The Memphis Grizzlies had no shame in letting the 12-41 Orlando Magic know just how good they were.
The Grizzlies were a tour de force for most of three quarters, going downhill toward the basket with Ja Morant, grabbing offensive rebounds with Steven Adams or doing whatever else the team needed from Jaren Jackson Jr.
They built a 20-point lead that quickly grew to 30 points in the third quarter and Orlando looked shell-shocked.
That was not enough. The Grizzlies clearly have the attitude of dominating everyone. If you want to stop them from doming something spectacular, you need to stop them. Or their coach needs to take the starters out of the game.
So it was with a 25-point lead Ja Morant got a steal and proceeded to pull off a move he said after the game came straight out NBA Street that led to Ziaire Williams throwing a lob to De’Anthony Melton. So it was with the game well decided and a minute left in the third quarter, Ja Morant turned the corner and scaled the tallest mountain Disney can offer — Robin Lopez — and sent a buzzed crowd happy.
The Memphis Grizzlies continue to let the world know just how good they are. That supreme confidence and bravado are an attitude the Orlando Magic need to develop and embrace.
If you are looking for any sign the Grizzlies are for real, it was the buzz that emanated from the sold out Amway Center crowd every time Morant touched the ball. This has become one of the best shows in the NBA even from a small market in a small market like Orlando.
Morant scored 33 points (22 in the first half) to lead Memphis to a 135-115 win over Orlando on Saturday. The deficit was not even that close.
The Magic, usually able to fight and claw and scratch their way into games and have gotten pretty good (at least for a 12-42 team) at preventing these blowout losses, were seemingly shell shocked. For the first time in a while, the Magic did not look like they had any clue how to get themselves back.
The Grizzlies just kept coming and coming and coming. Orlando could only keep up for about a quarter before they simply got overwhelmed.
"“They were super comfortable against us tonight,” Cole Anthony said after Saturday’s game. “They were having fun. It’s embarrassing.”"
What would be surprising to find out then is that the Grizzlies and Magic are roughly the same age and experience. The only difference is the star-making gravity of Ja Morant. He is someone that makes everything else on the roster make sense.
The other key difference sprouts from that. Memphis believes it is going to destroy the world every time the team hits the floor. And they play with that kind of attitude and confidence.
Sure a lot of it has been built over the last three years in experiencing actual success — the Play-In Tournament in 2020, the playoffs in 2021 and then this year’s breakthrough. But they played with that bravado and confidence even before then. Morant has proven himself to be undeniable even in those early days and once it clicked for him, the Grizzlies were dragged along with him.
The Magic are very clearly still looking for that confidence. They do not have that driving star to fill in their gaps and push everyone to a higher level.
Anthony has the bravado and irrational confidence at times to do that. That is what carried the Magic through the early parts of the season. But he has hit a major dip in his play. He still scored 22 points on 8-for-14 shooting with five assists (the Magic still tallied 27 assists total for the game) in Saturday’s game.
But Anthony has made it clear at least for now that he is not quite at the star level. He still has work to go to get there.
As do rookies Franz Wagner (15 points on 5-for-9 shooting Saturday) and Jalen Suggs (17 points on 5-for-12 shooting and some of his shakiest defense of the season). Both have continued to show flashes and take their turns. But they still have work to do.
More than that, after a month spent as one of the best defensive teams in the league, their defense and identity have seemingly slipped away.
It does not take a genius to understand giving up 135 points is bad for a defense — the Grizzlies 129.8 offensive rating in this game marked the second time the team gave up more than 120 points per 100 possessions this week after giving up that much just twice in the previous 17 games.
The 129.8 offensive rating is the team’s worst since the December loss to the Milwaukee Bucks. The Magic are not immune to bad defensive performances, but they have largely wiped out these abysmal performances that at least give them a chance to win.
As coach Jamahl Mosley said after the game the Magic allowed Ja Morant to drive too comfortably. Then they gave up too many offensive rebounds to give themselves any chance to recover. The team is still learning how use its defense to dictate tempo rather than their offense.
The slippage on defense was something the team has to be focused on eliminating and getting back to doing something at a high enough level. That is ultimately this roster’s ticket to remaining competitive and winning.
Winning is supposed to be contagious. But it is as much the way a team and a group carry themselves too.
The Magic had won four of their last six games, even without playing their best. But that veneer got punctured pretty quickly.
"“This is a game we have to remember even five years down the line,” Anthony said after Saturday’s game. “They were in here just punking us. This is something we have to remember for the future and try to use it as motivation to get better as a team.”"
Orlando is right to focus on the process and the work it has to do to be great each day. The results will take care of themselves if they do the right thing.
But this was a reality check for the team. A reminder of how quickly what the team has built can fall apart and how each game is its own challenge.
The Magic have always understood this was a year of development and growth. But now that they have had some success, the expectations and what they can do daily have certainly been raised too.
And Orlando has not met that level of late. There is still this reaction to what is going on rather than the aggression and swagger of a team that can win and win regularly.
Orlando does not have the talent to stand up to elite teams playing at its best. Net yet at least. The Grizzlies are among the best teams in the league already.
There is indeed a long road ahead to meet that level of play. But to some extent, the Magic have to act like they are on that level.
Their biggest weakness at the moment is how they get staggered when teams put these kinds of onslaughts on them. And how the team is unable to get back to their pace and control over the game. They are often trying to play catch up too much.
Maybe that is the product of not having elite players to manage their emotions and be their heartbeat. Maybe that confidence is another thing the team has to learn.
But the Magic should not accept they are what their record says they are. Yes, there are little victories to celebrate and ways the team is trying to build confidence. But sometimes the Magic need to be willing to push back and be willing to exert their own confidence to succeed.
The Grizzlies have it. They act like it. And they are not afraid to let everyone know it.