“This is a moment that’s sitting here for this dude” - Bill Simmons believes Ja Morant knocking out Steph Curry and Klay Thompson would introduce him to a whole new audience
Ja Morant is leading the Memphis Grizzlies against Steph Curry and Klay Thompson's Golden State Warriors, who looked unstoppable in the first round, and Bill Simmons believes a series win would elevate him to another level.
As the 2022 NBA Playoffs progress, Ja Morant is becoming one of the top stars in the league. According to The Ringer's Bill Simmons, if the Grizzlies can ultimately pull off an upset against the Steph Curry and Klay Thompson-led Warriors, Morant could elevate him even higher.
"And I think with Ja, him beating Golden State, him toppling Curry, toppling Draymond, toppling Klay, and just sending those guys packing and moving to the next round, that would be an incredible feat for a 22-year-old. I think this could be potentially - this is a moment that's sitting here for this dud," he said.
Few players this young have ever been in a position to get their team into the conference finals, and even fewer players have done it against a team like Golden State.
For Ja Morant and the Memphis Grizzlies, dethorining this Steph Curry and Klay Thompson team would certainly be a big moment.
From last night’s BS Pod: it’s all sitting there for Ja.
https://t.co/WstHYUfhOS
While there is still plenty of work to be done for Ja Morant, he at least has his team in a position to win the series right now. Still, the Grizzlies will need to win at least one game on the road to secure the series, which is easier said than done.
If they can pull it off, it will be a significant moment early on in Morant's career.
Ja Morant is playing at an almost impossible level to defeat Steph Curry and Klay Thompson
With a spot in the Western Conference finals on the line, Morant is elevating his game to a new level to try and defeat Steph Curry and Klay Thompson-led Warriors.
Towards the end of Game 2, Morant took over and was nearly unstoppable in the last few minutes to lead the Memphis Grizzlies to a series-tying win.
After scoring the last 15 points for the @memgrizz in Game 2, Ja Morant is now the 3rd player in the play-by-play era (since 1997-1998) to score his team’s last 15+ points in a Playoff game. https://t.co/zm6OjyKnSy
For context, only one other 22-year-old player was able to accomplish what Morant did to try and elevate his team in the playoffs.
The only other 2 players to achieve this are LeBron James and Damian Lillard.
Damian Lillard (Trail Blazers): Last 17 points on 06/01/2021
LeBron James (Cavaliers): Last 25 points on 05/31/2007 https://t.co/byaVCAe5US
While LeBron did it in the conference finals rather than in the second-round and scored more consecutive points, Morant's performance was still ridiculous.
Morant may need to continue playing at this ridiculous level if the Memphis Grizzlies are going to defeat Steph Curry and Klay Thompson's team.