since become a team motto
Nike is releasing another colorway of their newest signature sneaker line for Ja Morant. The ‘Ja 1’s’ have been extremely popular despite the off-court scandals Morant has been embroiled in.
The newest colorway is called the ‘No Smoke’ colorway, featuring Morant’s iconic line ‘We Ain’t Ducking No Smoke’. The shoe will be available for purchase on official Nike websites and resellers for $130 from October 6 onwards.
New “No Smoke” Nike Ja 1 💨 @JaMorant pic.twitter.com/GrqPeab6Nl
— Nice Kicks (@nicekicks) September 25, 2023
Morant was controversially brought into the Nike fold after the brand got rid of Kyrie Irving for anti-Semitic comments. Instead of ditching Morant at the first sign of controversy, they’re persevering with the young Grizzlies point guard and hoping he returns from his 25-game suspension with renewed focus on the game of basketball. The different treatment for Morant and Irving irked many fans.
Morant has had two gun-related incidents over the last season, the first happening in March and causing an eight-game suspension and the second happening in the offseason and triggering a 25-game suspension by the league office.
Ja Morant Made ‘We Ain’t Ducking No Smoke’ Iconic
As a phrase, ‘we ain’t ducking no smoke’ is fairly common and implies that one will not run away from a challenge or a fight. Morant had dropped this line during in Feburary 2022 after on-court confrontation with players from the New York Knicks.
“There ain’t no running in the M, man. We climb up the chimney. We ain’t ducking no smoke. We’re gonna let everybody know we’re here. We’re gonna play hard, we’re trying to get a win and if you don’t like it? Oh well.”
Ja Morant had an epic quote about trash talking tonight:
“There ain't no running in the M, man. We climb up the chimney. We ain't ducking no smoke. We're gonna let everybody know we're here. We're gonna play hard, we're trying to get a win and if you don't like it? Oh well.”
— Tim Bontemps (@TimBontemps) February 3, 2022
The quote became even more iconic when he dropped it against the Minnesota Timberwolves, especially Patrick Beverley before their 2022 first-round matchup. The Grizzlies won that series, Morant’s first and only playoff series win of his career.
“You remember that quote I said? Ain’t ducking no smoke. We run up the chimney, simple as that. Ain’t no conversations about not letting nobody under your skin. If somebody comes towards you, can’t back down.”
This is fantastic usage of the phrase, given the the notoriety it has gotten Morant over the last two seasons. Next season will be a pure comeback season for Morant, so the message of the shoes will be further amplified.
Can The Grizzlies Remain Atop The West?
The Memphis Grizzlies have been a top-four seed in the West for consecutive seasons, but have only one playoff series win to show for it. That win was also against a very inexperienced Timberwolves squad whon had ended a four-year playoff drought of their own.
The addition of Marcus Smart will guarantee some stability in the backcourt with Morant out of commission for 25 games. After he returns, he will have to catch his rhythm quickly to make sure that the Grizzlies don’t go into the playoffs with any on-court chemistry issues. They will be in contention of being a top-four seed once again, in the same breath as the likes of the Nuggets, Lakers, and Suns.
Morant was having a sensational 22-23 season, averaging 26.2 points, 5.9 rebounds, and 8.1 assists over the course of the year. He wasn’t recognized for All-NBA due to his off-court scandals and will be ineligible next season. All there is to focus on for Morant is dominating on the court, and his skillset is definitely capable of doing so.
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