Despite his struggles off the court, Ja Morant is already turning into one of the premier point guards in the league. Blessed with unnatural athleticism and talent, Morant has already given some of the biggest names in the league a run for their money. However, back during the 2022 WCSF, he was made to eat some humble pie by Stephen Curry.
Advertisement
An X user recently dug up old footage from the 2022 NBA Playoffs. Specifically, the end of Game 1 between the Warriors and the Grizzlies in the Western Conference Semifinals, where Curry can be heard telling Morant:
“I locked that sh*t up, boy.”
FULL Audio Of Steph Curry Trash Talking Ja Morant In 2022👀:
“I locked that sh*t up, boy”
Then, after Morant missed the game winner, Curry said:
“Fun as hell, fellas… come on!” pic.twitter.com/Sr6Xtbiiay
— LegendZ (@legendz_nba) July 31, 2024
The 2022 Western Conference Semifinals between the Warriors and the Grizzlies was one hell of a series. The Warriors were salvaging their reputation as one of the greatest dynasties of the 2010s, but they hadn’t won a ring for 4 years.
Curry and the team were under heavy scrutiny, and the Grizzlies, who had just finished the season as the second-best team in the Western Conference with a 56-26 overall record, were their toughest test yet. Many believed that Morant and Co. would go on to advance to the Western Conference Finals.
Unfortunately for the city of Memphis, The Chef made sure to set the tone of the series from the very first game. Curry even had a few words to say to Ja and Jaren Jackson Jr. after the Grizzlies point guard ended up missing the game-winning layup in the end.
“Fun as hell, fellas… come on!”
The Warriors went on to win the first game of the series by a one-point margin, 117-116. And it was a heartbreaking loss for Memphis. Not because of the one-point loss, but because they lost despite the standout performance of their stars.
Morant finished the game with 34 points, 10 assists, 9 rebounds, and 3 steals for the game, and JJJ had 33 points, 10 rebounds, 1 assist, and 1 block.
If you look at the video closely, Morant can be seen smiling at Curry’s trash-talking by the end of the game. But clearly, it had not been forgotten. In Game 2, Morant scored 47 points in the Grizzlies’ 106-101 win.
Seeing the young guard turn it up a notch, Curry followed suit, winning two straight games after Game 2. The Baby-faced Assassin did eventually drop one final game in Game 5 before winding up the series 4-2 with a Game 6 win at home.