NBA insider Zach Lowe was critical of the Memphis Grizzlies following their 131- 80 blowout loss in Game 1 against the Oklahoma City Thunder on Monday.
In The Ringer’s reaction video to the Western Conference first-round series, Lowe called out Ja Morant and Co. for being unable to back up their trash talk.
“What are we doing here? Because this team has talked a lot of s**t, and they're going to get rocked in this series. And we're going to be four years into this or whatever, and they're going to have won one playoff series,” Lowe criticized.

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With the clip going viral on social media, users chimed in, agreeing with Lowe’s take. Fans berated the Grizzlies for not living up to their trash talk.
“I mean. That’s a fact. Grizzlies are all bark and no bite,” one said.
“He’s right, they have proven to be playoff droppers,” another commented.
"He’s right lol. They said they were gonna be a dynasty like the Warriors,” @AidanLaPorta69 wrote.
“Zach is spitting. They're gonna lose this series and still be "fine in the west”,” another sarcastically said.
'Dudes throwing fake grenades into the crowd and unloading fake clips on people just to lose by 50,” @MacaroniEvan mocks Morant’s celebrations.
“The s**t talking teams never go anywhere lol,” @netsfreak243416 said.
Lowe also dismissed the idea that Memphis’ short turnaround between the play-in game and their playoff opener is an excuse for their embarrassing 51-point defeat.
“Don't s**k toward the end of the year. Don't get in a position where you have to fire coach with nine games left. They talk to everybody. So you don't want to just back it up,” Lowe concluded.
Following Sunday’s loss, Morant promised Memphis fans that the Grizzlies won't suffer such a humiliating loss again. Morant and the Grizzlies have a chance to silence critics and shift the tone of the series by pulling off an upset in Game 2.
Memphis Grizzlies have faced difficulties since Ja Morant’s infamous prophecy
At one point during the 2022-23 season, Ja Morant boldly declared that the Memphis Grizzlies were “fine in the West” while discussing their championship ambitions. However, that statement has aged poorly.
Not only did Morant and the Grizzlies suffer a first-round exit against the LA Lakers in the 2023 playoffs, but the aftermath has been even more shocking. The star guard faced two separate suspensions, contributing to Memphis missing out on the 2024 postseason entirely.
Things didn’t improve much in the 2024-25 campaign either — the Grizzlies went from being the second seed in the West to clinching a playoff spot via the play-in tournament. To exacerbate matters, the franchise fired its coach just days before the regular season had tipped off.
Grizzlies Nation! You can check out the latest Memphis Grizzlies Schedule and dive into the Grizzlies Depth Chart for NBA Season 2024-25.