Ja Morant’s comeback ruined? With Ja finally returning to the court after months following a season-ending surgery, all eyes were on the Grizzlies’ preseason opener against the Mavs. The point guard did not disappoint as he mesmerized the crowd early with his high-flying moves and acrobatic finishes. However, things quickly turned increasingly scary as Morant was forced to leave the game with an unfortunate injury just seconds after he almost had a nasty collision with the backboard!

Yes, with under nine minutes left in the second quarter, Ja Morant was sprinting back on defense after a missed three from Luke Kennard. Dealing with a two-on-one situation in transition, the odds were not in Ja’s favor. And while he was in stride, Naji Marshall threw a bounce pass which hit the Grizzlies star directly on his foot, leading to him landing awkwardly and tweaking his ankle. In visible pain, the hooper immediately limped off the court and headed straight to the locker room. So, did he return?

Well, the incident occurred merely seconds after Ja ‘oohd and aahd’ the crowd by flying high in the air and blocking Marshall’s layup attempt. And he was so high off the ground that he would have hit his head on the backboard had he not ducked mid-air!

As the fans feared the worst and hoped for the best, Ja Morant fortunately returned to the court minutes later, as his ankle injury was not too severe. Sure enough, he was able to continue playing till the end of the quarter and finished the half with 6 points and 3 assists. The hooper even played four more minutes in the following quarter and added seven points to his comeback stat line. But it is quite scary to think that Ja’s exciting return to the Memphis side was nearly ruined by another injury.

Ja Morant’s vision to stay ‘happy and healthy’ for a great comeback season

With Ja being able to play only 9 games last season, it was “tough” dealing with injuries and rehab. Staying available is his primary focus for this year, “Obviously I wanna be out there every game so, now my main focus is to be able to do that. Recovery has pretty much been the biggest thing for me obviously this off-season because of my shoulder and then, ramping back up and having recover the other parts of my body.” When Morant is healthy, the Grizzlies instantly become playoff contenders and a legitimate threat to win the title.

Even during the 9 games he played last season, the point guard looked in great form and averaged 25.1 points and 8.1 assists. He is expected to have a similar impact this year but for the entire season, of course. Moreover, Ja has learned a lot from his time off the court, “Last 2 years, everything that I’ve experienced, everything that I’ve been through, I wanna remember that feeling I felt each time. No matter what situation it was. I felt like it helped me a lot, helped me grow more into a better Ja.”

The hooper even issued a warning to the rest of the league now that he is at complete strength: “Right now, I’m happy, and that’s my main focus. I feel like a happy Ja is a scary Ja for a lot of people. So long as I stay happy and healthy, it’ll be a great season.” But the constant high-flying risks and injury scares will surely leave the Grizzlies fanbase concerned about their superstar’s availability. Agree?

Before leaving, do watch the Dual Threat Show hosted by BG12 where Bulldogs’ Asia Avinger details her experience with Kobe Bryant, her WNBA ROTY picks, and more in the video below.