Eight players sidelined, including Morant, forces the Grizzlies to reshuffle lineups against the Thunder, testing their depth to the breaking point.
The Memphis Grizzlies arrive at the calendar’s final week searching for stability, but injuries continue to define both their nightly rotations and their outlook entering a matchup with Oklahoma City.
Memphis Grizzlies will be without star guard Ja Morant when they face the Oklahoma City Thunder on Dec. 22, with Morant listed out due to a left ankle sprain. Tipoff is scheduled for 8:30 p.m. and the game will stream on Peacock.
Morant’s absence headlines an unusually long injury report. Memphis (13-15) has eight players ruled out: Morant, Brandon Clarke, Zach Edey, Ty Jerome, Scotty Pippen Jr., Vince Williams Jr., John Konchar, and Javon Small. The cumulative effect has forced the Grizzlies to continuously reshuffle lineups and roles just to remain competitive.
Injuries have followed Memphis throughout the season, but the latest stretch has tested the roster’s depth as much as any point so far. Morant has now missed half of the team’s 28 games, including 10 contests from mid-November through Dec. 7 with a right calf strain before returning briefly and then landing back on the sideline with the ankle issue.
The frontcourt picture has been no steadier. Clarke, who missed the first 26 games of the season while recovering from a serious knee injury, made his season debut on Dec. 17 at Minnesota. His return was short-lived. Clarke exited early in the first quarter against Washington on Dec. 20 with what the team later listed as a right calf strain and did not return. His setback came just days after finally being cleared following a high-grade PCL injury suffered in March and an arthroscopic knee procedure in September.
Edey, projected to anchor the middle, has been out for most of the season with an ankle injury. Jerome and Pippen Jr. have yet to appear in a game this year, further thinning the backcourt rotation. With Small also sidelined, Memphis has been left without four traditional point guards.
That reality has required creativity. Vince Williams Jr. has logged time initiating the offense, while rookie Cam Spencer has taken on added responsibility. Two-way guard Jahmai Mashack, who has spent time with the Memphis Hustle in the G League, could also see minutes as the Grizzlies attempt to piece together ball-handling and perimeter defense.
Despite the mounting absences, Memphis showed resilience before injuries again swung momentum. The Grizzlies built a 20-point first-half lead against Washington on Saturday night and entered halftime up 68-53. Santi Aldama delivered a career night off the bench with 37 points and 10 rebounds, while Jaren Jackson Jr. added 22 points. Spencer finished with 19 points and 11 assists, continuing his expanded role.
The lead did not hold. Washington erupted for 42 third-quarter points and closed the period on a 33-19 run to erase the deficit. Memphis allowed the Wizards back into the game after Clarke’s early exit, and Washington finished with a decisive late surge to secure a 130-122 win, snapping a seven-game losing streak at FedExForum.
That loss underscored both the Grizzlies’ competitive ceiling and their fragility. Memphis had won seven of its previous nine games before injuries again altered the rotation midgame, a recurring theme this season.
Now, with Morant sidelined for a second straight contest and the injury list remaining lengthy, the Grizzlies face another uphill test against an Oklahoma City team built on depth, pace and perimeter pressure. For Memphis, the challenge is less about matchups and more about survival — finding enough continuity, ball security and energy to weather another night defined by who is unavailable rather than who is on the floor.