What injured ankle? Ja Morant flies around court helping Grizzlies take West’s 8th seed
MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) — Two-time All-Star Ja Morant promised a sprained right ankle wouldn’t keep him out of Memphis’ play-in game against Dallas with the Western Conference’s last postseason berth up for grabs Friday night. Morant did more than just play. He delivered a thrilling start that included a high-flying, one-handed slam that had teammate Desmond Bane yelling “Showtime!” at him in celebration as Morant elevated so much his eyes were level with the rim. The guard scored 16 of his 22 points in the first half, and Memphis never trailed in a 120-106 victory to take the No. 8 seed and a spot Sunday in Game 1 at top-seeded Oklahoma City. He was injured Tuesday night at Golden State.
Herro scores 30 points to lead Heat past Hawks 123-114 in OT in play-in and into NBA playoffs
ATLANTA (AP) — Tyler Herro scored 30 points while sinking two 3-pointers in overtime and the Miami Heat regrouped after losing an early lead to beat the Atlanta Hawks 123-114 on Friday night and make NBA Play-In Tournament history. Miami will play at Cleveland on Sunday night in the opening game of the first round of the Eastern Conference playoffs. Davion Mitchell scored only seven points in regulation before added three 3-pointers in overtime for Miami.
The first round gets underway Saturday with Milwaukee at Indiana at 10 am, Los Angeles Clippers at Denver Nuggets at 12:30, Detroit Pistons at New York Knicks at 3:30 and the Minnesota Timberwolves at the Los Angeles Lakers at 5:30.