Lakers Injury Report: Grizzlies Claim Ja Morant Sat As Precautionary Measure

Sure he did.

Due to a re-aggravated right hand bruise, All-Star Memphis Grizzlies point guard Ja Morant was held out of Memphis' second game in its playoff series against your Los Angeles Lakers yesterday, but it didn't prevent his Grizz from running roughshod over LA, 103-93, to even the best-of-seven matchup at 1-1.

Though it appeared Morant might be healthy enough to suit up on Wednesday at the start of the day, Grizzlies head coach Taylor Jenkins revealed to reporters pregame that the club decided to exercise caution with regards to his long-term health, per Joe Vardon of The Athletic. 

“He got all the testing and was still battling some soreness, a little pain,” Jenkins said. “It’s just a collective decision. We all decided that, and obviously he’s a warrior, he wants to be out there, would do anything to be out there, but we just felt like hey, just given all the testing results, give him this game and just wait a couple more days in between."

“We’re hopeful that with the progress he’s making the last couple of days, you know, he’ll be back sooner rather than later," Jenkins continued. "Can’t guarantee when that’s going to be, but it was just one of those things that we just couldn’t, you know, pull it to have him in tonight.”

We at All Lakers think this is a bit of a positive spin. Morant is a tough player, and this is the postseason. Load management during the playoff isn't traditionally a good idea. If the Grizzlies were actually confident that their best player was actually okay to play, he would have played.

We'll see if he's ready to roll in time for the third game in the series, set for Saturday in Los Angeles.

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