🏀 Ja Morant 2019-20 Panini Donruss Optic #2 The Rookies Rookie Card RC PSA 10 GEM MINT — Dalzell, South Carolina — Murray State Racers — 2nd Overall Pick 2019 NBA Draft — Memphis Grizzlies — 2020 NBA Rookie of the Year — Panini Donruss Optic The Rookies Subset — PSA 10 Maximum Grade Certified

🏀 The Memphis Grizzlies selected Ja Morant second overall in the 2019 NBA Draft and gave the league something it had not seen in years — a point guard whose explosiveness, creativity, and willingness to attack the basket with abandon made him arguably the most electric player of his draft class from the first week of his professional career. This 2019-20 Panini Donruss Optic card, number 2 in The Rookies subset, graded PSA 10 GEM MINT by Professional Sports Authenticator, is the maximum-grade certified chromium rookie card from one of the hobby's premium Donruss product lines for the Grizzlies' second-overall selection and 2020 NBA Rookie of the Year. Condition: NOS.

🌟 Dalzell, South Carolina — Murray State — The Obscure Path to the Top of the Draft

Ja Morant was born on August 10, 1999, in Dalzell, South Carolina, and his path to the NBA was one of the most unconventional stories in recent draft history. He played his high school basketball without attracting significant Division I attention — ultimately taking his game to Murray State University in Murray, Kentucky, a mid-major program in the Ohio Valley Conference that was not a traditional destination for future top-two lottery picks. At Murray State, Morant revealed exactly what he was capable of: averages of 24.5 points and 10 assists per game as a sophomore in 2018-19, a performance that propelled him from relative obscurity to the second pick in the NBA Draft in a single season. The story of Dalzell to Murray State to Memphis is exactly the kind of underdog arc that makes player cards from a player's debut season compelling for collectors. Condition: NOS.

🏟️ Memphis Grizzlies — Tee Morant — The Draft Night

The Memphis Grizzlies went into the 2019 NBA Draft holding the second overall selection and came out of draft night with Ja Morant — a pick that his father Tee Morant, a former professional player himself, witnessed with the kind of pride that comes from watching a child reach the destination that years of development had pointed toward. The Grizzlies were building around youth following a transition from the Grit and Grind era, and Morant represented the fastest point guard on the roster — a player whose acceleration in the open court and elevation on his drives created highlight moments on a near-nightly basis from his first professional season. Condition: NOS.

🏆 2020 NBA Rookie of the Year — The Debut Season

Ja Morant won the 2020 NBA Rookie of the Year award for his debut season with the Memphis Grizzlies — averaging 17.8 points, 7.3 assists, and 3.9 rebounds per game in a campaign that established him as the standard for the 2019 draft class. His first-year performance in Memphis confirmed what the Murray State film had shown evaluators: a player whose instincts, athleticism, and competitiveness produced winning basketball at the NBA level immediately, without the typical adjustment period that high-upside prospects often require. Condition: NOS.

📋 2019-20 Panini Donruss Optic — The Rookies Subset — The Chromium Card

Panini Donruss Optic is the chromium version of Panini's Donruss basketball product — applying the refractor-style finish of the chromium card format to the Donruss design and subsets, including The Rookies insert set that highlights specific first-year players in a dedicated subset format. Card number 2 in The Rookies subset is Ja Morant's designated slot within this product. PSA 10 GEM MINT confirms the maximum condition grade — perfect or near-perfect corners, a pristine surface, outstanding centering, and the full chromium visual impact that Optic cards are known for at the highest condition level. The PSA slab provides tamper-evident, UV-resistant protection. Condition: NOS.

🏀⭐ Ja Morant. Dalzell, South Carolina. Murray State Racers. Ohio Valley Conference. 24.5 points per game. 10 assists per game. The projection changed overnight. 2019 NBA Draft. Memphis Grizzlies. Second overall. Tennessee. Tee Morant watched. Rookie season. 17.8 points. 7.3 assists. 2020 Rookie of the Year. The dunks. The mid-air adjustments. The explosiveness. The Grizzlies ascending. 2019-20 Panini Donruss Optic. The Rookies subset. Card #2. PSA 10. GEM MINT. Maximum grade. Condition: NOS.