Grizzlies most responsible for heartbreaking Game 4 loss to Lakers

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The Memphis Grizzlies had Game 4 against the Los Angeles Lakers in their hands and let it sip. The Grizzlies missed several opportunities to upset the Lakers in a 117-111 overtime loss. Instead of going home with the series tied at 2-2, Memphis is set to be eliminated from the 2023 NBA Playoffs.

The Grizzlies need to kick each other after Monday’s devastating Game 4 loss at Crypto.com Arena. Memphis took a 97-90 lead with just over five minutes left in the third quarter. DAngelo Russell’s 3 straight points kept the Lakers alive. Desmond Banes’ quick layup with six seconds left looked like the game winner. LeBron James responded with his own layup, forcing overtime, where the Lakers outscored the Grizzlies 13-7.

Bane would have been the Game 4 hero for Memphis had the Grizzlies been able to close out the contest in good standing. The shooter led all scorers with 36 points. Bane was the only Grizzlies player to show up offensively for Memphis in a must-have virtual situation.

How did Los Angeles go the extra mile to send Memphis home for the remainder of the NBA Playoffs? Let’s take a look at the two Grizzlies who were most responsible for their Game 4 loss to the Lakers.

The Grizzlies will struggle to beat the Lakers on nights when LeBron James has a big game and Ja Morant doesn’t. That was exactly the case in Game 4, and it ultimately cost Memphis a contest they badly needed to win. Morant had a nightmarish shooting night, missing 16 of 24 field goal attempts. The point guard went 1 of 6 from 3 points and finished with 19 points. Morant also had four rebounds, seven assists and four turnovers.

Morant delivered the assist to Bane on the potential winner. The superstar made a few mistakes that gave the Lakers a chance to escape Game 4 with a win. With the score tied at 99-99 and just over two minutes remaining, Morant foolishly tried to dive on James instead of making a lay-up. The result was a charge on Morant instead of an advance on Memphis. Morant returned the ball on the Grizzlies’ first possession in overtime. He scored two points on four shots in the extra session.

When Morant scored 22 straight points for the Grizzlies late in Game 3, it seemed like a possible sign the point guard was headed for a big Game 4 performance. The 23-year-old finished with five more shot attempts than points scored.

The Lakers-Grizzlies series is perhaps best known for Dillon Brooks’ trash talk and failure to back it up on the court. Not only did the small forward fail to prevent James from resuming the series, but he was an abject disaster on offense.

Los Angeles dared Brooks to take 3 points throughout the series. Brooks obliged, and the strategy worked overwhelmingly in favor of the Lakers. Brooks missed six of his seven attempts from behind the arc in Game 4. He finished the contest with 11 points on 11 field goal attempts. In all four games against the Lakers, Brooks shot less than 40 percent from the floor.

James essentially put Game 4 aside with a layup that gave the Lakers a 113-108 lead with 29.4 seconds left in overtime. Brooks couldn’t stop James from reaching the hoop and icing a victory in Los Angeles. James finished Game 4 with 22 points and 20 rebounds.

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