“Ain’t no question mark, boy. All y’all who ain’t got Ja in your narrative, you trippin.” Through his recent praise, Boston Celtics legend Kevin Garnett highlighted the importance of Ja Morant on the Memphis Grizzlies roster. Having spent the first three seasons elevating the franchise to a championship-contending level, a couple of off-court incidents combined with an injury caused him to miss out on several games in the last two years. Now, with all of that behind him, Ja Morant is back on the court, but his preseason appearances are being limited by the head coach.

For those who have already bought a ticket to watch the upcoming matchup at The Gainbridge Fieldhouse, or planning to catch the game from the comfort of your home, there may not be good news awaiting you in regards to the star player.

According to the Injury Report recently highlighted by ESPN, the 25-year-old continues to be listed under the ‘Day-To-Day’ status. This means that the final decision to include the player in the main lineup won’t be made public until a few hours remain in the Grizzlies-Pacers game. Having missed out on the last two games between the Charlotte Hornets and the Chicago Bulls too, not playing against the Pacers may indicate that Taylor Jenkins might still not be ready to put his point guard at risk.

During the Grizzlies preseason debut against the Dallas Mavericks, Ja Morant ended up rolling his ankle after his foot came into contact with the ball. He headed to the locker room by the early part of the second quarter but did return again during the later part of the game, removing doubts of a serious injury. Hours prior to the Hornets matchup, however, head coach Taylor Jenkins revealed that after an MRI was conducted, Morant was diagnosed with a mild ankle sprain.

Despite the injury not being too serious, Jenkins made it clear that he did not wish to take any extra risk. After all, the franchise has just got the player back. By resting him during the pre-season, the team could ensure that he is well and able to compete right from the Grizzlies’ first game of the regular season.

No fan of the Grizzlies would want a repeat of the 2023-24 season. After all, not only did the franchise lead the league in injury-affected games during the tournament, Morant’s absence seems to have played a big role in their downfall on the points chart. During the 2022 and 2023 seasons, the 27.4 and 26.2 points respectively that Morant averaged helped the franchise earn the second-highest seed. When he was suspended back in May 2023 after flashing a gun in a second reported instance, he missed out on 25 games.

Within nine games after returning, a season-ending shoulder injury kept him away for the rest of the season. As a result, the Grizzlies could only get a 27-55 win record and dropped from being the 2 seed to 13 within the span of a few months. Therefore, if keeping the player healthy comes at the cost of missing a few preseason games, then so be it.

Fortunately, the need to have all the players healthy by the time the regular season rolls around is not leaving the point guard without any company. In fact, the current Injury Report of the Grizzlies may carry more names than any other franchise.

Who is included alongside Ja Morant on the Grizzlies Injury Report?

According to ESPN, the other Grizzlies players who also carry a ‘Day-To-Day’ include Desmond Bane and Marcus Smart. Meanwhile, Vince Williams Jr, Cam Spencer, Jaren Jackson Jr, and GG Jackson II have all been declared ‘OUT’ due to the severity of their injuries.

While everyone else remained on the report even before the Hornets matchup, both Bane and Smart are the newest additions. While Bane from ‘The Dark Knight Rises’ would break the backs of others, this Bane ended up injuring his own and was kept out during the Grizzlies’ last few games of the 2023-24 season. Fortunately, he was declared fit for the training camp and even went on to add 11 and 17 points during the preseason matchups against the Mavericks and Charlotte, respectively. While no specific reason has been given, Coach Jenkins may be following the same example he did for Morant and decided to give the 26-year-old a rest period before the regular season.

Marcus Smart developed an injury during the recent Hornets game after a collision resulted in a knee injury. While he decided to ask for a substitute after attempting to play well and falling back, he revealed that he would have continued on if the game had been part of the regular season. Possibly having flashbacks of the injury-ridden last season, Taylor Jenkins would have decided to even bench Smart for the time being.

With a left shin ailment, Williams Jr. is expected to miss the early part of the regular season, while Spencer’s ankle sprain reportedly keeps him out for only the beginning of the preseason. Jaren Jackson Jr’s recovery from the low-grade hamstring strain keeps him on the bench for now, but reports indicate he will be present for the regular season. Meanwhile, having recently undergone a procedure to fix his broken fifth metatarsal, Jackson II is not expected to be evaluated again for the next two months.

The Grizzlies are currently on a good track, having won 2 of their 3 preseason matchups. With the absence of Ja Morant and six other players, however, whether the same will be maintained remains to be seen.

Before you go, remember to check out this crossover between BG12 and Georgia Bulldogs star Silas Demary Jr.