Ja Morant has been electrifying NBA fans all year with his unique blend of scoring, play-making, athleticism and efficiency. Morant is leading a young Grizzlies team which is currently holding on to a playoff spot in the tough Western Conference. The race for the eight seed is heating up and Ja continuing his historically good rookie season is the team’s best chance to hold on to their playoff position. It is rare to see a rookie come into the league and immediately bring leadership and identity to his team, but that is what Ja Morant has done this year in Memphis. He has shown himself to be the face of one of the most exciting young cores in the NBA and it’s not surprising that there is a lot of optimism about the Grizzlies’ future.

The 2019 No. 2 draft pick is averaging 17.5 points, 3.4 rebounds and 6.8 assists per game. If he keeps those numbers up, it would put him in rare company. Ja would be just the sixth rookie to post that stat line, adding his name to a list that includes Magic Johnson, Oscar Robertson and Allen Iverson. Of that group, only Magic had a higher field goal percentage. Ja attacks the basket with a ferocity similar to his favorite player Russell Westbrook. Once he gets there he uses his insane 44 inch vertical to sky over and around helpless defenders to score or draw a foul. Morant does not settle for jump shots often: he attempts almost half of his shots from inside the restricted area and converts on 60 percent of those shots. This isn’t to say that Ja isn’t capable of shooting jumpers when he needs to. He has shot a respectable 34 percent on threes, 77 percent from the line and has flashed some promise as a pull-up shooter.

Morant is far from just a scorer on offense, as his nearly 7 assists per game show his potential to be an elite playmaker in the near future. He has also posted solid assist and turnover percentages, especially for a rookie. His ability to lead an offense and create looks for his teammates is unusual for his age and experience level and will only get better as he matures as a passer. With Ja creating looks for Brandon Clarke, Jaren Jackson Jr. and the rest of the Grizzlies’ young core, the sky’s the limit for this Memphis offense.

While he is a slight minus right now on the defensive end, which is to be expected for a 20-year-old point guard, Ja has the tools to be a plus on that end soon. At 6-3, with a 6-7 wingspan, Morant has the length to defend either guard position. When you factor his elite quickness and athleticism into that, Morant projects to be giving opposing point guards headaches for years to come. If he can tap into that defensive potential, Ja can be the type of nightmarish two-way guard that opponents hate to play against. He currently averages just under a steal a game and as he creates more disruptions that lead to the instant fast break situations that he thrives in, the Grizzlies’ offense will get a boost as well as their defense.

Ja Morant is the best rookie guard in the league, and in the future he has the potential to be one of the best guards period. He is already extremely effective leading an offense and has the potential to lead a scary defense as well. He is the clear favorite for the Rookie of the year award and should be in the running for many other awards before too long.

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