Grizzlies guard Ja Morant will miss the remainder of the season due to labrum surgery, only 11 games after retaking the court from his lengthy punishment to open the campaign for his various indiscretions, in what will amount to a nothing season for the franchise’s 24-year-old cornerstone.
The difference with and without Morant was palpable. In games without Morant this season, the Grizzlies have posted a mere 6-20 record; with him, they won six of their 10 outings, with Ja being the game-deciding factor. The already flimsy argument that the Grizzlies might be better without Morant based on their anomalous record without him in the 2022/23 season was running on fumes. Now, though, yet another extended absence is upcoming.
The reasons why the 2023-24 and 2022-23 Ja-less Grizzlies are so different are myriad and not to be explored here. Injuries, certainly, are a big part of it. Nevertheless, there exists a salary cap vehicle precisely for such eventualities. Per the terms of the NBA’s Collective Bargaining Agreement, teams with players who suffer season-ending injuries can apply for a Disabled Player Exception, a tool to help them plug the gap. And the usefulness of those is directly correlated to how much salary the hurt player is getting paid.
