Oklahoma City Thunder guard Luguentz Dort faced backlash from Memphis Grizzlies fans after his foul caused the team's star, Ja Morant, to suffer a hard fall and exit the game before he could lead a potential comeback. Dort has addressed the incident, calling Morant’s fall “unintentional” and expressing concern after learning Morant had sustained a hip contusion.
Luguentz Dort shares his side of the story after causing Ja Morant’s fallAfter the Oklahoma City Thunder erased all the progress Memphis had made in the first half and defeated them 114-108, Dort gave a clarification, saying he didn’t intend to hurt Morant and that it all happened in the heat of the moment. He said, as reported by the Memphis Commercial Appeal, “Tough one. Obviously, I hope he’s OK. I was running back, making a hustle play for my team. I was running quick, stopped on a dime. I didn’t know he was behind me, and I was slipping. I tried to make a play on the ball, but we just ran into each other, and he fell down. But I hope he’s OK. I didn’t mean to hit him like that.”
Dort even approached Morant to express regret for unintentionally hurting him. He said, “When he was at the line, I dapped him up and I apologized obviously. It's never good when a good player like that goes down. But people can say whatever they want. He dapped me up. That was it. That was enough. At least he knows that I didn't mean to take him down like that."
The Grizzlies might have won the game against the Oklahoma City Thunder had Ja Morant not suffered the hip injury. Morant still got up and limped to the line to take his free throws, which he missed. He received a standing ovation from the fans for his courage. He left the court soon after, and it's still unclear if he will return for Saturday’s game.
Also Read: Ja Morant limps off court after scary fall during Oklahoma City Thunder vs Memphis Grizzlies
This marks Morant’s second injury in just a few days. He hurt his ankle during the Grizzlies’ play-in game last week and was forced to exit.
Luguentz Dort shares his side of the story after causing Ja Morant’s fallAfter the Oklahoma City Thunder erased all the progress Memphis had made in the first half and defeated them 114-108, Dort gave a clarification, saying he didn’t intend to hurt Morant and that it all happened in the heat of the moment. He said, as reported by the Memphis Commercial Appeal, “Tough one. Obviously, I hope he’s OK. I was running back, making a hustle play for my team. I was running quick, stopped on a dime. I didn’t know he was behind me, and I was slipping. I tried to make a play on the ball, but we just ran into each other, and he fell down. But I hope he’s OK. I didn’t mean to hit him like that.”
Dort even approached Morant to express regret for unintentionally hurting him. He said, “When he was at the line, I dapped him up and I apologized obviously. It's never good when a good player like that goes down. But people can say whatever they want. He dapped me up. That was it. That was enough. At least he knows that I didn't mean to take him down like that."
Ja Morant received a standing ovation after taking a hard fall and coming back to shoot free throws before heading to the locker room in Game 3. pic.twitter.com/RvToQQ7fGs
— NBA on ESPN (@ESPNNBA) April 25, 2025
The Grizzlies might have won the game against the Oklahoma City Thunder had Ja Morant not suffered the hip injury. Morant still got up and limped to the line to take his free throws, which he missed. He received a standing ovation from the fans for his courage. He left the court soon after, and it's still unclear if he will return for Saturday’s game.
Also Read: Ja Morant limps off court after scary fall during Oklahoma City Thunder vs Memphis Grizzlies
This marks Morant’s second injury in just a few days. He hurt his ankle during the Grizzlies’ play-in game last week and was forced to exit.
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