LeBron James Sends Message to Ja Morant

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Memphis Grizzlies star Ja Morant is set to make his season debut on Tuesday night against the New Orleans Pelicans. Returning from his 25-game suspension, Morant is more than ready to get out there with his teammates and help them turn this season around.
The basketball world is behind Morant as he makes his return, including Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James, who shared this message for the Grizzlies star on X (formerly known as Twitter):
1️⃣2️⃣ welcome back!! Go be GREAT again!! 🙏🏾🙏🏾🙏🏾🙏🏾
— LeBron James (@KingJames) December 19, 2023
This was really cool to see from James, who is still the biggest star in basketball. Morant has been patiently waiting his return to the court, and that wait has been made more difficult by the struggles he has seen his team go through in his absence.
Morant opened up recently about some of the guilt he has been feeling watching his team struggle, because while he is of course not out there, he understands his absence has helped put the team in this position.
While the Grizzlies are very far down the Western Conference standings, the return of Morant, along with other reinforcements that should be nearing returns as well, could put them right back in the mix for a play-in spot. This is the hope of Morant and everyone involved with the Grizzlies organization, and that pursuit starts on Tuesday night against the Pelicans.
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Joey Linn is a credentialed writer covering the NBA and WNBA for On SI. Covering the LA Clippers independently in 2018, then for Fansided and 213Hoops from 2019-2021, Joey joined On SI to cover the Clippers after the 2020-21 season. Graduating from Biola University in 2022 with a Communication Studies degree, Joey served as Biola's play-by-play announcer for their basketball, baseball, softball, and soccer teams. Joey's work on Biola's broadcasts and in the classroom earned him the Outstanding Communication Studies Student of the year award in 2022. Joey covers the NBA full-time, primarily serving as a Clippers beat writer.