No NBA team gets a pass into the playoffs based upon being the hottest team in the league over any 10-game period. Still, going 10-0 during such a span while also knocking off the latest version of the last hoops dynasty is cause for raising the roof on an in-season accomplishment.
Such is the case for the surging Memphis Grizzlies (29-14), who resoundingly defeated the Golden State Warriors 116-108 at FedExForum on Tuesday night. It was the tenth straight win for Memphis, whose stellar player is reverberating around the league.
โNumber one is weโre one of the best teams in the league,โ Memphis star guard Ja Morant (29 points, 8 assists, 5 rebounds) said, fielding a question about what the Grizzlies have learned during their historic run.
โNumber two, I feel like, is how deep our roster is. No matter whatโs thrown at us, we bounce back from it, come out and win games. Just got to keep it rolling. Continue to play together. Continue to battle and whatever is fueling us, continue to do.โ
Warriorโs coach Steve Kerr, who led Golden State (30-10) to world titles in 2015, 2017 and 2018, said, โIt was a great game. โฆ Two of the best teams in the league and theyโre the hottest team in the league. We gave ourselves a chance but we didnโt play well enough to win.โ
Kerr acknowledged what a growing number of other NBA observers also are echoing: โJust a team that is really well-coached, really well put together. Play with a lot of confidence. The pieces fit. They have done a great job, the whole organization, building this team from the ground up over the last few years.ย
โThey have nailed their draft picks and developed their players well,โ said Kerr. (Head coach) Taylor (Jenkins) and his staff have been great in terms of forming an identity and building the team around Ja (Morant). Great job and they have turned into one of the best teams in the league.โ
For the third straight game, Jenkins was out for health and safety protocols. Assistant Darko Rajakovic filled in against the Warriors.
โOur guys played another great game,โ Rajakovic said. โThey stayed together during the course of the game, through ups and downs. Iโm proud of them. Iโm proud of the effort. Iโm proud of the resiliency of this group.โ
The Grizzlies led by eight points at halftime before Golden State came out swinging in the third, outscoring Memphis 39-28 and taking a three-point advantage into the decisive final frame.
Swag. Swag. We lost our swag. That was it, that was it,โ said Rajakovic. โFor a moment we stopped moving the ball. We didnโt have the energy thatโs a characteristic for our team. All I told them was that weโve got to get our strength back.โ
Morant took Rajakovicโs swag reference in stride.
โMy reaction, I actually agreed with him,โ said Morant. โWe got out to a big lead. Obviously, one of the greatest teams in the league, they went on a run. His message is weโve got to get back to being us, playing with swag and having fun. Have a smile on our face basically.ย
โI feel like when we did that, we were winning in the games. Weโve just got to continue to do that. Like I said last game, our swag is just to go out there and battle for a full 48 minutes, play together. โฆ Itโs been working. Got to keep it going.โ
The Warriors were paced by their superstar guard Stephen Curry and his triple-double: 27 points, 10 assists, 10 rebounds. He associated the Warriors coming up short to turnovers, particularly in the first half.
โWe had our chances against a team that has confidence in themselves, playing well, know who they are. โฆ They are young, they have guys that have amazing opportunities, fueled by what Ja does. How explosive he is,โ said Curry.
โThey got us last year in the play-in game, got us twice this year, we got them once. It is a natural evolution of a team trying to take that next step. โฆย A big part is you talk about it right now, you got to show it in the playoffs. We want to be there to do that, I know they want to too. I know nobody is trying to win the verbal conversation right now in January.โ
Memphis rookie Zaire Williams (17 points) was assigned to guard Curry much of the game and Morant credited Williamsโ performance.
โI think he did well. I gave him a lot of credit just now. Besides those fouls on the three, I felt like he did a great job at trying to make his shots as tough as possible. Heโs 6โ9, can move his feet.ย
โI wish you all could have seen him pregame, how much treatment he was doing to prepare for Steph. Locked in. He was in the recovery boots, had heat packs, he was doing balance tests. I had never seen him do that before. I think he was really locked in tonight. He delivered for us and got us a big win.โ
The Grizzliesโ convincing victory came as Morant was named Western Conference Player of the Week for the second consecutive week.
โI didnโt know until I got off the plane and everyone was like, โCongrats.โ I was lost. Itโs big time. Iโm blessed. Iโve been working to be in the position that I am right now. Iโve just got to continue to keep playing my game, continue to be aggressive out there on the floor and do whatever it takes for us to get a win.ย
โUs winning games allowed me to be in position to get that award. You know what Iโm going to say. It goes to my teammates. Without them being out there helping me, it wouldnโt be possible. Back-to-back player of the week goes to my teammates and my coaches.โ
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