The Memphis Grizzlies beat the Dallas Mavericks on Saturday… Well, the game between two massively underperforming teams may not have garnered huge interest across the league in terms of its impact on the season. But there was a noteworthy subplot in it.
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Klay Thompson and Ja Morant got into it, and notably, not for the first time. The two haven’t liked each other for a long time. After Ja, who was in street clothes as he missed another game with a strained calf, trash-talked Klay following the final buzzer, the Mavs star fired back in the postgame locker room.
Thompson had a lot to say about Morant, and it was about as surgical a cutdown as you’ll ever see from one player to another. “It’s funny to run your mouth when you’re on the bench. It’s kind of the story of his career so far, just leaving us wanting more,” he said.
“We all want to see him out there and do his best, but he’s just been letting a lot of other stuff get in the way of that. We need that in the NBA. We need our best players to be out there, and when you’re a star, it comes with a great responsibility. I hate to see that go to waste,” the 4-time NBA champion added.
Klay sounded like an exasperated dad after finding out his smart but troubled kid got detention again. He’s not angry, he’s just disappointed. Somehow, that made the Grizzlies star look even worse.
Asking an NBA fan which side they take in the Klay vs. Ja debate is a real litmus test for who knows ball and who doesn’t. Rachel Nichols has proven her bona fides over the years when it comes to the NBA, and she did so again while commenting on this beef in the latest episode of Open Floor.
“I thought the best description I’ve heard about this in the last 24 hours was [senior NBA writer at The Ringer] Howard Beck, our friend, who said, look, Klay Thompson’s a made man, and you’re not. And as someone who recently rewatched Goodfellas for the 3,600th time, I can tell you it is the perfect way to say it,” said Nichols.
“You can’t screw with a made man,” she continued. “And Klay Thompson has won four rings, and Ja Morant has won one playoff series.”
That’s really all that needs to be said. Klay, who began his career with the Golden State Warriors in 2011, is one of the greatest shooters of all time. And he was an integral part of four title-winning teams.
Morant wasn’t even playing in Saturday’s game. That has been a theme throughout his six-year-old career as he’s battled injuries while consistently being suspended for his behavior.
Ja is one of the most athletic guards in the league, someone who’s capable of doing jaw-dropping things on the court. However, there’s no way to brand his NBA career as anything but a disappointment.
Morant has already gotten into it with his new coach this year and been suspended for conduct detrimental to the team. So much so that it seems fair to wonder if the Grizzlies would be better off by trading him.
