Petrie Thomas, USA Today Sports
Ja Morant did his best to make Malik Monk miss a pair of clutch free throws. Instead, Morant’s free throw cost the Grizzlies the game.
Ja Morant has the right to be confident, as one of the most exciting and productive young players in the game. But idle talk is a dangerous venture no matter how good you are and there is always a chance that it will backfire.
With 3.9 seconds left on the clock and the Grizzlies trailing by one, Malik Monk was at the free-throw line for a 2-out and a chance to put the Kings ahead at the 3. As you can see below, Morant walked behind Monk to whisper “No, don’t miss,” which turned out to be a mistake.
Being fouled on a 3-point attempt on the next possession was pretty cool for Morant, but missing the first free throw pretty much wiped out their chances.
Is Ja Morant a good clutch free throw shooter?
Morant struggled in clutch cases Grizzlies this season. Including this game against the Kings, he had 25 points, 5 assists, 3 rebounds, a steal and a block in just 26 minutes. But that comes with 4 turnovers and he’s only shot 8 of 23 from the field, 0 of 4 from outside the arc and 9 of 14 from the free throw line.
For his career, during the regular season and playoff games, Morant made 75.3 percent of his total 158 clutch free throws, a percentage well in line with his career average for all free throw attempts. The odds were in his favor when he went to the class, it was too bad that he had already tempted fate with his whispers to the monk.
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