The Grizzlies are entertaining trade offers for Ja Morant and will consider moving the star point guard prior to the February 5 trade deadline, reports Shams Charania of ESPN.
According to Charania, multiple teams have interest in Morant and the Grizzlies are weighing possible paths forward, including either keeping the two-time All-Star or trading him in order to build around Jaren Jackson Jr. and their young core. If Memphis does make a deal involving Morant, the goal would be to acquire young players and draft picks in return, Charania adds.
Morant, 26, was the NBA’s Rookie of the Year in 2020 and Most Improved Player in 2022 while making All-Star teams in both ’22 and ’23. However, his ascent to superstardom was derailed by injuries and by his off-court behavior — he was suspended twice by the NBA for brandishing a firearm in videos on social media, and missed most of the 2023/24 season due to a torn labrum in his shoulder.
Health issues have continued to plague Morant, who is currently sidelined due to a calf contusion, since the start of the ’24/25 season. He has appeared in 68 of 119 total games during that time and hasn’t looked as explosive as he once did.
In the past season-and-a-half, the former No. 2 overall pick has still posted solid numbers, including 22.1 points and 7.4 assists per contest, but those averages are well below his previous highs. He has also shot just 44.1% from the floor and 28.7% on three-pointers since the start of last season.
Trade speculation kicked into high gear during the fall after a disagreement between Morant and Grizzlies head coach Tuomas Iisalo about substitution patterns escalated into a locker room confrontation and earned the point guard a team-imposed one-game suspension.
The relationship has appeared to be in a better place in recent weeks, but even if he and Iisalo are on good terms, Morant’s position as a long-term cornerstone in Memphis no longer seems nearly as secure as it once was. His maximum-salary contract, his past off-court conduct, his injury history, and his declining production are all factors that may complicate his place in the Grizzlies’ future.
The Timberwolves and Kings were among the teams said to be monitoring Morant’s situation earlier this season, and both Brett Siegel of ClutchPoints (Twitter link) and Kevin O’Connor of Yahoo Sports (Twitter link) suggest they’re worth keeping an eye on now that the Grizzlies are apparently more open to a deal.
Still, a recent report suggested Minnesota is more inclined to pursue point guards on mid-tier contracts rather than maximum salaries, and it’s unclear if Morant fits Scott Perry‘s vision to build a more defensive-minded roster in Sacramento.
Both Siegel and O’Connor also mention the Heat as a possible suitor for Morant, with Siegel tweeting that Miami was among the clubs to reach out to Memphis in the fall.
The Grizzlies will be gauging the market on Morant shortly after the Hawks moved four-time All-Star point guard Trae Young for a modest return: CJ McCollum, Corey Kispert, and no draft compensation. Morant is earning less than Young ($39.4MM this season) and is on a guaranteed contract for two more years beyond this one, but scouts and executives have expressed skepticism about the trade value of offense-first point guards like Morant.
“Ja, Trae and LaMelo (Ball) don’t have that much value because the game has changed around them,” one scout recently told The Athletic.
The Grizzlies reshaped their roster last summer, sending Desmond Bane to Orlando for a package that featured four first-round picks. While the team is still headlined by veteran stars Morant and Jackson, the front office has done well building a promising young core around them, including Cedric Coward, Zach Edey, and Jaylen Wells.
Despite being open to trading Morant, the Grizzlies apparently aren’t looking to launch a full-fledged rebuild entirely around that younger group — Siegel reports that the club has no interest in discussing potential deals involving Jackson.
Go get him Raps.
Hell no. I’m not a big IQ fan, and I think Toronto should replace him, but Morant and his drama need to stay far away from Toronto. Here’s to hoping his gun offenses make it harder for him to play for Toronto.
Would be harder to have a gun up here. They said that Brandon Ingram has character issues too.
No way. They aren’t that desperate.
Assuming they want a PG and need matching salary. We would be hard to overlook. I like the makeup and moxy of our team so def not needed. Just some thoughts.
Will be a high cost to get him. you got to be thinking at least 3 1st round picks.
Given what Trae just got, I doubt three picks is the cost. As the article notes:
“His maximum-salary contract, his past off-court conduct, his injury history, and his declining production are all factors that complicate his place in the Grizzlies’ future.”
He’s lost a step from an athletic standpoint due to injuries. He’s a career .310 three point shooter with a ghastly .201 percentage this year in a league increasingly reliant on the three ball. He’s expensive. He’s liable to do something idiotic off the court and get suspended. Or he’ll be disgruntled about playing time or some other me-first issue. And the second round of the playoffs is as far as he’s ever gone.
If the Grizzlies are setting a high price, he’s staying in Memphis.
Teams announce a player being tradeable to get a bidding war. there is always that 1 owner who will flinch.
Nobody flinched on Trae. Not sure it will be different for Ja.
Not in 2026, arc. The rules are different now. The market is about to be so dry for sellers, who will sell anyway.
I do not know about that davey in the east a lot of teams can get into the top 6. In the west there are some teams looking for that 1 guy to compete with the best.
@arc89: In a vacuum, I would agree with you but given the salary cap and aprons and all of that nonsense, trading players like Ja, who have a big contract, is a lot more difficult than it used to be. It can still get done, but the trading partners are limited in what they can send out and take in.
i get a feeling Grizzlies just want to see what type of offers they get for him. Why not get in on the action and see what is offered.
I seriously doubt he will command much in today’s climate. Big contract, awful FG% this season (40% overall and 21% from three) and his history of clashing with the coaching stall and off-court issues will give teams pause.
If the Suns had picks I can bet they would be making a crazy offer. I look at the Cavs making a deal since they are fading and have some young players to trade with picks.
Cavs have been playing a little better lately. Morant wouldn’t really fit. They’d have to trade Garland as having Mitchell, Garland and Morant wouldn’t make any sense. Only way they trade Garland is to upgrade the defense and Ja doesn’t do that. They also don’t have much in the way of picks or young players.
Their 2026 and 2028 firsts are swappable by Utah. Their 27 and 29 picks are complex but they’re basically controlled by Utah.
Tyson is their only desirable young player and the Cavs need him because he’s cheap and their roster is expensive.
i like Graland better than Ja because Garland makes the Cavs run. that would be a straight 1 for 1 trade that doesn’t make the cavs better. The more I look into it a 3 way or 4 way trade with multiple teams.
Garland is worth more than Ja. Your not getting him without adding picks. Garland was very good until he got hurt. Ja hasnt been good, and has been hurt.
I wasn’t suggesting they trade Garland for Morant. I like Garland more as well as he can shoot. Just trying to see how Cleveland would be involved. Only other guy to trade would be Allen and Grizz don’t need him with Jackson and Edey. I’d love to see Aldama in Cleveland but Allen and Aldama would be it’s own trade.
Whats the upside of Ja? He was a freak athlete, but athleticism peaks around 21. Its why in non strategic sports like gymnastics they retire around when the athleticism peaks. In the NBA its usually offset in production by players BB IQ increasing. Eventually the athletic declines outpace players ability to get craftier and smarter.
I would say Ja is as crafty and smart as he will ever get, and his athleticism will do nothing but decline from here on out. So what is he? He is an undersized guard that is a defensive liability. He is a poor shooter with minimal 3pt gravity, who risks injury with his most above avg scoring skill. He is a petulant athlete that has never been told no. And he seems to have a bad crew of friends off the court that help get him into trouble.
This all comes as the NBA gets bigger and more skilled. When offense is as easy to come by as it ever has been, and defense is at a premium. If he had done the Steph thing where he worked insanely hard to add strength, and became an avg NBA defender despite his size he could maybe be more of a positive. We are also talking about one of the worst 3pt shooting guards in the NBA at a time when team 3pters are at the highest rate they have ever been.
I dont know if he had a ton of value 2 years ago when his decline really started getting worse, but he sure as s*** doesnt have value with where the league has gone since. He also hasnt been very healthy or performed very well this year. It says something if your a player and the Kangs want you.
His decline is from his attitude. He is like Kuminga needing to be in the right offense.
His 3pt shooting keeps getting worse year over year. He will never be a good defender, but it will probably only get worse. He is not as rim heavy as he used to be, and thats the only place he was efficient. He is the ultimate high usage low efficiency player that only plays one way.
These high priced and injury prone or huge ego players are a problem getting worse. Teams should be extremely careful or stop paying $50 million dollar contracts as they are coming back to bite them big time. It’s better to be build your team around $20 million per year contracts going forward. One mistake can ruin your team for years.
Seriously asking, are you high? I mean I was about to smoke, but I feel like I already did reading this.
I wouldn’t be shocked if they have to pay to get off that contract. He has declined worse than Trae, and Trae never had any of the off court stuff Morant has. When you combine his on court deficiencies/decline with all his other problems I doubt he has positive value to most teams. Thats before getting into how hard it is to build a team around Ja. He has to be defensively protected to the tune of JJJ and Edey, and is a poor 3pt shooter so he mandates having bigs that can shoot for spacing to work.
You never rule out teams being desperate enough to pick up a player for their name. he still can shoot and make high light reels. You are correct he is a very poor defender. Look what bane got the grizzlies. that was an over pay. Could help out teh warriors in being part of a 3 or 4 team trade with kuminga. there are a few teams in the east wanting to make a splash that will go for him and I am hoping Grizzlies want Kuminga in a 3 way trade.
The Bane trade was far less of an overpay than people make it out to be. Those picks were never going to be in the lottery, and as such werent valued like they were. On top of that ORL should have had to pay to dump KCP, so you could say at least 1-2 of the picks was to offset the bad salary returning to MEM rather than just compensation for Bane.
I do think GSW will try and insert themselves into one of these deals if they cant get traction on any of their main targets like Herb/TreyIII.
Oh no, absolutely not. The Trae Young return is really what would be expected, not much more. Everyone knows Memphis wants to get rid of him so no one will add picks.
Memphis would accept just expiring’s and not even have the gall to ask for more in fear of potentially scaring away any (prey) suitors
With 2 more stubborn years left they would probably even pitch in a crappy 1st they have stocked to move off him and get a fresh start
Shoulda done this yrs ago
Terrible attitude, lots of off court issues, injuries
The fans in Memphis love him. Even if the team saw this coming it is hard to get out ahead of the fans.
The Thunder are on line one.
Nah
Why?
No Fing way
People are going to be shocked at the return I am calling it now. And that reality will definitely lead to nuanced and balanced discussions lol
3 team deal
Phoenix gets Ja Morant – Morant/Booker/Brooks/O’Neal/Williams
Charlotte gets Jalen Green – Knueppel/Green/Miller/Bridges/Kalkbrenner
Memphis gets LaMelo Ball – Ball/Coward/KCP/JJJ/Edey
Obviously picks would be included but this benefits all the clubs involved.
Charlotte gets robbed in that deal and your proposed lineup for them odd missing a point guard, or anyone who can handle the ball for that matter.
Knueppel was playing defacto PG for them while Ball was out.
And Charlotte would get picks because Phoenix and Memphis would get the better players.
Defacto won’t cut it and how many picks are you talking about? 5? More? Salaries are also an issue.
Yeah, I really didn’t want to get into other players and picks, the basis of my original post was those 3 players being traded. Lol especially Jalen Green, he’s the odd ball out on that Phoenix team.
PHX doesnt have picks…
Yeah that would be an issue lol.
See if you can work AD and MPJ in. :)
Can he bring his guns with him to a new team?
Depends on the state
I mean after seeing what Trae got Atlanta why wouldn’t every team be in a rush to trade their underachieving problematic star
He’ll bring back even less than Trae.
This I agree with
Not rebuilding? Sure seems like a slow motion tear down to me.
No duh
Why would any team want to add that headache to their team?
Probably should’ve kept Bane. Memphis front office is solid at drafting since its hard to attract free agents to Memphis,
Memphis did have a nice playoff run with young Ja and we all bought in. Then it fell apart for him.
I just wonder if Memphis could still be competing now had they shipped Ja sooner and kept Bane instead.
Where do you ship him to? Sacramento? Minny? Miami? Brooklyn? Does his Dad have to come along too?
The article on ESPN with trade scenarios are actually pretty good. I’d do any of them except the Timberwolves one. The raptors and bucks trades are the best two IMO
Said this was happening when Jenkins got fired.
Why don’t they just do Ja for LaMelo straight-up?
Because LaMelo is way better?
(Hornets wouldn’t)
LaMelo is not better than Ja and LaMelo is constantly hurt.
If your Memphis are you happy trading Ja and not replacing him at PG, and just going with what you have in house already?
Cam Spencer is putting up 12-5-3 shooting 49-47-91 in 23 minutes.
Vinny Williams gives you 8-5-4 however is very inefficient as a shooter in his 21 minutes.
Scottie Pippen Jr has 10-4.5-3 shooting 48-40-71 again in 21 minutes per night.
Then lastly Ty Jerome who has been out all year but last year put up 12.5-3.5-2.5 shooting 51-44-87.
Obviously JJJ is your 4 that’s locked up Coward and Edey look the next most important pieces. Coward can play either the 2 or 3 spot and behind him Wells is also solid.
Similarly to the Trae Young trade situation, there’s no a huge market for Ja right now but I’d say there’s probably slightly more out there.
One idea would be Ja for Tyler Herro, plus maybe some other moving pieces.
Herro is a much more efficient scorer with more range but it’s not really a step forward. Not even sure if Miami would be interested but Ja seems like a Heat guy and if they got him back to his best it would be a great move for them.
Another idea could be Jerami Grant and Scoot Henderson for Ja.
Grant slots in at the 3 and moves Coward to the 2 which is fine. He offers good shooting and defence but is obviously a sizeable downgrade. Scoot Henderson could be your long term point guard replacement but again he’s got some question marks on his game and on his health now.
Idk it’s a tough spot cause there’s not a hell of a lot out there and I guess that’s what ATL did right in all this is least they moved first and had a plan in place as to possibly extending CJ and lining up AD and also got that pick up their sleeves.
As a Bulls fan I wouldnt mind seeing them go after Ja, we have Giddey but can play with Ja. Ja was heading to be the face of the league before he started acting a fool. Can be a real buy low REWARD HIGH opportunity.
Star players become available often.
He is also not in the same category of Trae Young or LaMelo Ball, he is much better.
He ain’t anywhere near as good as LaMelo and Trae as a matter of fact!
He would be a good fit with Zion but the Pelicans are such a dumpster fire that I am almost 100% sure it wouldn’t work.
Houston would be smart to buy low on Ja, they REALLY need a point guard (even if FVV gets healthy, he is not good enough to be the starting pg on a championship team)
Do a three team. Not sure how high NOLA is pricing Murphy, but it’s worth a shot. MEM would do good at limiting Eddy’s minutes to max out his effort/efficiency and limit his injury risks. 1st unit with JJJ doing the defense/stretching the floor and Sabonis grabbing boards and scoring inside. 2nd unit Aldama stretching the defense and Eddy providing rim protection, grabbing boards and scoring inside. They would need a PG of the future, but everything else would be solid. Draft a PG next year or go for a bandaid option like Sexton.
SAC swings for a star PG and get some 3&D they’re needing. Give up an All Star big and older guards.
NOLA gets some picks, a proven vet scorer, decent rotational F/C, and a young wing with potential. Give up the most valuable piece in Trey, but the don’t use Bey or Looney much/
MEM get: sabonis, murphy, bey, and westbrook
SAC get: morant, kcp, kevon looney, and a 2nd round pick (from MEM)
NOLA get: 2 1st round picks and a 2nd (from MEM), derozan, brandon clarke, and gg jackson
Grizz know they are afraid to get him…