Ja Morant’s bizarre comments about poor officiating
after defeating the New York Knicks in overtime on Wednesday, Morant made a comment that doesn’t add up.
Even with RJ Barrett having an off night, the Knicks were able to storm back from being down 19 in the third quarter to force overtime, thanks to a three-pointer by none other than Cam Reddish. New York’s efforts ended up falling short in overtime though, as the team fell to Memphis, 115-112.
The Knicks looked awful in the first half but turned things around in the second half as they started to chip away at the Grizzlies’ lead. There’s a lot that New York could’ve done better, but one of the storylines from the game pertains to the officiating. There were a series of questionable calls made in overtime especially, including a Ja Morant block that was both a foul and a goaltend.
However, postgame, Ja was more concerned with the charge that Jalen Brunson took on him with 0.5 seconds left to play in the fourth quarter.
Ja Morant said the play where he was called for a charge before the end of regulation should’ve been called a block.
“(Jalen Brunson) even told me, that’s crazy. He told me I jumped around him. We wasn’t even supposed to play that extra five minutes.”
— Damichael Cole (@DamichaelC) October 20, 2022
Ja Morant was called for a charge on this play 👀
(🎥: @espn) pic.twitter.com/EkNAoMP2tT
— Sports Illustrated (@SInow) October 20, 2022
Props to Ja for making that even though it didn’t matter because yes, it was a charge. Jalen set his feet just in time. But here’s the thing — there seems to be a chance that Brunson didn’t tell Morant that it should’ve been called a block.
Ja Morant said the play where he was called for a charge before the end of regulation should’ve been called a block.
“(Jalen Brunson) even told me, that’s crazy. He told me I jumped around him. We wasn’t even supposed to play that extra five minutes.”
— Damichael Cole (@DamichaelC) October 20, 2022
So, did Brunson even say anything about the charge call to Morant? Even if Brunson thought the call should’ve been a block, it’s hard to believe that he would’ve shared two different stories with Ja and the media after the game.
There’s another reason why Morant’s comments are interesting, and it involves Brunson. In overtime, Brunson went up for a layup in transition, and Morant blocked it.
Ja Morant turns on the jets for the chase-down block! #KiaTipOff22
Knicks – Grizzlies OT Action Live Now on ESPN pic.twitter.com/SqxPzOgtzD
— NBA (@NBA) October 20, 2022
However, it was far from being a clean block. Here’s a closer look.
Fouled with a goaltend but no, let’s hype up Ja Morant instead pic.twitter.com/ZMTpR4FckU
— KnicksMuse (@KnicksMuse) October 20, 2022
The “block” resulted in two points for the Grizzlies when it should’ve been two points for the Knicks. The momentum would’ve been in the hands of New York, but instead, it was granted to Memphis.
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None of this is to say that the Knicks lost the game because of the referees, but it’s fair to say that the officiating was poor. Because of who Morant is, he gets calls that New York doesn’t. However, the refs can’t miss a call like the one above, especially in overtime.
And it’s fine that Ja thinks that the charge call at the end of regulation was a block. It doesn’t matter now anyways, but that’s not something that he should’ve been complaining about. And if Brunson truly didn’t say anything to Morant about it supposedly not being a foul, that makes the situation even more bizarre.
As expected, opening the season in Memphis was a tough first test for New York, but it’s a game that the Knicks will be able to learn from as they carry on with the rest of the year.
