Memphis without Ja Morant, Los Angeles Lakers still lose Game 2 to Grizzlies
The Los Angeles Lakers had a golden opportunity to take the initiative in the first round Playoffs series against the Memphis Grizzlies. However they inexplicably wasted it.
Despite the absence of the team's number one star, Ja Morant (wrist injury), Memphis still won 103-93 against the Los Angeles Lakers to equalize the series 1-1.
Xavier Tillman led the Grizzlies with a double-double of 22 points and 13 rebounds. Defensive Player of The Year Jaren Jackson Jr added 18 points, 9 rebounds and 3 blocks.
LeBron James was still shining as usual for the yellow and purple shirt team, scoring 28 points and 12 rebounds. That wasn't enough on a day when Anthony Davis and D'Angelo Russell were playing under form.
Both performed in stark contrast to Game 1, with Russell scoring 5 points with 2-11 FG, while Anthony Davis had 13 points (4-14 FG) and eight rebounds.
Sharing about the decision to let Ja Morant retire from Game 2, Memphis Grizzlies head coach Taylor Jenkins said: "This is a decision that is unanimously accepted by many people and is the safest move."
Replacing Ja Morant in the Memphis squad is Tyus Jones. Although the defender didn't score as explosively as Morant, he had an impressive game in charge, scoring 10 points, 8 assists, 6 rebounds with exactly 1 turnover all game.
Advanced stats show Tyus as the NBA's top player in assist-to-turnover for five consecutive seasons, showing that he's a very good defender and rarely makes mistakes.
“They are still extremely dangerous when Tyus comes out in the starting XI. They didn't lose their rhythm and weren't affected by Ja Morant playing or not," LeBron James said of the Memphis Grizzlies after the loss at Game 2.
Looking at the score of 4 rounds, no team scored more than 4 points over the opponent except for the first half. That's where the Memphis Grizzlies started with a 30-19 advantage and soon took a 20-point lead.
The reason lies in the 5 times losing the ball that the Los Angeles Lakers had in the first half alone, which was fully utilized by the Memphis Grizzlies and converted into 10 points.
“Those turnovers make the team lose their rhythm and it takes a while for everyone to recover,” coach Darvin Ham said.
The Los Angeles Lakers have many times narrowed the gap to 5 or 7 points, but they were unable to fill the gap of too large scores that appeared in the first half of the game.
Aside from Rui Hachimura (7-12 FG, 20 points) and LeBron James (28 points, 12-23 FG, 1-8 3PT), no other Lakers players stand out. The visitors' 3-point throw rate is only 26.9% (7-26 3PT).
*****
After the first two matches at the Memphis Grizzlies, the series score is now 1-1. The chance to win is still divided equally for both teams, but the Los Angeles Lakers have the advantage by winning 1 away game.
In the next two games, the series will be moved to Crypto.com Arena, the Lakers' home ground. Game 3 and 4 of this series will take place on April 23 and April 25, respectively.
