LOS ANGELES -- Memphis superstar Ja Morant showed no ill effects from his bruised right hand, scoring 45 points in his return from a one-game absence Saturday night in a 111-101 loss to the Lakers in Game 3 of their first-round series.
Morant, who was sidelined in Game 2, was a full participant in Friday's practice and Saturday's shootaround. The Grizzlies announced an hour before Saturday's tipoff at Crypto.com Arena that Morant would start.
Morant started slow but finished brilliantly, including a fourth quarter in which he scored 22 straight points to help bring the Grizzlies back into a game in which they trailed by as many as 29 points. He also had 13 assists and nine rebounds.
Morant first hurt his hand during the Grizzlies' April 7 win at the Milwaukee Bucks. He aggravated the bruise when he used the hand to break his fall after charging into Anthony Davis during the fourth quarter of Memphis' Game 1 loss to the Lakers on Sunday, when Morant finished with 18 points, 2 assists and 6 turnovers.
Morant was ruled out about an hour before Memphis' Game 2 win on Wednesday after testing the hand with ballhandling and shooting drills.