It was a tumultuous 2023-24 season for Morant, who was suspended for the first 25 games for conduct detrimental to the league. He then returned for nine games before suffering a torn labrum in his shoulder, which required season-ending surgery.
He made his return on opening night vs. the Jazz this past Wednesday, and picked up right where he left off, dropping 22 points on a very efficient 7-of-12 shooting, including 8-of-9 from the free-throw line.
Best Ja Morant Prop Bet on DraftKings Sportsbook
Houston got absolutely torched by LaMelo Ball on Wednesday to the tune of 34 points on 10-of-20 shooting. Despite being known as a stingy defender in his heyday, Fred VanVleet could not contain Ball in what turned out to be a huge come-from-behind win for the Hornets.
Morant ranked second on the Grizzlies in usage against Utah, posting a 28% usage rate. Memphis also played to a healthy 135.6 offensive rating with its star point guard on the court. He did all of his damage in only 28 minutes as well, as Taylor Jenkins played his bench quite a bit against an inferior Jazz team. I expect Morant and the rest of the starters to play a bit more in this road tilt with the Rockets.
With Jaren Jackson Jr. likely to miss another game due to his hamstring injury, expect Morant to continue to post a robust usage rate in this one. The Grizzlies are diminutive two-point underdogs in a game with a 221 total, so this should be a close, high scoring affair.
Morant’s points prop is set at 22.5 right now with -105 juice on the over. Considering he hit 22 points in just 28 minutes on opening night, and with the way Houston let LaMelo Ball get whatever he wanted, I like the two-time all-star to clear this number on Friday.
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