Ja Morant’s recent comments about the Memphis Grizzlies’ playoff series against the Oklahoma City Thunder carry a heavy dose of “what might have been,” especially given his in-series injury that altered the Grizzlies’ fate.
A quote from Morant, who claimed the Grizzlies would have been tied 2-2 with the Thunder in their first-round playoff series if he hadn’t gotten hurt was released. “I had them figured out,” Morant said, reflecting on the series that ended two days earlier, on April 26, with the Thunder completing a 4-0 sweep, capped by a 118-104 Game 4 victory at FedExForum in Memphis.
Morant was on the court for the first three games of the series, a stark contrast to earlier assumptions that he missed the entire postseason due to his January 2025 shoulder surgery. That surgery—a labrum repair on his right shoulder—sidelined him for most of the regular season after just nine games, but he made a remarkable recovery, returning for the playoffs after being cleared for full contact on April 10, per ESPN’s Tim MacMahon. Morant played in Games 1 through 3, averaging 22.7 points, 7.3 assists, and 4.7 rebounds while showing flashes of his explosive self. In Game 1, despite a 131-80 blowout loss—the fifth-largest margin in NBA playoff history—Morant had 19 points and 6 assists, though he shot just 7-for-19 against OKC’s swarming defense. He bounced back in Game 2, dropping 28 points, including a crucial layup with 1:12 left to secure a 104-101 upset win in OKC, stealing home-court advantage. Game 3 on April 24 at FedExForum saw the Grizzlies build a 29-point lead in the first half, with Morant contributing 21 points and 9 assists before disaster struck. Late in the third quarter, he suffered a left hip contusion after a hard fall and collision with Lu Dort. Morant exited the game and didn’t return, and the Thunder mounted a historic 114-108 comeback—the second-largest in NBA playoff history since 1996-97—outscoring Memphis 62-33 in the second half.
Without Morant in the fourth quarter of Game 3 and all of Game 4, the Grizzlies couldn’t keep up. Desmond Bane (23.8 points per game in the series) and Jaren Jackson Jr. (19.5 points, 2.3 blocks) fought valiantly, but OKC’s depth proved too much. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander averaged 31.5 points, Chet Holmgren added 12.8 rebounds and 3.3 blocks per game, and Jalen Williams chipped in 19.8 points, including 26 in Game 3 to spark the comeback. The Thunder’s bench outscored Memphis’ 38-22 on average, and their defense, which ranked 4th in the league with a 108.2 rating in 2024-25, clamped down without Morant to stretch them. In Game 4, OKC led wire-to-wire, with Gilgeous-Alexander’s 35 points and 11 assists sealing the sweep as the Thunder became the first team to advance to the Western Conference semifinals, where they’ll face the winner of the Clippers-Nuggets series.
Morant’s claim that the series would be tied 2-2 if he hadn’t gotten hurt in Game 3 holds weight when you consider his impact. Before his hip injury, the Grizzlies were competitive, splitting the first two games on the road and leading big in Game 3. Morant’s career numbers against OKC—27.3 points, 8.5 assists, and 5.8 rebounds over 12 games, with Memphis winning 8 of those—show his ability to tilt the matchup. In the regular season, he dropped 34 points and 9 assists in a 126-122 win over the Thunder on December 29, 2024, outdueling Gilgeous-Alexander. His speed and paint dominance (he led the NBA in points in the paint in 2022-23 at 16.8 per game) forced OKC to adjust, often pulling defenders away from Bane and Jackson. With Morant on the floor, the Grizzlies’ offense averaged 112.3 points per 100 possessions in the series; without him in Game 4 and the second half of Game 3, that number dropped to 98.7, per NBA Advanced Stats. Fans on X largely agreed with Morant’s take, with one user writing, “Ja was cooking OKC—Game 3 was theirs until he went down,” though others noted the Thunder’s dominance, saying, “OKC’s depth is insane, Ja or not, they were winning this.”
The Grizzlies’ season ends at 41-41, a disappointing follow-up to their 51-31 campaign in 2022-23, marred by Morant’s earlier 25-game suspension, the midseason firing of coach Taylor Jenkins, and injuries to key players like Marcus Smart (ankle) and Vince Williams Jr. (shoulder). Morant, still just 25 and under contract through 2029-30 on a $197 million deal, is expected to make a full recovery from his hip contusion by the start of the 2025-26 season, with no structural damage reported. But his comments underscore the frustration of a season derailed by injuries and off-court issues, leaving Grizzlies fans wondering how far a healthy Morant could have taken them against a Thunder team that’s now 13-0 against Memphis since 2023, including this series. As OKC moves on, Memphis heads into the offseason with Morant’s words as a rallying cry—and a reminder of what they’re capable of when their star is on the court.
