“He did just about everything in his power to blow the game in the 4th quarter” - Skip Bayless critical of "next face of the league" in topsy-turvy playoff win
After the Memphis Grizzlies went past the Minnesota Timberwolves 104-95 on Thursday, Skip Bayless sounded off on Ja Morant's fourth-quarter performance.
"They roared back at the expense of Minnesota," Bayless said on 'Skip and Shannon: Undisputed.' "He did just about everything in his power to blow the fourth quarter, and they still won the fourth quarter 37-12. In the fourth quarter Ja did score five points, but he was two of eight, he missed his lone 3, he went one of four from the free-throw line with three more turnovers."
"I picked the Grizzlies to win the West and I am standing by it. But I despise what I saw from Ja Morant and Memphis last night." — @RealSkipBayless https://t.co/SxlO0trXYd
With the win, the Grizzlies took a 2-1 series lead in the first round of the Western Conference playoffs. While Morant posted Memphis' first-ever playoff triple-double, he had a rough shooting night. Morant shot 27.8%, including 33.3% from 3-point range. Desmond Bane added 26 points, shooting 7 out of 15 from the 3-point line and 42.1% from the field.
Out of the four possible games that remain, two will be in Minnesota (Games 4 and 6 on Saturday and April 29) and two in Memphis (5 on Tuesday and 7 on May 1).
Skip Bayless isn't too bullish on the Grizzlies despite being an ardent fan
Skip Bayless is notorious for outlandish takes, and most of them are just that. He picked the Memphis Grizzlies to win the West over the Phoenix Suns, Golden State Warriors and Dallas Mavericks. Those three teams are far, far better than the Grizzlies.
Regular-season matchups don't amount to much: just look at the Nuggets-Warriors series. The Nuggets took the regular-season series 3-1 and are now on the verge of getting swept in the first round.
While the Grizzlies are young, explosive and loud, they lack the experience. If it wasn't for Minnesota blowing big leads, they would possibly be down 3-0. Now, that is not to say that the Grizzlies are a bad team. They obviously aren't. But title contenders? No.
Supposedly a Ja Morant fan, Bayless wholeheartedly believes Morant is the next face of the league. But the performances (and comments) from the Grizzlies in the first-round have swayed his opinion:
"It's 1-1, and you are going to Minnesota ... they come out like the series is over, and they fall behind 12 to nothing ... and then they cut it back down to seven at halftime. You are in their place, and they're gonna come right back out in quarter three just like they did in quarter one.
"And what happened? They come out, and Minnesota goes on a 21-8 run to start the third"
"We got that same mindset coming onto the next one. Same fire, same energy."
@JaMorant talks with @ChrisBHaynes after securing a win in Game 2. https://t.co/i9E2ZYfX7j