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Shaquille O’Neal Compares LeBron James Slayer Ja Morant to a Young Kobe Bryant in Massive Bold Take: “Ja Morant Knows He’s a Star”

Published 01/18/2022, 8:21 AM EST

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Memphis Grizzlies registered their 31st win of the season after beating Eastern Conference leaders Chicago Bulls. The Grizzlies won 119-106 at the FedExForum thanks to Ja Morant’s game-high 25 points. Grizzlies guard Desmond Bane had a significant contribution as well, with 25 points in 29 mins. Given his growing stature and undoubtable skill, Shaquille O’Neal revealed that Morant reminds him of Kobe Bryant.

Ja Morant has been in insane form this season as the Grizzlies won their 12th game out of the last 13. The Grizzlies currently 9-1 sit third in the western conference table, behind the Suns and the Warriors. 22-year-old Morant has been crucial for the Grizzlies this season and is averaging 24.4 points per game this season.

USA Today via Reuters

The Grizzlies have a young roster and in a span of just 15 days, they managed to beat the Suns and the Warriors and did a double over the Lakers (and dominated LeBron in the process). Former Lakers star Shaquille O’Neal is in awe with the Grizzlies team and is all praises for Ja Morant. He recently compared the 22-year-old to his former teammate Kobe Bryant.

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Shaquille O’Neal compares Ja Morant to Kobe Bryant

In a recent episode of ‘NBA on TNT’, former Lakers star Shaquille O’Neal showered massive praise on Morant. Shaq said that the 2020 Rookie of the Year reminds him of the late Kobe Bryant.

“Ja Morant knows he’s a star. He reminds me of a young Kobe Bryant,” Shaq said.

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“Young Kobe Bryant came into this league saying, ‘I’m taking over. I wasn’t a high draft pick, there’s a lot of stars above me, but I’m taking over this game.’ I love the way this kid plays (Morant), I love the enthusiasm he plays with.”

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Kobe Bryant is a Lakers legend and achieved almost everything an NBA player could dream of. He has inspired several youngsters trying to make it to professional basketball. Being compared to Kobe is the highest level of praise a youngster can get and that too from Kobe’s former teammate.

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Ja Morant has what it takes to be the next big thing in the NBA. If he continues to play at the same level, he is going to break several records in the NBA. Morant being compared to the ‘Black Mamba’ by Shaq speaks volumes about the amount of talent he has.

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Written by:

Abhishek Singh

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Abhishek is an NBA writer at EssentiallySports with over two years of journalistic experience with Chase Your Sport and Dribl. A Football Management graduate, he has previously interned in the Indian Super League, I-League and the AFC Champions League. In addition to being a Michael Jordan fan, Abhishek is an ardent Steph Curry and Warriors guy, and believes they have a few more championships in store before the former retires.
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