Ja Morant had NBA fans cracking up again after his pre-game prep took a wild turn. Before the Memphis Grizzlies faced the Phoenix Suns on Wednesday, the All-Star guard was caught on camera sniffing what looked like smelling salts right before tipoff — and it instantly became meme material.
The clip spread fast, and NBA fans wasted no time jumping in with jokes.
One fan wrote, “Those smelling salts got him feeling good.”
Another said, “Gotta do what u gotta do to lock in.”
A third added, “Reptile Silver bout to ban this as soon as he see it.”
As funny as it looked, the routine clearly worked. Morant dropped 28 points, eight rebounds, and seven assists to lead Memphis past the Suns, 114-113. The energy he brought early stuck with the Grizzlies all night.
With that win, Memphis improves to 2–1 and gears up to host the Lakers next for their NBA Cup opener at FedExForum.
“I’ll just end this real quick”: NBA fans raving over Ja Morant’s game-winner vs Suns
Whatever was in those smelling salts definitely kicked in when it mattered most. With the game on the line and under ten seconds left, Morant sliced through Phoenix’s defense, hit a smooth floater, and put the Grizzlies ahead for good.
Fans couldn’t help but rave about the shot once the clip hit social media.
One fan said, “Ja really said, ‘Excuse me, I’ll just end this real quick.’”
Another commented, “When the pressure rose, Ja floated above it all.”
A third added, “Yo, that floater was straight fire, Memphis just cooked!”
The clutch bucket sealed Memphis’ second win in three games, good enough to put them seventh in the West early on.
It’s still too early to tell how high the Grizzlies can climb this season, but Morant looks back in rhythm after missing time last year. Between his pre-game quirks and late-game heroics, he’s once again proving he’s one of the most electric players in the league—smelling salts and all.
For more sports content
Follow me on X at @ErnestLeo, and follow us at @WisconsinHeroics, @HardwoodHeroics and @GridironHeroics. You can also reach out to Ernest Hernandez via email at ernestleo@gmail.com. To read more of our articles and keep up to date on the latest sports news, click here!
Ernest also manages a YouTube account called Sports On Air with over 108 thousand subscribers while the Facebook counterpart boasts 184 thousand followers. The channel contains interviews predominantly from the Philippine Basketball Association. They can be reached at sportsonairph@gmail.com.
