LeBron James’ spectacular Game 4 performance has given the LA Lakers a commanding 3-1 series lead against Ja Morant and the Memphis Grizzlies. The seventh-seeded Lakers could eliminate the second-ranked Grizzlies on Wednesday.
Basketball fans quickly lauded James and trolled Morant after the Lakers’ hard-earned win:
“Grizzly bears? More like teddy bears”
LeBron James’ layup over Xavier Tillman and Jaren Jackson Jr. with .08 seconds left tied the score at 104. The Memphis Grizzlies’ inbound play resulted in Ja Morant’s isolation against Anthony Davis, who promptly blocked his shot and sent the game into overtime.
‘King James’ continued his clutch performance in the extra five-minute period where he added four more points. James’ opening surge in overtime gave the LA Lakers the lead they would never surrender for the rest of the game.
LeBron James, who is in his 20th season, played a game-high 45 minutes and finished with 22 points, 20 rebounds and seven assists. When the Lakers needed him to deliver, he came up big to lead the team to a crucial victory.
Ja Morant, on the other hand, couldn’t do the same for the Memphis Grizzlies. “G12” had a mesmerizing Game 3 performance where he dropped 45 points in the Lakers’ blowout win. He couldn’t come up with the same output against LA’s suffocating defense.
Morant had a horrible 8-24 shooting night, including key misses in the last few minutes of the fourth quarter and overtime. He said after Game 3 that his injured right hand was fine, but he seemed to be affected by it.
Memphis’ star guard was also hunted by the Lakers on defense. On several occasions down the stretch, they put Ja Morant in pick-and-roll situations to create something for LeBron James.
In the Grizzlies’ biggest game of the season, Memphis’ franchise player came up short on both ends of the court. He will have a chance to redeem himself on Wednesday as they try to avoid elimination on their home floor.
Ja Morant and the Memphis Grizzlies don’t look fine in the Western Conference in Game 4
Back in December, Ja Morant was interviewed by ESPN’s Malika Andrews. She asked him which Western Conference team he thinks will be on the Memphis Grizzlies’ path in the playoffs.
Morant couldn’t contain a smile and said:
“No one in the West. I’m fine in the West.”
The explosive point guard named the Boston Celtics as the team he thought would be the team to beat for the title.
Ja Morant doubled down on his comments in January when the Golden State Warriors’ Draymond Green dismissed his bravado. On then-teammate Danny Green’s podcast, Morant had this to say:
“Like I said, man, if I needed to say it like this, the Grizzlies are fine in the West and there ya go. That’s the confidence.”
The Memphis Grizzlies may not even survive LeBron James and the LA Lakers in the playoffs. LA only need to win one of their next three games to face the winner of the matchup between the Golden State Warriors and Sacramento Kings.
