Wednesday night’s NBA slate was chock-full of premier matchups, one of which saw the Lakers head to Tennessee to take on Ja Morant and the Grizzlies.
The high-scoring Memphis victory featured a 39-piece from LeBron James and 20 points from Morant, both of whom duked it out on the court all game.
Between trading baskets, James and Morant threw sly comments at each other as the two faced off. One of these instances involved the 25-year-old phenom bumping into the league’s all-time leading scorer, drawing a technical foul just before halftime.
Here’s everything to know about why Morant got a call for running into James after exchanging “too small” taunts with the Lakers star.
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Ja Morant and LeBron James exchange ‘too small’ taunts
With just over a minute remaining before halftime, Morant hit a six-foot field goal while drawing a shooting foul on Gabe Vincent. After the whistle, the guard made a “too small” gesture toward the ground directed at Vincent before hitting his free throw.
The next possession, James answered right back with a driving layup over Morant. Appropriately, he smacked the floor in reference to the guard’s previous taunt after the score, giving it right back to Morant in the process.
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Ja Morant receives technical foul for bumping LeBron James
The saga continued after James’ “too small” gesture, with Brandon Clarke and himself scoring back-to-back layups after the fact. Then, Morant returned the favor with a jump shot off the backboard at the other end and bumped into James’ back before the ball was inbounded.
Morant received a technical for the shove, resulting in a made free throw from James before the clock wound down to end the half.
The exchange was reminiscent of a moment between the two from this past April, where James sealed a 123-120 win with a dunk before Morant lightly pushed the star away on the sideline as the clock wound down.
Internet sleuths determined Morant told James, “Wait until I suit up.”
