The Memphis Grizzlies are headed to the NBA playoffs thanks to their 120-106 victory over the Dallas Mavericks in the play-in tournament on Friday night. Led by a 22-point, nine-assist performance by Ja Morant and a 24-point, seven-rebound night from Jaren Jackson Jr., the Grizz are now set for a first-round matchup against the one-seed Oklahoma City Thunder.
Memphis was on the brink of elimination after its loss to the Golden State Warriors on Thursday and, coupled with Morant's ankle sprain that left him as a game-time decision, their outlook was pretty bleak. But the star guard explained how a text from Jackson Jr. got he and his teammates on the right track.
"Setting the tone, I felt like us three was pretty much locked [in] the whole time," Morant said, referring to himself, Jackson Jr., and Desmond Bane. "As soon as the Warriors game was over we pretty much locked in on what we had to do to get to this point. Trip [Jackson Jr.] sent us a little paragraph earlier. Me and Des responded and it pretty much was enough said. We already knew what we was going out there to do."
Earlier today, Jaren Jackson Jr. sent a longer message in a group chat to Ja Morant and Desmond Bane before they went to battle with the season on the line:
— Matt Infield (@Matt_Infield) April 19, 2025
"It was pretty much enough said, we already knew what we was going out there to do."
"I needed to hear it." pic.twitter.com/bKMH2QwcJP
Bane, who poured in 22 points of his own on Friday while dishing out nine assists, also spoke about the text following the contest.
"We've had a nice little chat running all year long and been able to pinball different things off of each other," he said. "I needed to hear it and I'm sure Ja needed to hear it too coming into the game tonight. And our response was just, 'Let's march. Let's do it. Let's put our best foot forward, and let's go do it.'"
Game 1 of the Grizzlies' first-round contest vs. the Thunder will tip-off on Sunday at 1:00 p.m. EST from Oklahoma City's Paycom Center.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Ja Morant Reveals How Jaren Jackson Jr. Motivated Grizzlies for Play-In Win vs. Mavericks.
