Two-time All-Star Ja Morant promised a sprained right ankle wouldn’t keep him out of Memphis’ play-in game against Dallas with the Western Conference’s last postseason berth up for grabs Friday night.
Morant did more than just play. He delivered a thrilling start that included a high-flying, one-handed slam of a dunk that had teammate Desmond Bane yelling “Showtime!” at him in celebration as Morant elevated so much his eyes were level with the rim.
The guard scored 16 of his 22 points in the first half, and Memphis never trailed in a 120-106 victory to take the No 8 seed and a spot Sunday in Game 1 at top-seeded Oklahoma City.
“I couldn’t feel it … so I was out there,” Morant said with a laugh.
Morant had been listed as questionable earlier Friday as the training staff worked to get him ready to play. His status was officially announced about 30 minutes before the tip.
The guard was injured in the third quarter Tuesday night at Golden State with the No 7 seed on the line. Morant rolled the ankle coming down on Buddy Hield’s foot. Morant limped off the court and returned in the fourth quarter when he was held to four points as the Grizzlies lost 121-116.
Morant took the court late in warm-ups to test his ankle. His young daughter joined him on the court. ESPN reported during the game that Morant had a second shot for his ankle a couple hours before tipoff.
The guard occasionally limped to the free throw line, but that was about the only sign Morant was playing hurt. He finished with nine rebounds, seven assists and three steals before interim coach Tuomas Iisalo pulled his starters in the final couple minutes to some rest. Morant wound up playing 33 minutes helping the Grizzlies finish off a wire-to-wire win.
Injuries limited Morant to 50 games during this regular season. He has played 19 playoff games in Memphis’ three postseason berths with the No 2 pick overall in the 2019 draft.
Miami Heat 123-114 Atlanta Hawks
Tyler Herro scored 30 points while sinking two three-pointers in overtime and the Miami Heat regrouped after losing an early lead to beat the Atlanta Hawks 123-114 on Friday night and make NBA play-in tournament history.
Miami will play at Cleveland on Sunday night in the opening game of the first round of the Eastern Conference playoffs.
Davion Mitchell scored only seven points in regulation before added three three-pointers in overtime for Miami.
The Heat became the first No 10 seed in either conference to make the playoffs since the current play-in format was launched in the 2020-21 season. Miami also became the first play-in team to advance with two road wins.
Trae Young’s lay-in with 1.3 seconds remaining in regulation tied the game at 106, forcing the overtime. Young scored 29 points with 11 assists. Onyeka Okongwu had 28 points with 12 rebounds.
Miami started strong, scoring the game’s first 10 points and leading by 17 points at 45-28 in the second period.
The Hawks tied the game for the first tie at 88 on a layup by Terance Mann. Young’s three-pointer gave Atlanta its first lead at 91-88 with 7:36 remaining.
Atlanta led 93-92 before Okongwu hit a three-pointer. Following a steal by Dyson Daniels, Okongwu’s jam extended the lead to 98-92.
Heat forward Nikola Jović, who had been out since 23 February with a broken right hand, was available but did not play. Guard Pelle Larsen (ankle) also was available for the first time since 7 April.
After setting season lows with four three-pointers made and 21 attempted against Orlando in the first play-in game, coach Quin Snyder said his players “have got to be more willing to take contested threes.”
The Hawks responded by attempting 21 threes in just the first half against Miami, while making five. For the game, Atlanta made 16 of 47 threes.