Grizzlies rookie Cameron Boozer logs first NBA triple-double in rout of Blazers

Cameron Boozer recorded the first triple-double of his NBA career Thursday night, finishing with 18 points, 12 rebounds and 12 assists as the Memphis Grizzlies beat the Portland Trail Blazers 124-103 in Portland. The win moved Memphis to 5-0 to open the season, a mark confirmed on the team's official NBA.com page, which lists Memphis second in the Western Conference. Thursday's matchup also pitted two of the NBA's few unbeaten teams against each other, with Portland arriving at 3-0.

Boozer's line is logged on his official NBA.com player page, which shows the rookie forward has scored in double figures in four of his first five games and is averaging 15.4 points, 10.6 rebounds and 6.2 assists so far this season, according to his player profile on CBS Sports.

A pedigreed pick

Boozer was the No. 3 overall pick in June's draft, taken by Memphis behind AJ Dybantsa and Darryn Peterson, according to an NBA.com report on the pick. At Duke, he led the Blue Devils to the Elite Eight and an ACC title as a freshman, was named ACC tournament MVP and swept the sport's major national player of the year awards while averaging 22.5 points, 10.2 rebounds and 4.1 assists. He is the son of former NBA forward Carlos Boozer, who also played at Duke, won two All-Star selections over 13 NBA seasons and a gold medal at the 2008 Olympics. Memphis, coming off a 25-57 season, is building its rebuild around Boozer alongside 2024 draft pick Zach Edey, who added 13 points in Thursday's win.

Morant's return

Thursday's game was also the first meeting between Memphis and Ja Morant since the Grizzlies traded the guard to Portland on June 29, sending back forward Jerami Grant and forward-guard Kris Murray, according to CBS Sports. Morant, who had been averaging 16.3 points and 6.3 assists on 58.8% shooting for Portland and scored 23 points in a win over the Lakers his previous outing, finished with 14 points and three assists in 23 minutes before leaving in the fourth quarter with a hamstring injury and not returning.

"I didn't want to leave. Memphis was enough to me, but I'm in a good place now," Morant said of the trade.

Morant spent seven seasons in Memphis after going second overall in the 2019 draft, winning Rookie of the Year and making three All-Star teams, before suspensions tied to gun-related incidents and injuries reduced his role with the team.

Depth off the bench

Eight Grizzlies scored in double figures, led by Isaiah Stewart's season-high 18 points off the bench, Cedric Coward's 17 and GG Jackson's 12, according to the box score posted on NBA.com's official game page. Ty Jerome, named Western Conference Player of the Week after a career-best 45-point season opener, was held to 10 points on 3-for-12 shooting. Deni Avdija led Portland with 24 points, nine rebounds and seven assists, Donovan Clingan added 11 points, eight rebounds and five blocks, and Damian Lillard shot just 3-for-13 a night after hitting a game-winning three-pointer against the Lakers. Memphis pulled away with a 10-0 run in the third quarter and outscored Portland 33-20 in the fourth, according to CBS Sports' AP-sourced recap.

Both teams play again Saturday: Portland travels to Utah, and Memphis visits Sacramento before returning home to face New Orleans and Indiana ahead of a measuring-stick game against Oklahoma City on Nov. 6, according to the Grizzlies' schedule on NBA.com.