Ja Morant Exits With Hamstring Injury as Blazers' Hot Start Hits a Speed Bump
Status alert: Ja Morant (hamstring) won't return Thursday. - @UnderdogNBA
The most predictable notification in the NBA just hit your phone. Ja Morant is dealing with another injury, and the Portland Trail Blazers are suddenly holding their breath.
Underdog NBA confirmed Thursday that Morant would not return to action due to a hamstring issue. If you were holding a ticket with the over on his points or assists, you are currently staring at a bad beat or praying your sportsbook has a generous void policy for early exits.
It is a brutal speed bump for a Portland team that came out of the gates absolutely breathing fire. The Blazers are sitting at a flawless 3-0, boasting a league-best 128.7 offensive rating and a comical 18.6 net rating.
Morant has been the engine of that early surge, putting up 16.3 points, 6.3 assists, and 2.7 rebounds per game. But trusting his availability is an extreme sport at this point.
A quick scroll through his recent medical history reads like a WebMD index. Over the last few seasons, he has missed time for his calf, ankle, elbow, hip, shoulder, back, and now the hamstring. You simply cannot maintain a historically great offensive rating when your primary creator is watching the second half in sweatpants.
Portland heads to Utah on Saturday to face the Jazz. Expect the game lines to shift dramatically if Morant is officially ruled out, and prepare for the Blazers' rotation to get a very real, very sudden stress test.