Ja Morant Leaves Blazers' Loss to Memphis With a Hamstring Injury
Ja Morant exited Portland's first loss of the season with a left hamstring twinge. What it means for a 3-1 team heading to Utah on Saturday.
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Key takeaways
- Ja Morant left Portland's 124-103 loss to Memphis in the fourth quarter with a left hamstring injury, per ESPN and the Associated Press.
- Coach Micah Nori called it a twinge and hoped to know more Friday.
- Morant had 14 points and three assists in 23 minutes and is averaging 16.3 points and 6.3 assists for the 3-1 Blazers.
- Portland plays at Utah on Saturday at 3 PM ET; ESPN's feed carried no betting line for that game as of Friday morning.
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Ja Morant Exits Blazers' Loss to the Grizzlies With a Left Hamstring Injury
Portland guard Ja Morant left his first game against Memphis, his former team, in the fourth quarter Thursday because of a left hamstring injury, ESPN reported. The Blazers lost 124-103, their first defeat after a 3-0 start. Morant finished with 14 points and three assists in 23 minutes.
I'm hoping that it's nothing major, obviously.
Nori said Morant felt a twinge and that he hoped to have more answers Friday. In his first season with Portland, Morant is averaging 16.3 points and 6.3 assists in 26.7 minutes. Memphis is 5-0 after the win, which included a first career triple-double for Cam Boozer, ESPN reported.
Blazers at Jazz: Where the Market Stands
Portland (3-1) visits Utah (1-4) on Saturday, October 31 at 3 PM ET, according to ESPN's game preview. ESPN's odds feed carried no spread or total for that game as of October 30 at 9:10 AM ET, so there is no opening-versus-current comparison to show. Books typically wait on injury news like this before posting, but that is our observation and not something the feed states.
Our Read: What a Hamstring Twinge Means for Portland
This is our reading of limited facts. Nobody has said how long Morant will be out.
- The word twinge is doing a lot of work. Nori's language is cautious but not alarming. Hamstring injuries can vary widely, and one night of information is not enough to project a timeline.
- Portland's early record is not a stress test. The Blazers have played four games, and the sample says little about how they play without Morant.
- One blowout is not a trend. A 21-point defeat to a 5-0 Memphis side may say more about the opponent than about Portland's ceiling, though Morant's absence for the fourth quarter makes the margin hard to read.
- Utah is not a free pass. The Jazz are 1-4 and on a three-game skid, with Jusuf Nurkic and Jaren Jackson Jr. listed out and Lauri Markkanen day to day, so the matchup is softer than it looks only if Markkanen sits.
What to Watch Before Saturday's Tip
- Friday's update from Nori and any imaging results on the hamstring.
- Whether a spread for Blazers at Jazz is posted and how far it sits from a pick'em.
- Who takes Morant's minutes if he sits, and how Portland's ball handling holds up.
- Markkanen's status for Utah.
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