Ja Morant enters the NBA health and safety protocols; Here’s what we know so far

The Memphis Grizzlies continue to be one of the pleasant surprises of the current 2021-2022 NBA campaign with their play over the opening months of the season. The team so far finds itself with a 14-10 record, good enough for fourth in the Western Conference standings. Memphis has also gone on to win an impressive seven of their last ten games.

It appears as if things are about to get a little more challenging for the Memphis Grizzlies moving forward. According to a report today from the Memphis Grizzlies PR team and ESPN NBA Insider Adrian Wojnarowski, superstar point guard Ja Morant has entered the league's health and safety protocols.

Adrian Wojnarowski went on to confirm that Ja Morant was vaccinated and had received the booster shot too. It will be interesting to see how long Morant is expected to be sidelined as he enters the league's health and safety protocols. Throughout the 2021-22 NBA season, most players have missed around ten days before they are eligible to return to the court.

Morant had previously been sidelined for the team's last five games after dealing with a knee injury and was already expected to miss an extended amount of time before returning to the court. During those games, the Grizzlies have done a sensational job of staying on track as they've won five straight games. The team is expected to take on the Dallas Mavericks tonight to start a four-game home stand that includes upcoming matchups against the Los Angeles Lakers, Houston Rockets and Philadelphia 76ers. With Morant already due to miss time moving forward because of a knee injury, it could be convenient timing for the superstar guard to be out while in the league's health and safety protocols. Morant has been one of the most impressive players in the NBA this year with his play on the court.

Morant became one of the favorites to potentially win the Most Improved Player of the Year award and the Grizzlies will anxiously await his return to the starting lineup. When Morant is on the court, the Grizzlies have been one of the most underrated teams in the NBA this season. So far this year, the Memphis Grizzlies superstar is averaging 24.1 points, 5.6 rebounds, 6.8 assists and 1.6 steals per game while shooting 47.6% from the field and 35.6% from three. The Grizzlies were 9-10 before Morant got hurt but the team has suddenly started to find a groove and put together an important stretch of wins while their superstar remains sidelined. Once Morant returns, the Grizzlies could start to make some serious noise in the Western Conference if they can keep up this type of momentum.