Poole under scrutiny for play that injured Morant
SAN FRANCISCO — After the Warriors’ 142-112 win over the Grizzlies in Game 3 of the Western Conference semifinals at Chase Center on Saturday night, Golden State guard Jordan Poole came under scrutiny for a play that injured Memphis guard Ja Morant.
Midway through the fourth quarter, while being defended near midcourt by Poole and Warriors forward Andrew Wiggins, Morant tried to grab the basketball as Poole appeared to reach for his right knee and pull it. Morant stayed in the game and hit two free throws, but left moments later with a noticeable limp.
During his postgame news conference, Grizzlies coach Taylor Jenkins said he watched the play in which Morant got injured and that he believes Poole grabbed Morant’s knee, then yanked it. Asked whether he thought Poole did it on purpose, Jenkins said, “I’m curious.”
Morant, who will undergo tests on the injured knee, later quote-tweeted a video of the play with the words, “broke the quote.” This was a reference to Warriors coach Steve Kerr’s comments after Game 2 on Tuesday, when he said Grizzlies forward Dillon Brooks “broke the code” for player conduct when he leveled Gary Payton II in the head as Payton attempted a layup — a play that resulted in a broken elbow for Payton.
The league is expected to review the sequence involving Poole and Morant to determine whether Poole will be disciplined. At the start of his postgame news conference, Poole said he didn’t see the play in question. After watching video of it on a reporter’s iPhone, Poole said, “It was a basketball play when we doubled him, and I hit the ball and I was going for the ball.
“I mean, obviously you don’t want to see anybody get hurt. I’m not even that type of player. That’s not my type of game.”
Asked about Morant’s tweet that he “broke the code,” Poole shook his head and said, “We’ve got another game on Monday.”
Whether Morant will be available for that game could go a long way in determining the outcome of this series. Through three games, he is averaging 38.3 points on 51.8 percent shooting (45.1 percent from 3-point range), 8.3 assists and 6.7 rebounds. Saturday, he scored a game-high 34 points.
Poole added 27 points off the bench, part of a balanced attack by the Warriors. Stephen Curry scored a team-high 30 points, Klay Thompson added 21 points and rookie Jonathan Kuminga had 18.