Rockets' Kevin Porter Jr. Looking Forward To Welcoming Ja Morant Back vs. Grizzlies

The Houston Rockets will be the first team to welcome Grizzlies' Ja Morant back following his eight-game suspension, and Kevin Porter Jr. is looking forward to the competition.

MEMPHIS — When the Houston Rockets kick off their five-game road trip against the Memphis Grizzlies on Wednesday, two-time All-Star point guard Ja Morant will likely make his return to the line-up. 

Morant served an eight-game suspension for conduct detrimental to the NBA. And for the first time since March 3 against the Denver Nuggets, Morant took part in the Grizzlies shootaround inside FedEx Forum. 

Morant's teammates are ecstatic to have "the engine of their team" back on the floor. But Rockets' starting point guard Kevin Porter Jr. is looking forward to competing against one of the top players at his position.

"Everyone on our team loves to play against high-caliber players, and he is one of those players," Porter said. "We will welcome him back. But we definitely want to compete against him."

Porter described Morant's potential return as "fun." And after facing the star point guard twice this season, Porter says the Rockets have a defensive game plan on how they want to guard him.

Houston is trailing Memphis 0-2 in their four-game regular season series. Morant has appeared in each contest, averaging 34.5 points on 57.7 percent shooting, 7.5 assists and 5.5 rebounds.

Morant led the Grizzlies to a seven-point victory on Oct. 21 inside the Toyota Center, where he scored a season-high 49 points.

"Every team has a player like Ja when it comes to the caliber and value he brings to the team," Porter said. "It is going to be a fun game for the fans in the building. But for us, it's going to be a good game."

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