Memphis Grizzlies guard Ja Morant. Scott Wachter-Imagn Images

The NBA's viral moment of the year didn't count

By Sai Mohan | Last updated Jan 16, 2025 10:48 AM ET

If the NBA ever needed a picture-perfect moment to lure in casual fans, Ja Morant and Victor Wembanyama, the league's best dunker and shot-blocker, respectively, produced it Wednesday.

In the waning moments of Memphis' 129-115 win in San Antonio, rookie guard Stephon Castle was called for a blocking foul on Morant, who ignored the referee's call and charged at the rim anyway. Even as their teammates heeded the whistle, Morant and Wemby seemed determined to collide at the rim — perhaps to challenge one another.

The Frenchman was in his typical blocking stance, timed his jump perfectly and met Morant above the rim. The Grizzlies star dared to leap and put the ball in the cup while nearly posterizing Wemby. Technically, it wasn't a dunk since Morant didn't touch the rim. Yet, it was a snapshot moment worthy of being framed.

Ja Morant just threw down a CRAZY dunk after the whistle pic.twitter.com/fpQnist4AJ
— NBA (@NBA) January 16, 2025

@JaMorant https://t.co/2aeJ35HzZh pic.twitter.com/pAd04xi96U
— Memphis Grizzlies (@memgrizz) January 16, 2025

Since the field goal didn't count, some fans and analysts tried to downgrade Morant's feat. The Grizzlies star made it clear in his news conference that the dunk "counts" since it happened in living color.

"I kept going with the play because normally I don't hear no whistle when I drive to [the rim]," Morant said.

When asked if he approached the charge differently due to the 7-foot-5 frame awaiting him, Morant said he saw "just another person at the rim" he was trying to posterize.

"I dunked on plenty people. He don't get no pass either," Morant said of Wembanyama. "If you at the rim, I'm going to try you if it's that situation. It's me."

It takes more than this to warrant a spirited response from Ja Morant.

I tried … https://t.co/1kJnVQkr7i pic.twitter.com/qmprUMQp4l
— Michael Wallace (@MyMikeCheck) January 16, 2025

Morant finished with 21 points and 12 assists as the Grizzlies (26-15) strengthened their hold over the third seed in the conference. The Spurs (19-20) are trying to return to the playoffs after a five-year absence.

Sai Mohan

A veteran sportswriter based in Portugal, Sai covers the NBA for Yardbarker and a few local news outlets. He had the honor of covering sporting events across four different continents as a newspaper reporter. Some of his all-time favorite athletes include Mike Tyson, Larry Bird, Luís Figo, Ayrton Senna and Steffi Graf.

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