Welcome back to your Grizzlies Insider, where we deliver the latest NBA news and analysis straight from Daily Memphian staffers Drew Hill, Chris Herrington and Geoff Calkins right to your inbox. 

If only we could all do all right the same way Ja Morant “did all right” in the Grizzlies regular season opener Wednesday night. 

If only the world, mid-pandemic, could be that sort of “all right.” It might be a much safer place right now. 

Because, for Morant, spectacular and dazzling is the new “all right.” It’s scoring 44 points in the first NBA game of your second season (the youngest in history to do so), coming up one point shy of the single-game franchise record and all the while injecting even more hope into the Grizzlies future despite the loss. 

That’s a definition of “all right” many would be happy to embrace. Morant still feels like he delivered a lump of coal. 

“I’m not happy at all,” the point guard said Wednesday night. “I obviously wanted to win that game. We came up short. So, it’s learning from this game and preparing for the next from my play. I did all right.”

It was genuine, too. That was obvious by his body language as he walked off the floor with his jersey untucked as his head down. He slouched over in his chair during the postgame video interview. He never smiled. He had hardly any interest in answering questions about his historic performance, so others spoke for him. 

“I thought Ja was special tonight,” Grizzlies coach Taylor Jenkins said. “His stat line obviously is amazing. I thought his aggressive mentality was great. The Spurs were throwing a lot of physicality on our entire roster and he did a great job handling it and finding ways to get into the paint. 

“... He led a big charge. We needed to lean on him just to keep this game somewhat competitive. We just didn’t get the result tonight.”

Said guard Dillon Brooks: “Amazing. He’s getting to his spots, he’s finishing, he’s finding guys. We are going to be relying on him, but we have to find other guys to step up.”

And if this is the type of Morant Memphis fans will get to watch on a nightly basis in 2021 - well, there is no better gift around the holidays. 

As Jenkins and vice president of basketball operations Zach Kleiman acknowledged Tuesday, the Grizzlies are chugging into a new era of the franchise - the Morant era. If their star continues to trend upward it could become the most entertaining lifecycle of the team in its 26-year history. 

So Happy Holidays, Grizzlies fans. May your days be merry and “all right.”

More from your Insider: 

Spurs spoil career night for Ja Morant in Grizzlies season-opening loss

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Grizzlies tip off Wednesday, but how many fans will be able to watch on TV?

Sinclair and streaming services have not been able to reach an agreement, which could leave a large percentage of Memphians without Grizzlies games this season. 

Tigers, Grizzlies to play without fans in FedExForum until further notice

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Takeaways from the Memphis Grizzlies’ preseason

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Herrington: Enjoy what’s likely the last Morant-era season without playoff expectations

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Grizzlies drop final preseason game to Hawks

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The Grizzlies offense is on a tear. Can they keep it up?

The early success is hard to break down because of preseason motivation and lousy defensive competition. 

Herrington: Preseason Grizzlies notes and what the Giannis deal means for Memphis

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Grizzlies’ preseason win at home was 282 days in the making

The offense has been dominant through three preseason games. The efficiency of Dillon Brooks is a big reason why. 

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