A season filled with key injuries, including those to star guard Ja Morant and second-year big man Zach Edey, is taking a toll on the Memphis Grizzlies.
The Grizzlies, riding a four-game losing streak, visit the New Orleans Pelicans on Friday. Memphis has dropped seven of its past nine games, including a 112-97 home loss Wednesday to the fast-rising Charlotte Hornets.
Morant, a two-time NBA All-Star, has missed the past three games with a left elbow sprain and projects to be sidelined for at least two more weeks. He sat out six games earlier in the month because of a right calf contusion. Morant has missed 25 of the team’s 45 games this season.
Edey, whose second season had a promising beginning, has been out with ankle issues since Dec. 7. Edey missed the start of the season after undergoing a procedure to stabilize his left ankle, then he returned in mid-November and averaged 13.6 points and 11.1 in 11 games before being sidelined again. He was diagnosed with a stress reaction in the same ankle. When he was re-evaluated on Jan. 14, the Grizzlies said Edey would miss the next six weeks.
The absences of Morant and Edey played a part in the 15-point loss to the Hornets on Wednesday. Without an inside presence like the 7-foot-3 Edey, the Grizzlies were beaten on the boards, 43-39. Six-10 Jaren Jackson Jr. and 6-11 Jock Landale combined for only seven rebounds in 59 minutes.
“Our body language was bad,” Grizzlies point guard Cam Spencer said. “We weren’t connected on either end of the floor. I thought they beat us to every 50-50 ball, killed us on the glass. Just outcompeted us.”
Without Morant, the Grizzlies are without an adept scorer in the lane. Memphis had only 38 points in the paint while Charlotte finished with 52.
“What I was disappointed in at halftime was we were already eight or nine shot attempts less than the Hornets,” Grizzlies coach Tuomas Iisalo said. “That’s always going to be difficult. We know we are at a disadvantage overall with the injuries and absences, and we’ve seen that in the good games when we are competitive. The possession game is extremely important for us.”
The Grizzlies shot 58.3% in the first half, but still trailed 62-55 at the break. Memphis fell behind by 16 in the first quarter before rallying to take a 43-42 lead, but never regained momentum and spent most of the second half behind by double digits.
As for the Pelicans, their their two-game winning streak was snapped Tuesday by reigning NBA champion Oklahoma City. The Thunder prevailed, 104-95, despite being held to 40.2% shooting by the visiting Pelicans, who forced the Thunder into 16 turnovers.
“I loved the effort,” Pelicans interim coach James Borrego said. “Probably one of our better defensive efforts against that group.”
New Orleans shot 34.3% against Oklahoma City while dropping its 13th consecutive game to the Thunder. Starting guards Trey Murphy III and Herb Jones combined to go 2-for-20 from long range.
“Obviously, (the defense) gave us a chance tonight,” Borrego said. “We turned them over and won the possession game. Gave ourselves a shot tonight. Just needed a few more buckets.”
