From Grit 'N' Grind To Run 'N' Gun: How Ja Morant Is Ushering In A New Era Of Memphis Grizzlies Basketball
The bag. The bounce. The bravado.
Ja Morant has taken the leap.
He’s leveled up.
He is that guy, dude.
"They got rockets in his calf muscles. It was a spectacular play. Salute." - LeBron
Ja looks as natural as anyone on planet Earth with the ball in his hands, playing with a joyful style normally only found on a playground, looking to feed while looking to score, breaking out every trick in the book without breaking a sweat.
Posting an All-Star season worthy of All-NBA consideration through the first half of the year in Memphis, Morant is making his mark. Must-see TV as soon as he stepped into the league, Ja continues to improve his game, becoming more efficient all around and improving his decision-making with each coming year, while still just 22 y.o.
Fun Fact #1: At 22 years & 154 days, Ja Morant is the youngest player in NBA history to average at least 25 points per game during his team's win streak of 10 or more games, via ESPN Stats & Info.
With bigs serving as the last line of defense, point guards are probably the easiest to hide of any position within a defensive scheme. A team can flank a defensive hole at point guard with lengthy, aware frontcourt defenders; while possible, it’s not as easy to make up for a hole at center with plus-defenders on the perimeter.
This tradeoff is noticeable when a primary offensive scoring option is also a defensive liability, creating a heliocentric offense while hoping the shining star doesn’t blow up in everyone’s faces on defense.
Ja Morant may never be a positive impact defender, but he gives effort to make rotations. Like Trae Young in the East, Morant more than makes up for the lack of defensive prowess with his mystical powers on the offensive end of the floor.
Closing in on one-man offense territory, Ja’s box score is bonkers, averaging 25 PPG - 7 APG - 6 RPG while shooting 49% on 19 FGA, 36% on 4 3PA, and 77% on 6 FTA.
Morant is a walking bucket, only where others would walk, Ja glides. Morant is scoring and shooting at career high rates in TS% (57%), 2P% (52%), and 3P%. (36%)
A menace attacking the rim, Morant is driving into the paint 20 times per game. Only four players take nineteen or more drives through the painted area: Shai Gilgeous Alexander, Luka Doncic, Trae Young, and Ja Morant.
Ja’s scoring a clean 50% on drives, drawing 3 fouls per game on drives, and racking up 2 assists per game kicking out of drives. A force of flare on the fast break, Morant is a handful to stop in transition, scoring 1.14 PPP on 153 possessions.
There are 50 players who have racked up 50+ possessions in ISO and P&R as the ball-handler. Among these players, Ja Morant ranks 7th in ISO PPP and 20th in P&R PPP. Morant is scoring 1.09 PPP in ISOs and 0.92 PPP as the P&R Ball-Handler.
Ja’s ISO PPP is as impressive as James Harden this season, a perennial league-leader in ISOs. For reference, here’s the Top-8 in ISO scoring efficiency among players with 50+ ISO poss and 50+ P&R poss by PPP:
1. Stephen Curry (1.219)
2. Darius Garland (1.182)
3. Gordon Hayward (1.151)
4. DeMar DeRozan (1.13)
5. Jaylen Brown (1.111)
6. James Harden (1.109)
7. Ja Morant (1.091)
8. Kevin Durant (1.082)
What’s special about this star is his clear commitment to playing with a team-first mentality. We’ve never seen Morant complain about touches, if anything, Ja gets out of the way when someone else has a hot hand, highly aware of when to move around off-ball for cuts or repositioned corner threes.
Like most players, Ja’s more efficient off-ball than on-ball from 3pt range. Spotting up 74 times this year, Ja’s scoring 1.027 PPP. In 63 C&S situations, Morant’s scoring 1.14 PPP. Taking 117 shots off the dribble, Morant’s scoring 0.82 PPP on pull-ups.
Morant is willing his team to wins when it matters most. From the 415 to the 216 (Golden State and Cleveland area codes for those in the know), Ja comes up cool in the clutch, sealing victories left and right. Ja ranks 2nd in PPG in the clutch with 4.5 PPG, shooting 44-50-84 in the final five minutes of games with +/- 5pt margins.
Ja Morant ranks highly in metrics that attempt to measure overall impact:
8th in BPM +6.0 (via bball ref)
12th in LeBron +3.18 (via BBall Index)
T-23rd in EPM +3.9 (via Dunks and Threes)
Ja’s teammate, Jaren Jackson Jr., also shows highly rated impact here, ranking 14th in LeBron (+3, via BBall Index) and T-28th in EPM (+3.4, via Dunks and Threes)
Fun Fact #2: Brandon Clarke, Tyus Jones, Ja Morant, Desmond Bane are all scoring over 0.95 PPP on Runners this season. I visualized the most efficient FLOATA takers and makers in the NBA this season below:
Trading Jonas Valanciunas didn’t just open up room for Jaren Jackson Jr. to post up more, it created a scoring vacancy. Dillon Brooks gets buckets when available, but its Desmond Bane who has stepped up to fill the void, especially when Brooks is out.
Bane is shooting the rubber off the rock. Just about every team in the league is kicking themselves in the foot for not taking Bane on draft night. Desmond is a defense’s worst nightmare: a threat to launch from deep, at any moment, on and off the ball. The whole defense must keep one eye on Bane as soon as he crosses halfcourt.
Desmond’s 1.182 Spot Up PPP is tied with Steph Curry for 20th in the NBA among players with 100 spot up possessions this season.
Among players with 50+ possessions in each play-type, Desmond’s 1.325 PPP in Catch-and-Shoot situations ranks 12th in the NBA, while Bane’s 1.051 PPP in off-the-dribble jump shots rank 15th. When running off screens, Desmond scores 1.035 PPP, ranking 13th in the league, while in Hand Offs, Bane scores 1.062 PPP, T-6th the NBA.
When the Grizzlies have Desmond Bane, Jaren Jackson Jr., and Ja Morant on the court together, Memphis has a +6.63 Net Rating in 478 MIN.
When Memphis pairs Brandon Clarke with Jaren Jackson Jr., the Grizzlies have a +19.84 Net Rating in 249 MIN, compared to -4.88 Net Rating with both players off.
The NBA is better with a healthy Jaren Jackson Jr. at full steam. JJJ is back and he’s back to showing out. Jaren’s two-way impact rivals just about any modern big man.
Jaren’s elite defense has arrived, especially on the help-side. While the 3PT shooting hasn’t reached the absurd levels of two years prior, defenses must respect his jumper.
Jaren Jackson Jr' ranks 5th in the league with 2.1 blocks per game, ranks T-63nd at 1.1 steals per game, and ranks T-42nd in total deflections. (78)
Among players contesting 10+ shots per game, JJJ (41.6%) ranks T-15th in dFG%, aka opposing players only shoot 41.6% when Jaren sticks a hand out, according to Synergy.
Recording 83 post-up possessions this season, Jaren has already racked up over six times as many post-ups as last season. (13) Jackson ranks in the 67th percentile with 0.99 Post-Up PPP, via Synergy.
Jaren has been an ambidextrous finisher around the rim with special shooting touch and an interesting jump shot since his time at Michigan State. On other shots around the basket (not Post-Ups), JJJ is scoring 1.039 PP on 180 poss.
JJJ is effective on the ball, albeit in a small sample size. Running 20 P&Rs as the ball-handler, Jaren’s scoring 0.9 PPP. Going one-on-one 28 times, Jackson’s scoring 0.929 PPP in ISO situations.
Hustling off the ball, Jaren’s scored 1.35 PPP on 40 cuts and 1.05 PPP on 40 putbacks this season. A floor-stretcher by nature, Jaren’s scoring 1.044 PPP in 182 catch-and-shoot possessions, shooting 33.5% on 194 total 3PA for the season.
Care to run the fringe seven-footer off screens? No problem, Jaren’s 1.089 PPP on 56 Off Screen possessions this season ranks in the 74th percentile among all players.
Want to just hand the ball off to the unicorn and let him go to work? Why not? Jackson’s 1.15 Hand Off PPP ranks in the 85th percentile among all players.
Grizzlies score 0.94 PPP with JJJ as the P&R Roll-Man, rating 45th among players with 50+ possessions. Where Jaren is most lethal is in Pick-and-Pops, stretching defenses from deep, such as double-drag or horns actions next to Steven Adams or the high-flying Brandon Clarke with one big rolling to the rim and the other popping for three.
Among the players with as many pick-and-pops this season as Jaren Jackson Jr. (30), JJJ’s 1.267 Pick-and-Pop PPP is the 2nd-best scoring rate in the league.
Swapping Jonas for Steven Adams was a downgrade in most individual areas, but that doesn’t take away from the positives Adams brings, or the fit he has with Jaren and Ja. Adams is a brute post defender, while Jackson is mobile, everywhere at once. Adams is a strong rim-roller, opening up spread P&R with Ja, while Jackson can step out for three.
Paraphrasing Zach Lowe, the Grizzlies’ defensive rebounding rate would rank #1 in the NBA with Steven Adams on the floor, while that rate would fall to last in the league when Adams is off the floor.
Jackson is great at many things; rebounding is not one of them. Adams has been a leader in boxouts since his days helping Westbrook grab and go in OKC. As a team, the Grizzlies rank 1st in offensive rebounding (31.7% ORB%), just remember to thank the 6’11” 265 lb hair-tyed and bearded New Zealander nicknamed “Aquaman” and “Big Kiwi” for doing the dirty work, seeing as Steven Adams leads the league with 172 offensive rebounds this season, twenty more than second place. RIP NBA Memes #MomMadePizzaRolls
Defensively, Memphis flies around. The Grizzlies ranks Top-16 in all four factors, forcing turnovers at the 5th-best rate in the league. (15.6%)
Xavier Tillman knows where to be and when to be there. Brandon Clarke and Ziaire Williams are two high-flying lob threats, with Clarke already becoming a defensive ace on the wing. Kyle Anderson brings his slow-mo style as a half-court connector.
Even in a down year, De’Anthony Melton deserves a mention, as he’s been a reliable scoring creator and plus-defender for Memphis when given the opportunity.John Konchar’s been all-around efficient, stepping in when asked upon, dropping 15 PTS and a career-high 17 REB against Minnesota last night. Tyus Jones is one of the premier decision-makers around the league, always setting up teammates to score.
Overall, the Grizzlies don’t turn the ball over, ranking 9th in the NBA in TOV% (13.5%). Since Tyus Jones (5.26 A/TO) has lead the league in A/TO for what feels like four years in a row, make sure to credit the most efficient second-unit-offense-runner in the NBA.
As a team, the Grizzlies are blowing the doors off the competition. On the season, Memphis has the T-6th-best point-differential (+4.6), 2nd-best offense (113.5 O-RTG), and 10th-best defense (108.9 D-RTG), via Cleaning the Glass. The highest point-differential in franchise history before this season was +4.1 in 2012-13.
Fun Fact #3: Memphis ranks 1st in fast break PPG, 1st in paint PPG, and 1st in 2nd chance PPG. Over the last 25 seasons, the only teams to finish a season first in all 3 categories are the 2012-13 Nuggets (finished 57-25) and the 2020-21 Grizzlies, via @StatsWilliams.
Over the last two weeks, the Memphis Grizzlies are tearing through the league with the NBA’s top-rated point differential (+13), 4th offense (118.6), and 5th defense (105.6)
Coming off wins in Golden State and Minnesota, Memphis 11-game win streak is the longest in the league. Memphis is absolutely rolling, posting a 20-4 record over their last 24 games, and the Run ‘N’ Gun Grizz are roaring for more.
All stats via Synergy Sports unless otherwise noted.
Data Sources: Synergy Sports, Basketball Reference, NBA Stats, PBP Stats, ESPN Stats & Info, Dunks and Threes, Cleaning the Glass
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