Ja Morant Set A Grizzlies Franchise Record With 52 Points Against The Spurs

Ja Morant submitted a “Dunk of the Year” nominee on Monday evening, throwing down an emphatic slam over San Antonio Spurs big man Jakob Poeltl to great acclaim. Later in the same quarter, Morant converted a buzzer-beater and had 29 points in the first half to lead Memphis to a solid lead over San Antonio. However, the third-year superstar was not done by a long shot, leading the way from wire to wire and finishing with a career-best 52 points in a 118-105 home victory.

Morant was highly efficient on the way to the 52-point outburst, shooting 22-of-30 from the floor and 4-of-4 from three-point range. Considering Morant entered the night shooting only 33 percent from long distance, his numbers should boost his season-long output, and Morant used that three-point weapon to open up the floor.

As always, Morant attacked the rim at will, getting downhill and putting pressure on the defense as a result. He was a game-best +23 on the evening and needed only 34 minutes of court time to rack up 52 points.

The crowd at FedEx Forum also showed its appreciation for Morant as he checked out to a standing ovation in the final minutes, as he somehow managed to top his 46-point effort from Saturday (which set the Grizzlies single-game scoring record for all of two days before breaking it again).

On a night when Morant had one of the best highlights of the season, he was even better in the floor game, and Memphis climbed within just one game of the Golden State Warriors for the No. 2 seed in the West. Not bad for a day’s work in the NBA.