The Grizzlies led by 27 points when Ja Morant landed on the FedExForum floor and left the game with a hip injury in the second quarter. Memphis led by 26 points at halftime. Iisalo said Morant’s absence “quite drastically” changed the energy and execution from the team going forward.

Facing the top-seeded Oklahoma City Thunder, the Memphis Grizzlies entered Game 3 of their first-round playoff series seeking to avoid a daunting 3-0 deficit. Memphis already faced an uphill task against a Thunder team that had won 10 straight games against the Grizzlies heading into Thursday's matchup.