
Grizzlies star Ja Morant's father was ejected in Saturday's home loss to the Thunder for being "overtly disrespectful" to the officiating crew.
With Desmond Bane out again Wednesday and the Raptors presenting a good matchup, Morant absolutely cooked Toronto. The 25-year-old point guard had 26 points on 14 shots and made three 3-pointers in just 25 minutes of play. The Grizzlies cruised to a 138-107 victory. He's arguably had his two best games of the year in back-to-back days after dropping 25 points and 11 assists against the Spurs Tuesday.
Morant missed the team's last two games with some soreness in his right shoulder, but he was able to make his presence felt in his first game back. He only needed 29 minutes to provide excellent value across the board, which included him tying his season-high for 3-pointers. Morant's lack of availability this season has been frustrating, but his production when he's been on the court hasn't been to his standards this year either. This was one of his best games of the season, though they only have two more games this week. He'll look to keep it going in Toronto on Wednesday.
Morant will be back in the lineup after missing the tam's last two games. With Desmond Bane sidelined, Morant will likely swap spots with him in the starting unit, which means that Scotty Pippen Jr. won't get the chance to slide into the starting lineup.
Inactive since December 21 with a right index finger injury, Smart will remain out for Monday's game. While Memphis will be without Desmond Bane (foot), Ja Morant has been cleared to play. Smart's continued absence does not impact fantasy basketball.