MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Game 3 undoubtedly changed with one fastbreak.
With Memphis up 27 points on OKC with about three minutes left in Thursday’s first half, Grizzlies star Ja Morant sprinted through a two-on-one transition opportunity with Scotty Pippen Jr. as his running mate and Thunder guard Lu Dort as his lone defender.
Pippen had possession and a potential layup with Dort on his tail. He instead opted to hit a trailing Morant with a behind-the-back pass. Dort, attempting to to follow the ball and play between them, began turning to face Morant. With his feet slipping underneath him and Morant launching simultaneously, Dort’s shoulder knocked Morant out of the air.
Morant, listed with a hip injury, never returned to the game as OKC rallied for a 114-108 win and 3-0 series lead in the first round of the NBA Playoffs. After an official review, it was ruled a common foul.
“(The officials) reviewed it, so I’m trusting their judgment on that,” Thunder coach Mark Daigneault said. “But I never want to see anybody get hurt. I hope he’s OK. You want everybody to be at full strength. He’s a great competitor. He was playing great. Obviously, that had something to do with the game as well. Would be wrong of me not to acknowledge that.
“But I think it was a clean play. I think everybody was just playing hard. It’s unfortunate.”
Lu Dort apologized to Ja Morant after foul injured Grizzlies star in Thunder playoff game
Said Dort: “Tough one. I hope he's OK. I was running back, making the hustle play for my team. I was running quick, stopped on the dime. I didn't know he was behind me and I was slipping. Tried to make a play on the ball, but we just ran into each other, he fell down. Obviously they need him. I didn’t mean to hit him like that.”
Morant limped to the free-throw line following the play to shoot a pair of foul shots with 3:14 remaining in the first half, exiting the game with the help of Grizzlies staffers immediately after. He was ruled out for the remainder of the game soon after. He rejoined the team on the bench in the fourth quarter with the use of crutches.
Dort’s intensity and inclination for being nose-deep in plays have led to his share of collisions. Several of those plays have led to Dort’s reputation among opposing fanbases as a “dirty” player, and Thursday’s incident was slotted into that same file.
Asked what his reaction might be to being perceived that way, Dort brushed it off, further expressing sympathy for Morant.
“They can say whatever,” Dort said of those who label him dirty. “It was big that (Morant) still got up and shot the free throws. When he was at the line, I dapped him up and I apologized. It’s never good when a good player like that goes down.
“At least he knows I didn’t mean to take him down like that.”
Joel Lorenzicovers the Thunder and NBA for The Oklahoman. Have a story idea for Joel? He can be reached at jlorenzi@oklahoman.com or on X/Twitter at@joelxlorenzi. Support Joel's work and that of other Oklahoman journalists by purchasing adigital subscription today at subscribe.oklahoman.com.
