Stephen Curry of the Golden State Warriors and Ja Morant of the Memphis Grizzlies.
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Stephen Curry of the Golden State Warriors and Ja Morant of the Memphis Grizzlies.
The podcasting work of Draymond Green gives an active player the chance to talk on the biggest topics in the NBA today. Ja Morant and his one game suspension issued by the Memphis Grizzlies has become the talk of the league over the weekend. Green revealed that he and Stephen Curry had a conversation about this before the drama even unfolded.
“When we got on that plane I was telling Steph, like, ‘Man, Ja ain’t in it at all. It looked like something happened , like, it ain’t Ja,’” Green said about Golden State’s victory over Memphis. “He was giving the ball to Cam Spencer and kind of going to stand in the corner. And Steph was like, ‘Quiet protest going on, huh?’ And I was like, ‘That’s what it looked like.’”
Morant confirmed the issues after Friday’s loss to the Los Angeles Lakers. Both critical comments to the media about Memphis’ coaching staff and the perceived conduct detrimental to the team caused the Grizzlies to suspend their superstar for one game.
Draymond: Ja Morant Disliked Coaching Change
Memphis made a bold move last season by firing head coach Taylor Jenkins late into last season, despite the team overachieving for most of the regular season. Current head coach Tuomas Iisalo got promoted from an assistant coach role on the staff to the lead coaching position.
Green claims that he believes that this was the turning point in Morant being upset with the franchise:
“It takes you back to Taylor Jenkins getting fired and bumping the assistant coach up. When you looked at that team, I think they rocked with Jenkins. If that’s the case and you fire him, you’re almost signaling to Ja and possibly Jaren that you really don’t give a damn what they think.”
The commentary continued with Green expressing that the Grizzlies sent a message to Morant that they picked a new coach without running it by their superstar point guard. Morant’s suspensions and injuries have caused him to earn the “unreliable” reputation to warrant why Memphis is disillusioned with him.
Draymond Thinks Morant May Get Traded
The biggest question about Morant’s future with the Grizzlies is figuring out how long they can keep playing the waiting game. Morant’s public criticism of coaching and the team’s public suspension each showed that the issues are not staying in house. Public issues between a player and franchise typically lead to a trade coming sooner than later.
Curry adding that Morant is showing a silent protest shows even the biggest stars in the league noticed something wrong between two sides. Recent reports suggested that Morant would not have a great trade market of assets offered. Memphis will likely have to settle for less and truly believe in building around Jaren Jackson Jr.
However, Green’s take does confirm that the player perspective is the same as fans and media. The Grizzlies have lost a lot of trust in Morant, and Ja is making it clear that he’s not happy about the current state of the team. A big turnaround for a successful season is needed, or the issues will continue to worsen for both parties until a trade is made.