After losing the first two games since firing their head coach Taylor Jenkins, the Memphis Grizzlies are facing a lot of confusion about why they made such a big decision at this point in the season.
ESPN insider Tim McMahon reported this week that a “primary motivator” of the move was to optimize Ja Morant. He also claimed that Morant was unhappy in Jenkins’ new offensive system this season.
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“This decision, to do it now and to move on from (assistant coach Noah LaRoche) and to lean back into all the pick-and-roll stuff, this was a decision that was about optimizing Ja Morant,” MacMahon said. “That was a primary motivator for this decision. There has been noise about Ja being unhappy all season long.”
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In today’s NBA, star players hold the leverage, so firing Jenkins so abruptly appears like a move made in order to keep Morant in town.
As for the timing, the best possible explanation is that Memphis wanted to give Morant at least a few weeks to play under the new coaching staff before the playoffs.
They face off against the Golden State Warriors on Tuesday as they try to secure a playoff spot.
James Parker is an NBA writer for Ball Exclusives, follow him on X @TheJames_Parker
