If there were any concerns about how Ja Morant would respond to a lot of expectations being placed on him, he has dispelled them in some fashion. The 23-year-old is averaging 35.5 points per game to start the season on 54.8% shooting from the field and has led the Grizzlies to a 3-1 record.
A sub-par game against the Mavericks aside, Morant has been on an absolute tear so far and is gaining some MVP buzz as well. Ja’s latest victims were the Brooklyn Nets, as he finished the game with 38 points, 8 rebounds, and 7 assists in a 134-124 win. The Nets just couldn’t handle him at all, and Kevin Durant was highly impressed by what he saw.
Kevin Durant Says Ja Morant Will Be The Face Of The NBA
It was just the second time that these two men had faced off on the court, and Morant was brilliant in the first meeting as well. He had 36 points that night as the Grizzlies won 118-104, and he managed to go a bit better here. After the game, KD paid Ja a great compliment, as he said Morant will be the face of the league.
KD doubled down on his praise of Ja Morant after the game. "He's the most marketable guy in our league — the face of our league going forward. There are so many kids that are inspired by what he does."
— Nick Friedell (@NickFriedell) October 25, 2022
KD doubled down on his praise of Ja Morant after the game. “He’s the most marketable guy in our league — the face of our league going forward. There are so many kids that are inspired by what he does.”
Morant certainly has the capability because of the way he plays. He is incredibly fun to watch as he is a skywalker, but the question with players like him is always their health, and he has had injury issues in the past as well. If he manages to stay healthy, then Ja will go on to achieve great things in this league, but that is a big if.
As for the Nets, they have plenty of things they still need to figure out. This loss dropped them to 1-2 on the season, and the worrying thing is that Durant and Kyrie Irving have averaged almost 60 points between them this season, but it still hasn’t been enough. Ben Simmons has been a bit of a disappointment, but head coach Steve Nash defended him as he believes Ben is just rusty because he hasn’t played a lot of basketball. For their sake, we hope it is just rust, as the Nets won’t go too far if he doesn’t play better than this.
