Cam Boozer Got a Summer League Win for His Birthday. Cedric Coward Made Sure of It.

The Memphis Grizzlies gave Cam Boozer exactly one thing for his 19th birthday: a trip to the Summer League championship game. No wrapping paper required.

Boozer turned 19 on Saturday, and the Grizzlies beat the Houston Rockets 101-90 in the Summer League semifinals. That win punched Memphis’s ticket to Sunday’s title game against the Golden State Warriors. And according to Cedric Coward, that was the only gift that mattered.

“The win is the present,” Coward said after the game.

The NBA even clipped the moment. Coward, who has gotten tight with the No. 3 overall pick fast, wasn’t messing around when he said it. Asked what else he might get Boozer, Coward kept it loose.

“I think the next thing, I just want to make him pay for dinner. Some rookie duties he has to do, I might take off his plate,” Coward said. “I don’t know yet. We’ll figure it out. But the win is the present.”

Boozer played along, joking about what he actually expects from the guys.

“Yeah, I’m expecting a full paycheck. No, I’m just kidding. It’s great to have a win on my birthday,” Boozer said. “Get ready to get some rest for tomorrow and get another win, a championship for birthday week.”

Coward carried the load on offense

If the win was the gift, Coward was the wrapping. He led all scorers with 28 points on 9-of-19 shooting, hitting four 3-pointers along with six rebounds and five assists. Boozer had a quieter scoring night by his standards — 12 points on 3-of-13 shooting — but he stuffed the box score everywhere else: a team-high 12 rebounds, five assists, and the kind of gravity that opens up looks for everyone else.

Javon Small added 17 points and six assists on an efficient 6-of-11 shooting night. Olivier-Maxence Prosper chipped in 15.

Houston got 24 from Quadir Copeland, but the Rockets never really solved Memphis’s balanced attack. The Grizzlies got contributions from basically everyone who touched the floor, and that variety was enough to keep Houston from ever fully closing the gap.

Now Memphis heads into Sunday at 4-1 in Summer League play, with a chance to cap Boozer’s birthday week with a championship. The Warriors are waiting. But the Grizzlies already gave their rookie the one thing he wanted most.