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Ja Morant seems to have measured opening nights. After starting last season scoring 44 points against San Antonio, this time he made his debut with 37 goals against the Cavaliers, who were beaten by the Grizzlies 132-121 thanks to their good closing game. Those from Tennessee did this with their first victory, starting on the right foot an edition in which they hope to maintain the ascending line of the past year.
Beyond his points, Morant was a real machine for generating highlights. The point guard again gave an exhibition of explosiveness and plasticity, giving away dunks, plugs and baskets worth seeing repeated several times at the same time that he leaned his back on his back. With his 58.6% shooting accuracy, he was also quite efficient, and was also in charge of finishing the match with a triple in the last minute that definitively distanced Jenkins’ team on the scoreboard.
However, the point guard was not alone, as Desmond Bane and De’Anthony Melton, with 22 and 20 goals respectively, also signed a promising debut and made us forget a loss as important as that of Dillon Brooks. For his part, Jaren Jackson Jr. stayed at 13 points after experiencing a somewhat ill-advised night, while Steven Adams did not shine in the scoring side but did stand out on the rebound with 14 sacks.
For the Cavaliers, Jarrett Allen shone with 25 points, which he reached without missing a single field goal. The pivot finished with 11/11 on his shooting, becoming the first player since the introduction of the possession clock to open a season with a 100% effectiveness, having shot at least 10 times. In addition, the former Nets stole 3 balls and placed 3 blocks, also standing out on the defensive side of the court.
They were followed with 17 points by both Collin Sexton and Evan Mobley, the latter signing a good first game in the NBA. The rookie, who already in the first possession showed his scoring virtues, signed several actions of a lot of quality, and with his 9 rebounds and 6 assists he rounded out a more than remarkable first performance as a professional to the illusion of Cleveland. After Duarte, he was the second best rookie of the night, and he made it clear that he has the talent to justify the hopes placed on him.
The Cavaliers were slow to enter the game, and in fact they were forced to face significant disadvantages, but they ended up scarying the locals when, after being 14 down in the fourth quarter, they reached a single point advantage with less than two minutes left. However, it was then that Morant finished to sublimate his performance, preventing the Ohioans from completing the comeback even though they had reasons to leave with a good taste in their mouths.
(Cover photo: Justin Ford / Getty Images)
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