The Memphis Grizzlies stunned the basketball world last week by firing longtime coach Taylor Jenkins with just nine games to play.
While it will go down as one of the most shocking firings in NBA history due to the unprecedented timing for a playoff-bound team, the Grizzlies appeared headed for a split one way or another. According to a new ESPN report, if Jenkins wasn’t fired, Memphis might have been preparing to part ways with star guard Ja Morant.
As ESPN’s Tim MacMahon detailed Monday, Morant wasn’t a fan of the new offense that Jenkins and the Grizzlies’ new-look coaching staff installed this season. Morant, in his sixth NBA season, is averaging 22.4 points per game while shooting 44.8% from the field—his lowest marks since his second year in the league.
The fact that Morant was unhappy in Memphis was no secret around the NBA.
“As the Grizzlies spiraled, losing six of eight after the All-Star break, pressure mounted to the point where one Western Conference general manager believed, until the firings, that the team would be forced to shop Morant this summer,” the ESPN report reads.
Morant still has three years on his contract and will make $39.4 million next season. At 25 years old, Morant is still a bright, young star entering his prime. But is his talent enough to win a title in Memphis? By firing Jenkins, it appears the Grizzlies are determined to make sure he sticks around long enough to find out.
