Ja Morant injures knee in loss, Warriors deny ill intent

With 6:55 left in the Grizzlies' 142-112 loss to the Golden State Warriors in Game 3 of the Western Conference semifinals Saturday night, Morant suffered a right knee injury after Jordan Poole pulled Morant's knee. The Grizzlies responded by coming out swinging, adding fuel to the fire of an already extremely charged series.Morant retweeted a video of the play, writing, "Broke the code."It was a not-so-subtle shot at Warriors coach Steve Kerr, who claimed that Dillon Brooks "broke the code" after he swung at Gary Payton II's head while he was midair in Game 2, which resulted in Payton suffering a fractured left elbow and Brooks being suspended for Game 3. But we're not out there trying to hurt people or trying to club people in the back of the head on a fast break." (That last sentence, of course, was a clear dig at Brooks.)Added Stephen Curry: "it's not a joking matter that Ja is hurt, but all the rest of it is total B.S. in terms of the conversation right now."Regardless of intent, this much is for sure: For the Grizzlies to have any shot at winning this series, Morant needs to be 100 percent healthy.Morant has been absolutely outstanding in this series. At least one player has been ejected in every game, including Green in Game 1 (for a hard foul on Brandon Clarke), Brooks in Game 2 and Kyle Anderson in Game 3 (arguing calls with officials).The Grizzlies are known as the most physical team in the league — and the Warriors have risen to the requisite level of competition. When Green — still sporting a swollen eye from taking an elbow to the face by Xavier Tillman in Game 2 — was asked if he thinks the Grizzlies are trying to paint the Warriors as a dirty team, he flashed a smile.