Ja Morant

It was the second triple-double in school history, the first coming from Isacc Miles in 1984, and was also the record for most assists at a CFSB Center game, surpassing the old mark of 12 established by Aubrey Reese against Alabama State in 1999.

Morant also had the third-most assists in a single game by a Murray State player.

Temetrius Jamel "Ja" Morant (born August 10, 1999) is an American professional basketball player for the Memphis Grizzlies of the National Basketball Association (NBA).

Temetrius Jamel Morant was born in Dalzell, South Carolina, on August 10, 1999, to Tee and Jamie Morant.

His mother, Jamie, was a point guard in high school and a softball player in college, while his father was a high school teammate of Ray Allen and played basketball for Claflin University.

After playing semi-professionally, Tee considered playing professional basketball overseas, but when Jamie became pregnant with Ja, he abandoned his basketball career and stayed at home, becoming a barber instead.

Morant trained in his backyard with his father, Tee Morant, who taught him step-back jump shots and bought tractor tires for him to practice jumping with a soft landing.

In his childhood, he often faced older opponents, telling his mother, "I'm not worried about the big kids."

Morant played in the Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) circuit with the South Carolina Hornets, a small grassroots team based in Columbia, South Carolina.

His 6.3 assists per game ranked 14th in the nation his freshman season.

He became the seventh freshman in 25 years to accumulate 150 assists, 150 rebounds, and 10 blocks while shooting at least 42 percent from the field.

Morant and Murray State advanced to the NCAA Tournament his freshman season after capturing an OVC Championship in a 68–51 win over Belmont.

Morant had 15 points, 5 assists, and 5 rebounds in that game.

He was accidentally discovered by mid-major program Murray State of the OVC in July 2016, when assistant coach James Kane attended a camp hoping to see a player who was joining his team.

While looking for a snack, Kane noticed Morant playing a three-on-three game in an auxiliary gym; impressed, he contacted head coach Matt McMahon, who soon offered Morant a scholarship.

On September 3, 2016, Morant committed to playing for Murray State during dinner at McMahon's house.

His father said, "Every parent wants their child to play at a big-time program, but what I realized is, don't go where you want to be, go to where they want you."

His other Division I offers included Duquesne, Maryland Eastern Shore, South Carolina State, and Wofford.

Morant was not ranked in the class of 2017 by recruiting services ESPN, 247Sports, or Rivals.

His only high major NCAA Division I offer came from South Carolina.

On November 10, 2017, Morant debuted for Murray State with 7 points and a team-high 11 assists in a 118–61 victory over Brescia University of the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA).

He recorded his first career double-double on December 12, 2017, with 10 points, 12 rebounds, and 6 assists in a 69–55 loss to Saint Louis.

He posted his first triple-double on December 28, recording 11 points, 10 rebounds, and 14 assists in an 80–52 win over Eastern Illinois.

For one season, he was teammates with Zion Williamson, who became one of the top players in the 2018 class.

Morant attended Crestwood High School in Sumter, South Carolina.

He grew from 5ft 9in to 6ft 0in in his first three years with the team.

Morant left as its all-time leading scorer, with 1,679 points, and scored a career-high 47 points against Sumter High School.

In his last two seasons at Crestwood, he averaged 27 points, 8 rebounds, and 8 assists per game, earning South Carolina Class 3A All-State honors both years.

Morant also left high school as a three-time All-Region Most Valuable Player (MVP).

He could not dunk until he was a senior.

On February 1, 2018, he scored a season-high 23 points against Southeast Missouri State.

After averaging 12.7 points, 6.5 rebounds, and 6.3 assists per game, Morant earned first-team All-OVC with his teammates Jonathan Stark and Terrell Miller, and OVC All-Newcomer Team accolades.

He played college basketball for the Murray State Racers, where he was a consensus first-team All-American as a sophomore in 2019.

Morant was only lightly recruited by NCAA Division I programs and unranked by recruiting services, despite having been named All-Region Most Valuable Player three times and earning All-State honors at Crestwood High School in Sumter, South Carolina.

Nevertheless, he made an immediate impact at Murray State University, earning first-team all-conference honors in the Ohio Valley Conference (OVC) as a freshman.

He had a breakout sophomore season; it saw him win OVC Player of the Year as well as lead the NCAA in assists.

As a sophomore, Morant became the first player in NCAA history to average 20-plus points and 10-plus assists per game for a single season.

Morant was selected by the Grizzlies with the second overall pick in the 2019 NBA draft, and was named the NBA Rookie of the Year in 2020.

In 2022, he was named to his first NBA All-Star Game as a starter.

At the conclusion of the season, Morant won the NBA Most Improved Player Award, and he was also selected to his first All-NBA Team.