It was a packed house in FedEx Forum on Wednesday as the Grizzlies took on the Lakers for the first time this season. As two teams who have faced off in the NBA playoffs before, both sides knew what to expect but the final score fell in favor of the Grizzlies by a 17-point margin (131-114). The Grizzlies had three players drop 20 points, including Ja Morant who also finished with 4 rebounds and 5 assists (7-17 FG).
Jaren Jackson Jr. tallied 20 points, 6 rebounds, and 3 blocks in the game while shooting 61.5% from the field.
Even rookie guard Jaylen Wells was able to score in bunches tonight with 20 points on 5-7 shooting from three. The Lakers put up a good fight without Anthony Davis but they could not make up for his absence in the middle. LeBron James had his best game of the season so far with 39 points, 7 rebounds, and 6 assists (15-24 FG) while Austin Reaves contributed 19 points, 5 assists, and 3 rebounds on 41.
2% shooting. Cam Reddish scored a season-high 15 points off the bench to go with 6 rebounds in 25:56 minutes. The Grizzlies ended the first quarter with an 8-point lead and never looked back.
They controlled the game for most of the way through due to a mix of key factors that the Lakers will be thinking hard about for the next two days. Frontcourt Depth Is A Problem As Anthony Davis nurses his foot back to health, the Lakers will need someone else to step up and make up for his absence. The problem, as it looked like tonight, is that the Lakers don't have anyon.