SUM 2 PROVE

IT’S A RAINY MONDAY in Memphis, and for once, the NBA is at rest. One evening earlier, the All-Star Game finished with such a flourish that it actually made the players sweat, and now everyone is enjoying a few days off before things kick in for the stretch run.

Well, not everyone. Right around lunchtime, Ja Morant shows up in his teal throwback uniform, in the practice gym of the team that wasn’t supposed to be able to draft him, where he’s been the season’s best rookie in a league where he wasn’t even on the radar two years ago.

Here in the 901, hope abounds. A team that within the last year traded the two most decorated players in franchise history has managed to hit the reset button with the quickness, in large part thanks to the sparkling play of Morant.

Yet, even as 12 straightens his headband and glares into the camera, he is clear about his priorities with the Grizzlies fighting for the final Western Conference