For as one-sided as a No. 8 seed facing a No. 1 can look like on paper, the Memphis Grizzlies and Oklahoma City Thunder first-round matchup has ended up being even in reality. More to the point, if the two upcoming games in Memphis are half of what the first two were, this series would end up being the most one-sided in NBA history.
After losing by 51 in Game 1 — the fifth-largest defeat in playoff history — the Grizzlies looked better in Game 2 (not a high bar, to be fair), but ultimately still lost by 19. They head home, looking to show some life, but more so to avoid being on the wrong side of history. Taylor Jenkins was fired, with Tuomas Iisalo taking over as interim coach nine games before the postseason because
management believed
he couldn’t lead Memphis into title contention. Fast forward three weeks, and the Grizzlies are being dominated by one of the premier championship contenders this season.
To be fair, the Grizzlies didn’t fare that much better with Jenkins against this Thunder squad, going 0-4 in their season series and losing by an average margin of 18.8. Coincidentally, the tipping point of his firing was a 21-point loss against Oklahoma City, where Shai Gilgeous-Alexander went off for 37 points on 15-25 shooting and the Grizzlies scored just 104 points, tied for their third-lowest scoring output of the season.
The Thunder were just on another level during the regular season, and they’ve continued their elite play in the playoffs, as they feature six players scoring in double figures, and have held the backcourt of Desmond Bane (14.0 points on 34.5 FG percent) and Ja Morant (20.0 points on 38.1 FG percent) in check.
How this affects Ja Morant’s future in Memphis
Through all of the off-court
drama of last season
and in his
return to play
, Morant is the franchise cornerstone of Memphis, a talent unlike anything the franchise has had before, and the one player on their team that gives them the best chance to win when he’s out there.
Even though he wasn’t looking like the Morant from the past two seasons, one could chalk that up to him returning to play and still going through injuries. However, it was reported after the firing of Jenkins that the guard was having problems with the coach’s new offense, which in part led to his firing.
While it had them averaging 121.7 points, second-highest in the NBA and the most in franchise history by over five points, it didn’t feature Morant as much as past seasons. Whether it was warranted by his continued absence or not, it reportedly didn’t sit well with him. While Jenkins was let go, the offense hasn’t fared that much better now.
Yes, one could say that if Iisalo was given more than a nine-game ramp-up before the playoffs, they might be looking better, but Morant might not look at it that way. He’s 25 years old, and on a team with little wiggle room to improve after next season. Morant and Bane are already under max contract extensions, and Jaren Jackson Jr. will likely be due for one in the summer of 2026.
That would leave them locked in with a big three and supporting cast who’s time as a top dog in the West seems to have passed, as a younger Thunder team runs circles against them, the San Antonio Spurs are on the come up, the Los Angeles Lakers secured their future by acquiring Luka Dončić, and the Denver Nuggets, Los Angeles Clippers, Golden State Warriors and Houston Rockets don’t seem to be going anywhere for now.
In discussing Jenkins’ firing, Grizzlies General Manager Zach Kleiman
stated
that “urgency is a core principle of ours”, implying that there’s a ticking clock to their championship window with Morant leading the charge. A historic rout in the first round of the playoffs might accelerate that clock.
This article was originally published on Viral Buzz Newsas
Grizzlies might make worst kind of NBA history, and it could push Ja Morant out the door
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