Minutes after the Memphis Grizzlies tipped off against the Toronto Raptors on Nov. 2 at Scotiabank Arena, Ja Morant posted a photo on his Instagram story feed.
“Let’s go Grizz,” a sign in the photo read.
Morant, who wasn’t with the Grizzlies because he was suspended for one game for conduct detrimental to the team, could only watch, and his absence was noticeable.
The Grizzlies battled, but the offensive struggles led to a 117-104 loss to the Raptors.
Memphis (3-4) is now under .500 for the first time this season. A meeting with the Detroit Pistons (4-2) is next on Nov. 3 at FedExForum.
Here’s what stood out in the loss.
Running out of point guards
Before Morant’s suspension, the Grizzlies were already without Ty Jerome (calf) and Scotty Pippen Jr. (toe) due to injuries. Memphis played against the Raptors without any of the primary ball handlers who were in the projected rotation before the season.
Cam Spencer, Vince Williams Jr. and Javon Small got minutes on the ball. None of them are known as players who can consistently break down a defense, so getting dribble penetration for easy looks was difficult.
Memphis ended the night shooting 11-for-35 on 3-pointers.
“In the first half, we had a lot of problems getting into the paint against the aggressive defense of the Raptors,” Grizzlies coach Tuomas Iisalo said. “This is something we knew was coming. We don’t have too many primary ball handlers on the court at this time.”
Jaren Jackson Jr.‘s season high
Jaren Jackson Jr. didn’t reach 20 points in any of the Grizzlies’ first six games. That didn’t happen at any point last season.
With Morant out of the lineup, Jackson scored a team-high 20 points and had nine rebounds.
Foul trouble again plagued Jackson, who picked up his fifth in the third quarter, but he showed signs of the strong scorer from last season. He shot 8-for-15 from the field.
O-Max minutes
Iisalo said the Grizzlies had a “very high effort level” against the Raptors. Olivier-Maxence Prosper was a major reason why.
Prosper didn’t start the game in the rotation, but his energy and effort carried over to his teammates when he got more of an opportunity in the second half. He finished with six points, two rebounds and a steal in 12 minutes.
His athleticism jumps out when he takes the floor. Prosper may have earned himself more minutes with the energy he gave Memphis in the loss.
Damichael Cole is the Memphis Grizzlies beat writer for The Commercial Appeal. Contact Damichael at damichael.cole@commercialappeal.com. Follow Damichael on X, formerly known as Twitter, @DamichaelC.