Grizzlies guard Ja Morant fined $25,000 as he might face another

Grizzlies G Ja Morant earns fine after throwing game ball into stands at conclusion of 3rd quarter of Friday loss to Knicks.

Memphis Grizzlies guard Ja Morant has been fined $25,000 for throwing the game ball into the spectator stands, it was announced today by Joe Dumars, Executive Vice President, Head of Basketball Operations.

The incident occurred at the conclusion of the third quarter of Memphis’s 114-113 loss to the New York Knicks at FedExForum on Feb. 28

Morant had 25 points and seven assists in Friday’s one-point loss, which the Knicks only pulled off after OG Anunoby drilled a 3-pointer with less than six seconds left. Morant has averaged 20.9 points and 7.4 assists this season, which came after he missed most of the last season while dealing with a suspension and then a season-ending shoulder injury he sustained in practice. Morant missed Saturday’s loss to the San Antonio Spurs with a shoulder injury.

The Grizzlies sit at 38-22 heading into Monday’s game against the Atlanta Hawks. Morant is listed as questionable for that matchup. While they’ve lost six of their last nine games, the Grizzlies still hold the No. 4 spot in the Western Conference standings — which has them well on pace to make the playoffs after last season’s 27-55 campaign.

Miami missed seven of their eight attempts from behind the arc, but they couldn’t miss from just about everywhere else, shooting 13-of-22 from the field. 22-year-old big man Kel’el Ware was unstoppable in the first quarter, putting up eight points while reeling in three board and blocking three shots.

– New York was able to cut the deficit back down to two points, but then their offense went ice cold and the Heat’s hot shooting continued. Miami went on their longest scoring run of the season (16-0) before Towns knocked down a free throw with just over a minute left in the frame.

– Just like that, New York found themselves trailing by double digits heading into the break. They simply had no answer for the big bodied duo of Ware and Bam Adebayo, who were dominating things down-low for a combined 24 first half points and limiting Towns on the other end.

– Miami has had problems keeping second-half leads all season to this point, and that was the case again in this one. The Heat knocked down 15 consecutive shots from the end of the second to early in the third, but then they went on a stretch where they missed five in a row — which opened the window for the Knicks.