Ja Morant won't be able to play his first game for the Memphis Grizzlies until December 19.
He will, however, be allowed to train with the team immediately.
The Grizzlies confirmed Monday that Morant is allowed to travel, practise and even participate in shootarounds during his 25-game suspension.
"I think it's great for Ja, and I think it's great for the group that he can be with us day to day," Grizzlies general manager Zach Kleiman said during the team's media day. "The NBA basically has said that as long as Ja continues to stay on track, he's going to be clear to participate in all private team activities, so practices, shootarounds, traveling with the team. He's not going to be with us obviously for preseason games and the first 25, but we'll see him out there and we can't wait to have him back Game 26."
The NBA suspended Morant for 25 games without pay on June 16 for appearing in a second video on social media while brandishing a gun. He had posed with a firearm for a social media live stream on May 13, less than two months after serving an eight-game suspension for posing with a gun for a video in a Denver nightclub on March 4.
Kleiman said having Morant able to train and be around the team will be beneficial to both the Grizzlies, as well as, Morant as it will help keep him accountable.
"There's steps that I think Ja is continuing to take that are really positive and in the right direction," Kleiman said. "It's great to have him here. I think he's put himself in a position where there’s no reason why he can't keep following through on this. So we're glad he's here and can't wait to have him back."
Coach Taylor Jenkins said Morant won't be working with the starters during practise, seeing as he won't be playing in any games for the first two months of the season and the team needs to be able to function without him, but they have a plan to get him ready.
An All-Star each of the last two seasons, Morant averaged 26.2 points with career highs of 8.1 assists and 5.9 rebounds in 61 games last season.
The 2020 Rookie of the Year is entering the first year of a five-year $197million maximum contract.
Lillard left frustrated by injuries after Bucks eliminated by Pacers
Damian Lillard lamented the Milwaukee Bucks’ injury troubles after their playoff exit at the hands of the Indiana Pacers.
The Bucks lost the series 4-2 after suffering a heavy 120-98 defeat in Game 6 on Thursday, condemning them to their second consecutive first-round exit to a lower seed.
Two-time MVP, Giannis Antetokounmpo was one of the key players missing for the Bucks as he missed the entire playoff series due to a left calf strain, while Lillard returned after missing the last two games with an Achilles injury.
Lillard, who finished with 28 points, admitted it was frustrating to have so many injuries, but he wanted to try to make an impact.
"I don't think I would've went into the summer feeling good about much if I felt like I let the team go out there and me not at least try," he said.
"It's definitely disappointing because you know how much better of a team we are when he's [Antetokounmpo] on the floor and how much things change when he's on the floor.
"You play an entire 82-game season. You go through training camp, you go through all the ups and downs of an NBA regular season, and you get to the point where, all right, now we're going to play for everything. And you're not whole.
"You don't have the best opportunity to reach where you want reach. So it is frustrating, it's disappointing, but it's part of the game."
Meanwhile, T.J. McConnell says he is proud to be part of the Pacers team that ended their long wait to reach the semifinals.
McConnell had 20 points and nine assists off the bench, while Obi Toppin finished with a playoff career-high 21 points for the Pacers, who had lost their last six playoff series since 2014.
McConnell said: "It means a lot. Not getting into the playoffs since the bubble, not being able to advance since 2014, we take great pride in being able to advance and extend our season.
"Milwaukee has a great team and, if I can be honest with you, I think our bench has taken a couple steps back competitive wise and I think tonight all of us went out there with the mentality we’re going to take it to another level."
The Pacers will face New York in the next round after the Knicks eliminated the Philadelphia 76ers.
NBA: Knicks survive 76ers to advance, Pacers eliminate Bucks with rout
Jalen Brunson scored 14 of his 41 points in the fourth quarter and Josh Hart made a tiebreaking 3-pointer with 24.4 seconds left as the New York Knicks advanced to the Eastern Conference semifinals with a 118-115 win over the Philadelphia 76ers on Thursday.
Donte DiVincenzo added 23 points, OG Anunoby had 19 and Hart finished with 16 points, 14 rebounds and seven assists as the Knicks reached the second round for the second consecutive season.
New York will face Indiana in the East semis after the Pacers eliminated the Bucks in six games. Game 1 is Monday at Madison Square Garden.
Brunson became the first player to score 40 or more points to close out a series since Michael Jordan for Chicago against Cleveland in 1989.
Joel Embiid had 39 points and 13 rebounds but was held to six points in the fourth quarter. Buddy Hield scored 20 points off the bench and Tyrese Maxey was a non-factor in the first half and finished with 17 points on 6-of-18 shooting as the 76ers failed to win a playoff round for the first time since 2019-20.
The Knicks led 109-101 with 2 ½ minutes remaining in the back-and-forth game, but Kelly Oubre Jr. hit a 3 and a layup sandwiched around Maxey’s layup to make it a one-point game.
After Brunson’s layup put New York up 111-108 with under a minute to play, Maxey converted a three-point play with 35 seconds left to tie it.
Hart drilled a 3 from the top of the key before Embiid’s layup four seconds later made it 114-113. DiVincenzo and Brunson each sank two free throws to seal it.
Pacers advance with rout of Bucks
Obi Toppin led six players in double figures with a playoff career-high 21 points and the Indiana Pacers won a playoff series for the first time in a decade with a 120-98 rout of the Milwaukee Bucks.
T.J. McConnell had 20 points and nine assists off the bench, Pascal Siakam added 19 points and Tyrese Haliburton contributed 17 points and 10 rebounds for the Pacers, who had lost their last six playoff series since 2014.
Indiana will face New York in the next round after the Knicks eliminated Philadelphia.
The Pacers went 8-3 against the Bucks this season and handed Milwaukee its second straight first-round exit.
Damian Lillard returned from a right Achilles injury with 28 points and Bobby Portis added 20 and 15 rebounds for the Bucks, who shot just 42.2 percent (35 for 83) from the field and 25.9 percent (7 for 27) from 3-point range.
Two-time MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo missed the entire series after straining his left calf on April 9.
The Pacers used a 15-3 run in the first quarter for a 29-19 lead and never trailed again.
Milwaukee cut the deficit to 85-78 with 6:05 left in the third, but McConnell capped an 11-0 run with consecutive 3s to make it 96-78 early in the fourth.
'We'll be better for Game 6' - Lue backs Clippers to make big improvement
Tyronn Lue insisted that the Los Angeles Clippers will be "better for Game 6" after their worst game of the series against the Dallas Mavericks.
The Clippers lost 123-93 in Game 5 on Wednesday, giving the Mavericks a 3-2 series lead as they prepare for the next meeting in Dallas.
Los Angeles struggled against the Mavericks' defence, and at one point, missed 16 straight 3-point attempts.
Asked what went wrong for the Clippers on Wednesday, Lue said: "We just didn’t play well, all round. Offensively, defensively, we just didn’t play a good game. We know that.
"Playoffs, you have to win four games. We didn’t play our best game; we understand that and we all understand that collectively – we’ll be better for Game 6.
"Not making shots, not defending, had some gambles that really cost us early in the game. It was a two-point game, we gave up three gambles, and it became eight points, that got them going.
"We weren’t good on both sides of the basketball, we had a bad game and, to give them credit, they played well.
"We understand how we need to play. We got into our stuff a little slow. We didn’t shoot the ball well; we didn’t play well either – it kind of goes hand in hand. We didn’t play the style of basketball we need."
The Clippers have been in this position against the Mavericks before, going down 3-2 during the first round in 2021.
On that occasion, they won to force a Game 7 and went on to advance to the semifinals.
Shaquille O’Neal, however, does not think the Clippers are consistent enough to beat the Mavericks.
"They tried to play hero ball at the end by shooting those threes. Paul [George] had a surge of scoring late, but too late by then,” he said to NBA on TNT Sports.
"That's why I've never really been on the Clippers bandwagon because those two guys [George and James Harden] are too inconsistent for me. You can't go from 33 to seven."
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