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Ja Morant and the Memphis Grizzlies are officially back in the postseason, securing the Western Conference’s eighth and final playoff spot after defeating the Dallas Mavericks 120-106 in Friday’s play-in elimination game. The win sets up a first-round matchup against the top-seeded Oklahoma City Thunder, with Game 1 scheduled for Sunday afternoon.
Memphis’ path to the playoffs wasn’t an easy one. After a narrow loss to the Golden State Warriors in their first play-in game, the Grizzlies responded in dominant fashion at home against Dallas to punch their ticket to the postseason.
Awaiting them are the Thunder, who claimed the No. 1 seed for the second consecutive year. Led by MVP frontrunner Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Oklahoma City swept the season series against Memphis 4-0 and will enter the matchup as clear favorites.
The Grizzlies, meanwhile, return to playoff basketball for the first time since 2023, after missing out last season. Despite a turbulent year—including the dismissal of head coach Taylor Jenkins on March 28—Memphis has battled through adversity and now finds itself with an opportunity to make noise in the postseason.
Morant, who helped lead the charge against Dallas, spoke about the team’s mindset heading into the high-stakes series:
“We’re back where we want to be… back being the underdogs,” Morant said. “We have all the confidence in ourselves and we’re ready to go Sunday.”
