{"id":2022008,"date":"2026-07-01T17:45:33","date_gmt":"2026-07-01T14:45:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=2022008"},"modified":"2026-07-01T17:45:33","modified_gmt":"2026-07-01T14:45:33","slug":"morant-blazers-coach-already-on-same-page-ready-to-get-the-best-version-of-ja","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=2022008","title":{"rendered":"Morant, Blazers coach already on same page, ready \u2018to get the best version of Ja\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"
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For two hours, they dined and talked in a South Carolina steakhouse, and what Portland Trail Blazers coach Micah Nori noticed most about his lunch partner was the sincerity of his words, the seriousness of his facial expressions and the excitement that was unable to be contained.<\/p>\n

Ja Morant told his new coach that he couldn\u2019t wait to play for the Blazers.<\/p>\n

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\u201cI think we are going to get the best version of Ja,\u201d Nori said. \u201cI think we are going to get a motivated Ja.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Tuesday lunch between the newest tentpoles of the Trail Blazers was glazed in serendipity. Before Nori was hired by the Blazers last week, he had a family vacation planned in Myrtle Beach for this week. So when the Blazers traded for Morant on\u00a0<\/a>Monday\u00a0<\/a>and<\/span> learned the soon-to-be 27-year-old was in his hometown of Dalzell, S.C., the two connected and agreed to meet in Columbia \u2013 an approximate 2 \u00bd-hour drive for Nori and a 45-minute drive for Morant.<\/p>\n

When they sat down at the restaurant, Morant noted that four days earlier, before he was traded from Memphis to Portland, he received a piece of mail at his childhood home. On the back of the envelope were the words trail blazer.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou know, some things just happen for a reason,\u201d Nori remembers Morant saying.<\/p>\n

What happens next will be viewed under a microscope that extends beyond Portland.<\/p>\n

Once one of the NBA\u2019s rising superstars, Morant\u2019s shine has dulled amid injuries and controversial off-the-court behavior. He has been suspended twice by the NBA \u2014 once for eight games and once for 25 games \u2014 for conduct detrimental to the league after he brandished firearms in social media posts.<\/p>\n

He was also suspended one game by Memphis for conduct detrimental to the team after an argument with his head coach.<\/p>\n

The climate in Memphis became so volatile that the Grizzlies decided Morant was detrimental to their future and parted with what had once been their franchise pillar for the mere return of Jerami Grant and Kris Murray.<\/p>\n

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What You Should Read Next<\/div>\n
\n \"Blazers-Grizzlies<\/p>\n
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\n Blazers-Grizzlies trade grades: Ja Morant to Portland \u2014 who won the deal?\n <\/div>\n
\n The 26-year-old Morant has some image rehabilitation to do in a crowded Blazers backcourt.\n <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

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It didn\u2019t help, either, that Morant\u2019s body \u2014 a sleek 6-foot-2, 175\u2013pound frame \u2014 had broken down over the years due to injuries to his elbow, hip and shoulder, which limited him to 79 games over the past three seasons.<\/p>\n

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However, when Nori settled into the steakhouse booth on Tuesday, he saw none of the petulance, none of the defiance, none of the attitude that has colored Morant\u2019s image.<\/p>\n

Nori said he couldn\u2019t help but notice the way Morant talked and carried himself. There was seriousness, enthusiasm and focus.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe way he was talking, the way he looked \u2026 the intent he had, you could just tell in his face that he missed basketball,\u201d Nori said. \u201cAnd he assured that we were going to get the best Ja and that he was going to do all the right things.\u201d<\/p>\n

Nori, the former lead assistant in Minnesota, had done his research. He talked with Kyle Anderson, who played with Morant in Memphis before being coached by Nori in Minnesota. He spoke with one of his former players, Mike Miller, who used to represent Morant as an agent. And he talked with Steve Senior, who was in the front office of both Memphis and Minnesota.<\/p>\n

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\u201cOur lunch basically confirmed everything I had heard from the people who had worked with him daily, who would talk about him as a person, the people I trust who would tell me the truth,\u201d Nori said. \u201cAnd I told him the background I have on him, and that they had nothing but great things to say about him, not only as a player, but as a person and a teammate.<\/p>\n

\u201cAll his teammates love him.\u201d<\/p>\n

Nori said he told Morant that he has a blank slate in Portland: The canvas is his to write the next chapter of his story.<\/p>\n

\u201cI told him the Trail Blazers don\u2019t need you to do anything special,\u201d Nori said. \u201cJust be you, be the best version of yourself.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Why the Portland Trail Blazers traded for Ja Morant<\/div>\n
Esfandiar Baraheni and Jeshua Kidd<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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