Ja Morant is expected to miss at least the next two weeks with right knee soreness, Memphis coach Taylor Jenkins said Thursday night before the Grizzlies hosted Indiana.
Morant, the Grizzlies’ leading scorer at 27.6 points per game, has missed the last two games after tweaking the knee against Atlanta last Friday. Jenkins said the team will evaluate the All-Star guard in two weeks.
“That’s the plan right now,” Jenkins said. “We expect him to make a full recovery before the playoffs.”
Even without Morant, the Grizzlies built a big lead early before coasting to a 133-103 victory over the Pacers to clinch a spot in the playoffs.
Jenkins noted that what was recently a tight rotation has expanded to include other players.
“Unfortunately, with a couple of guys nicked up, it creates some of these opportunities,” the Memphis coach said. “But guys have stayed the course and stayed ready.”
Besides Morant, the Grizzles were also without Dillon Brooks, who rested his left ankle, and Brandon Clarke (left hip soreness) on Thursday.
Game Recap: Grizzlies 133, Pacers 103
Morant missed 12 games earlier this season with a left knee sprain and sat out the game before Atlanta with back soreness.
Jenkins indicated that further scans and tests on Morant showed “nothing structurally. Nothing major issues like that. Just soreness that we want to be really attentive to.”
He added that the team’s medical staff said “this is the best course of action. Let’s just take two weeks and get him ready for the playoffs.”
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