The Memphis Grizzlies spent the offseason making a franchise-altering move by trading Ja Morant to the Portland Trail Blazers, and that decision left plenty of questions hanging over the organization. Who would guide the next chapter?
How fast could Memphis find its footing without the face of the team? Thursday night offered another loud answer.
Rookie Cameron Boozer delivered the first triple-double of his NBA career, piling up 18 points, 12 rebounds and 12 assists as the Grizzlies rolled past Portland 124-103. Memphis moved to 5-0, while the Trail Blazers saw their perfect start end.
Boozer didn’t need a massive scoring night to take over the game. His value came from the full package: moving the ball, cleaning the glass and keeping Memphis’ offense humming. The 12 assists stood out most, especially for a young frontcourt player who never seemed rushed into bad shots or forced possessions.
That kind of balance has become the story of Memphis’ early-season surge. The Grizzlies got double-figure scoring from eight players, a reminder that this group is not leaning on one star to do all the heavy lifting. Isaiah Stewart came off the bench for 18 points, Cedric Coward added 17, and Zach Edey and Ty Jerome also chipped in to keep the pressure on Portland.
The game tightened early, but Memphis grabbed control after halftime. The Grizzlies opened up a 10-0 run in the third quarter to stretch a slim lead into double digits, and Edey later knocked down a three-pointer to keep the momentum rolling. Portland made a brief push, but Memphis kept finding answers.
By the end, the Grizzlies had outscored the Trail Blazers 66-45 in the second half, including a 33-20 edge in the fourth quarter.
Deni Avdija led Portland with 24 points, nine rebounds and seven assists. Morant finished with 14 points before leaving in the fourth quarter with a hamstring injury.
For Memphis, the early results are starting to say something real about where this team might be headed. The record is perfect, but the bigger point may be Boozer himself. The former Duke standout arrived with plenty of expectations, and his first NBA triple-double showed how many different ways he can shape a game.
Memphis isn’t just asking him to score. The Grizzlies are trusting him to facilitate, rebound and make the kinds of decisions that raise the level of everyone around him.
The next chance to keep that momentum going comes Saturday in Sacramento. For a 5-0 team that just lost its former star, the most encouraging development might be the one already emerging in plain sight.
In Other News...
Blazers Suddenly Face A Ja Morant Problem They Couldnt Afford
Ja Morants first game against Memphis since the trade ended with an unwelcome twist for Portland. The matchup already carried extra weight because the Blazers had sent Jerami Grant and Kris Murray to the Grizzlies in the deal that brought Morant to town, and the night was supposed to be another step in settling the new roster into place.
Instead, Morant left in the fourth quarter with a left hamstring injury and was later diagnosed with a Grade 2 strain. The early timetable calls for at least four weeks on the sideline, which leaves Portland trying to absorb the reality of a major addition going missing almost immediately, right as the team was hoping to build momentum around him. [Read more 🡒]
Blazers Bench Suddenly Has A Problem They Can't Ignore
Vit Krejci was supposed to give the Trail Blazers a little extra spacing off the bench, the kind of low-cost shooting help that can make a second unit easier to play through. Instead, his early season production has been hard to ignore. He is averaging just 1.8 points per game and has been buried at 14.3 percent from three-point range, a sharp drop from the perimeter touch he showed in previous seasons with the Hawks.
For Portland, the issue goes beyond one cold stretch. The Blazers have been trying to piece together enough reliable shooting around a roster that already has to account for Damian Lillards current limitations after injury, and Krejci was one of the names expected to help keep the floor open. When that shot is not falling, the bench loses a layer of usefulness, and the coaching staff is left searching for a cleaner answer on the wing. [Read more 🡒]
Blazers Fans Have Another Robert Williams Concern To Watch
Robert Williams was already sitting out because of a sore knee, and for a Portland team that has been trying to manage every bit of frontcourt health carefully, the latest injury watch around the league only adds to the unease. Around the NBA, the list of players leaving games early or missing time keeps growing, which is the sort of backdrop that makes every update on Williams feel a little more important than the last.
The most immediate reminder came in Utah, where rookie guard Darryn Peterson put up 18 points in 26 minutes during the Jazzs loss to San Antonio but did not see the floor in the final seven minutes or overtime. Will Hardy said the choice came down to execution issues and a preference for Brice Sensabaughs scoring late, a small but telling example of how quickly late-game plans can shift when health, rhythm and trust all start pulling in different directions. [Read more 🡒]