Ja Morant
A point guard who redefined athletic audacity with his gravity-defying dunks and fearless playmaking for the Memphis Grizzlies.
Born 1999 (age 27)·American basketball player·Birthday: August 10·Generation Z
Biography
Ja Morant exploded onto the national scene not from a traditional basketball powerhouse, but from Murray State University in Kentucky. His sophomore year there was less a season and more a declaration, as he led the nation in assists and punctuated games with highlight-reel plays that seemed to defy physics. Drafted second overall by the Memphis Grizzlies in 2019, he immediately infused the franchise with an electric, unapologetic energy, winning Rookie of the Year and transforming the team into a perennial playoff threat. His style—a blend of blistering speed, impossible hang time, and a passer's vision—made him a must-watch phenomenon. While off-court controversies have punctuated his narrative, his on-court impact remains undeniable, representing a new generation's blend of showmanship and skill.
Generation Z
1997–2012
Born into smartphones, social media, and school shootings. The most diverse generation in history. Pragmatic about money, fluid about identity, anxious about the climate. They do not remember a world before the internet.
Ja was born in 1999, placing them squarely in the Generation Z. The events that shaped this generation — social media, climate anxiety, and a pandemic — shaped the world they entered and the choices available to them.
#1 When Ja Was Born
The biggest hits of 1999
#1 Movie
Star Wars: Episode I
Best Picture
American Beauty
#1 TV Show
ER
Ja's Life & Times
The world at every milestone
1999Born
Columbine shooting; Y2K panic builds
Gas: $1.17/galHome: $113,900Min wage: $5.15/hrPresident: Bill Clinton"Believe" — CherBest Picture: American Beauty
2004Started school
Indian Ocean tsunami kills over 230,000
Gas: $1.88/galHome: $157,300Min wage: $5.15/hrPresident: George W. Bush"Yeah!" — UsherBest Picture: Million Dollar Baby
2012Became a teenager
Curiosity rover lands on Mars; Sandy Hook shooting
Gas: $3.64/galHome: $143,200Min wage: $7.25/hrPresident: Barack Obama"Somebody That I Used to Know" — GotyeBest Picture: Argo
2015Could drive
Paris climate agreement; same-sex marriage legalized in the US
Gas: $2.43/galHome: $171,900Min wage: $7.25/hrPresident: Barack Obama"Uptown Funk" — Mark Ronson ft. Bruno MarsBest Picture: Spotlight
2017Could vote
#MeToo movement; solar eclipse crosses the US
Gas: $2.42/galHome: $195,000Min wage: $7.25/hrPresident: Donald Trump"Shape of You" — Ed SheeranBest Picture: The Shape of Water
2020Turned 21
COVID-19 pandemic shuts down the world
Gas: $2.17/galHome: $248,800Min wage: $7.25/hrPresident: Donald Trump"Blinding Lights" — The WeekndBest Picture: Nomadland
2026Age 27 today
Gas: $3.91/galPresident: Donald Trump
Key Achievements
- Won the NBA Rookie of the Year award in 2020.
- Earned NBA All-Star selections in 2022 and 2023.
- Led the NBA in total points in the paint for a guard during the 2021-22 season.
- Was named a consensus first-team All-American in his final collegiate season at Murray State.
Did You Know?
He did not receive any major NCAA Division I scholarship offers until the summer before his senior year of high school.
His father, Tee Morant, was a former high school teammate of NBA star Ray Allen.
He famously wore a "Whoop That Trick" shirt during the 2022 NBA playoffs, a phrase from the movie *Hustle & Flow* that became a Grizzlies rallying cry.
“I'm fine in the dark. Put the light on me, I'm still gonna shine.”
