Ja Morant is happy.

One of the primary takeaways from the Memphis Grizzlies superstar guard's media day appearance at FedExForum Monday was about the positive headspace he finds himself in after the turbulence he has endured the past year-plus.

Seated in front of a room full of media members, Morant offered up a bit of potential foreshadowing when he was asked whether he felt a desire to remind people who he is.

"Honestly, I’m not even worried about proving them wrong," said Morant, who was limited to just nine games last season because of a 25-game suspension and a shoulder injury that required surgery. "Right now, I’m happy and that’s my main focus.

"I feel like a happy Ja is a scary Ja for a lot of people. So, long as I stay happy and healthy, it’ll be a great season."

Here is everything Morant said during the time he spent with reporters Monday.

Q. How do you feel this roster stacks up with some of the previous rosters?

Morant: I honestly feel like this is one of the best rosters we’ve had, you know, on paper, depth-wise. And now being able to see the guys go out and when we’re playing and stuff, it gives me even more confidence. I feel like we’re pretty much loaded at every position. It’s gonna be interesting to see how it all pans out.

Q. What are you going to get out of being back on the court most?

Morant: It’s what I love to do. Obviously, you know, it’s my job. Obviously, I wanna be out there every game. So, now my main focus is to be able to do that. Recovery has pretty much been the biggest thing for me. You know, obviously, this offseason because of my shoulder, and then ramping back up and having to recover the other parts of my body. So, that’s pretty much what I’m checking for. Obviously excited to be back on the floor and fight with the guys. But I’d rather play every game than just half, so.

Q. Is there something you’ll want to remember from the last year about the good or the bad that might have come from that?

Morant: Pretty much everything the last two years. You know, everything that I’ve experienced. Everything I’ve been through, I wanna remember that feeling I felt each time, no matter what situation it was. I feel like it helped me a lot, it helped me grow more into a better Ja. Right now, you know, I’m probably the happiest I feel like I’ve been in a while. You know just having my family, my AAU team and the little things I was doing to keep me going and that makes me happy being able to do it this offseason – catching up with a lot of my family has been good.

Q. What did you learn about the game while having to sit out?

Morant: I mean, obviously, it was a unique situation for us, because not only was I out, we had a lot of guys out. Which, you know, we had to put guys in different roles just to see how well they played. Obviously, it showed me they got a lot more in they bags, as we would say. So, it’s only right for me to continue to make them play with that confidence each and every day no matter what it is. So, being able to sit out, it was basically like a film study session for me to watch my teammates, I would say it gave me a lot of confidence going into this year on how I can put them in better places.

Q. How much of what you’ve been through the last couple of years are you using as motivation? Is there a motivation to remind folks around the NBA that you’re still that guy?

Morant: Honestly, I’m not even worried about proving them wrong. Right now, I’m happy and that’s my main focus. I feel like a happy Ja is a scary Ja for a lot of people. So, long as I stay happy and healthy, it’ll be a great season.

Q. How are you doing mentally?

Morant: I’m good. I’m doing well. You know, I woke up this morning, as we all did. We’re blessed to be here and be in the position that I’m in. Do what I love at the highest level. Being able to take care of my family and put them in positions to excel in whatever they want to do in life. That’s my main goal. All that’s going well right now, so I have no complaints.

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Q. What was your shoulder rehab like and will it affect your play?

Morant: Mentally, it was pretty much just how can I come back faster than the timetable they gave me. Which I try to do every time. But with this injury, I had to actually be patient. I feel like that allowed me to sit back and look at a lot of things in life that I feel like that’s important to me. I had the opportunity to do that. Obviously, I don’t want to be in that position to have to go through recovery and rehab, but I feel like that helped me this offseason with my mindset.

Q. What did you get out of the time you spent playing with Marcus Smart last season?  

Morant: I look at Marcus as an important piece to this team as well as the core guys that (coach Taylor Jenkins) and (general manager Zach Kleiman) keep mentioning. Obviously, he was Defensive Player of the Year. The games we played in, he showed what he can do fur us offensively, whether it’s shooting the ball or making plays for others. But I feel like he’s our tone-setter, him and Jaren. Being able to come into the season having both of those guys on the floor is our goal and something I’m looking forward to.

Y’all have a good day. Happy media day.

Reach sports writer Jason Munz at jason.munz@commercialappeal.com or follow him @munzly on X, the social media app formerly known as Twitter.

This article originally appeared on Memphis Commercial Appeal: Everything Ja Morant said during Grizzlies media day appearance