Trade Candidate Ja Morant Expected To Return To Action On Sunday
Trade talks involving Ja Morant could get more serious once he gets back in action. That is expected to happen on Sunday, when the Grizzlies face the Magic in Berlin.
Morant hasn’t suited up since suffering a right calf injury on Jan. 2.
“There’s a good chance he plays. He went through the full practice today and now we’ve just got to see how his body responds in the morning,” head coach Tuomas Iisalo said, per the Associated Press. “There’s obviously no guarantees and he’s got to feel comfortable with how the calf feels.”
Morant has been limited to 18 games this season, due to a variety of injuries and a one-game suspension in early November for conduct detrimental to the team. He’s averaging 19 points and 7.6 assists in 28.3 minutes per game while shooting a career-low 40.1 percent from the field and 20.8 percent on 3-point attempts.
Iisalo claims he and Morant are on the same page.
“We have a very good working relationship and every day here we both look to get better,” he said.
However, there has been daily speculation regarding Morant’s future ever since reports surfaced last week that Memphis was entertaining trade offers for their point guard.
The Timberwolves, Kings, Heat, Bucks, Raptors, Nets and Mavericks have been mentioned as potential suitors for Morant. However, there have been no reports that any of those trade discussions have reached the serious level. Morant has two years remaining on his five-year, $197.2MM contract and his value has dipped the past few seasons due to declining production and off-the-court issues.
Pacific Notes: Luka, Lakers, Achiuwa, Kawhi, Santos
The Lakers are coming off a disappointing home loss to Charlotte and will be without the NBA’s leading scorer for Saturday’s matchup in Portland, as Dave McMenamin of ESPN relays. Star guard Luka Doncic will miss Saturday’s game due to left groin soreness, while centers Jaxson Hayes (left hamstring tendinopathy) and Deandre Ayton (left knee soreness) are questionable to play.
Veteran guard Marcus Smart was critical of the Lakers’ defensive effort on Thursday after the Hornets shot 53.5% from the field and 46.5% from three-point range en route to 137 points, per Janis Carr of The Orange County Register.
“It doesn’t matter who it is. The team or the player doesn’t matter. When they play [against] us, everything goes through the roof,” Smart said. “If they were shooting 20%, they shoot 50% [against us]. It’s unfortunate, but that’s part of the game. It’s tough. We have to figure it out.
“We must play [with] a little bit more urgency on that end, especially, and kind of impose our will. Teams are doing a really good job of picking straight matchups and picking certain plays that they want.”
We have more from around the Pacific:
- Precious Achiuwa is embracing the opportunity to log most of his minutes at power forward with the Kings, he tells Stefan Bondy of The New York Post (subscriber link). “This is how I’ve always played. All throughout high school, college. First couple years in the league in Toronto, that’s how I played. Mainly playing the four position, which is my natural position,” Achiuwa said. “And that’s how I had a lot of success my first year in New York. Just the ball is able to move around a lot better. Guys are able to play the game with a sense of freedom better. Well, for me at least, I would say a better sense of freedom. Instead of just being pigeonholed.”
- In addition to a right ankle sprain, star forward Kawhi Leonard is also battling a left knee contusion he suffered last weekend, according to the Clippers (Twitter link via Law Murray of The Athletic). Leonard, who missed Friday’s overtime win in Toronto, is considered day-to-day.
- Warriors forward Gui Santos will be sidelined for Saturday’s game against Charlotte after spraining his left ankle in the first quarter of Thursday’s win over New York, writes Dalton Johnson of NBC Sports Bay Area. It’s possible Santos, who has been a rotation regular of late, could miss additional time as well. “It’s a big loss,” head coach Steve Kerr said after Friday’s practice. “The energy, the offensive rebounding but also the size. When we go to him and Gary [Payton II] we’re generally playing him at the four next to Draymond [Green] at the five. He’s a rebounder, especially on the offensive side, and a great screener. But the size that he brings will be missed.”
Suns Notes: Brooks, Booker, Green, Bouyea
In a feature story for ESPN.com, Tim MacMahon details how veteran small forward Dillon Brooks helped reshape the cultures — and drive winning — in Houston and Phoenix after his unceremonious departure from Memphis in the 2023 offseason.
“I felt like a lot of people counted me out, thinking I was just going to wash away with the rest of NBA players that had their shine and then were not able to figure out how to evolve and be able to stay in this league,” Brooks said. “I didn’t want to fall off. I didn’t want to call it where I got to go either overseas or chill at home or change my whole career point. I love this game, and I play it because I really love it. I knew that I had to put in the work to be better every single day.”
Known for his relentless work ethic and fiery competitiveness, Brooks has had a positive two-way impact on the surprising Suns, who are currently 24-17 after finishing last season with a disappointing 36-46 record.
“He’s in the gym more than anybody that I know,” guard Collin Gillespie said. “You see how hard he works, how competitive he is, and you want to not let your teammate down when you see that. He makes you want to work harder. He challenges you to be in the gym with him, challenges you to play harder.
“You might not like it sometimes if he’s getting on you, but it makes you a better player for sure.”
Suns owner Mat Ishbia has been thrilled with Brooks’ toughness and intangibles on top of his play, according to MacMahon.
“He’s exactly the type of player [who fits] what we talk about here in Phoenix, what we want to be, the identity of the Suns,” Ishbia told ESPN. “He gets up more shots than everybody else before practice. He cares about winning. He plays defense, he plays offense, he’s a leader. He’s tough. He’s doing everything.
“We wanted Dillon. I envisioned him from a cultural perspective, a leadership perspective and an impact perspective at a really high level. He’s been even better than expected.”
Here’s more from Phoenix:
- Star guard Devin Booker is questionable for Saturday’s contest in New York due to the left ankle sprain that caused him to miss Thursday’s loss at Detroit, tweets Duane Rankin of The Arizona Republic. Fellow guards Jalen Green (right hamstring strain) and Jamaree Bouyea (concussion) remain out.
- Although Green will be out again tomorrow, he’s inching closer to a return from the hamstring injury that has sidelined him for all but two games this season, Rankin writes in a full story. “He’s looking more and more confident,” center Mark Williams said. “He’s looking more and more comfortable. Whenever that time is for him, we’ll be excited.” Green’s return might force Gillespie, who has been starting, back to the bench, Rankin notes.
- Brooks says Green will provide a “big spark” for the Suns, according to Rankin, though he’s expected to be on a minutes restriction after a long layoff — he last played on November 8. Head coach Jordan Ott says the team will be cautious with Green, but the club is looking forward to having him back. “Full of talent, full of youthful energy we need,” Ott said. “His speed. His ability to attack off the dribble. We need him, but we need him healthy.”
Trade Rumors: MPJ, Kuminga, Raptors, Rockets, Clippers
Recent reporting from ESPN and The Athletic indicated that the Warriors haven’t engaged in any substantive talks with the Nets about Michael Porter Jr. Dalton Johnson of NBC Sports Bay Area also hears Golden State has been “hesitant” to pursue Porter and suggests the team’s interest in the veteran forward has been overstated.
According to Johnson, if the Warriors do make a run at Porter, it would likely require a third team, as the Nets aren’t interested in Jonathan Kuminga.
However, Grant Afseth of DallasHoopsJournal.com has heard differently, citing sources who say the Warriors are not only interested in Porter but have “something brewing” in regard to the 27-year-old ahead of the February 5 trade deadline. As Afseth writes, Porter is having a career year in Brooklyn and scouts think he could help just about any team.
Here are a few more trade rumors from around the NBA:
- Both Johnson and Afseth confirm the Lakers are a team to watch for Kuminga, who demanded a trade on Thursday, the first day he was eligible to be moved. President of basketball operations Rob Pelinka likes Kuminga’s game, sources tell Johnson, and the Lakers think the 23-year-old would provide athleticism on the wing alongside Luka Doncic. Still, it’s unclear if the two Pacific Division rivals would make an in-season trade, Johnson notes.
- Although the Raptors have been described as a buyer heading into the deadline, Afseth’s sources refer to Toronto’s approach as being “opportunistic” in search of potential buy-low opportunities. That may be why the team has been linked to stars like Anthony Davis, Domantas Sabonis and Ja Morant, all of whom have dealt with significant health issues this season.
- Houston’s front office isn’t overreacting to the Rockets‘ recent struggles, writes Kelly Iko of Yahoo Sports. Team sources tell Iko the Rockets have discussed trade concepts with approximately half the teams in the league, but no deals are imminent and they aren’t aggressively searching for upgrades. Opposing teams have checked in on the availability of Tari Eason, Clint Capela and Dorian Finney-Smith, Iko adds.
- There was speculation that the Clippers might be a seller after a miserable start to the season, but now they’re considered a possible buyer after reeling off 11 wins in their past 13 games, per Afseth, with John Collins and Bogdan Bogdanovic viewed as potential trade candidates. Collins is on an expiring $26.6MM contract, while Bogdanovic earns $16MM this season with an identical team option for 2026/27.
Mavericks Rumors: Davis, Marshall, Gafford, Klay, Russell
ESPN’s Shams Charania reported a few days ago that Anthony Davis is still a trade candidate despite dealing with a hand injury that will keep him sidelined for at least six weeks. A subsequent report from his ESPN colleague Tim MacMahon stated that Davis’ agent Rich Paul hopes the 10-time All-Star is traded by the Mavericks prior to the February 5 deadline, but the team doesn’t feel any pressure to deal Davis just to move off his contract.
The Hawks and Raptors have been frequently linked to Davis, but neither team is close to trading for the 32-year-old big man, sources tell Grant Afseth of DallasHoopsJournal.com. Michael Scotto of HoopsHype reported earlier on Thursday that Atlanta isn’t operating with any urgency in the wake of Davis’ latest injury.
“The Mavericks’ leverage is materially worse after the hand injury,” one Western Conference executive told Afseth. “I don’t think [Davis] has much of a market.”
Here’s more from Afseth on the Mavericks:
- Forward Naji Marshall is having a career year with Dallas and has popped up in some trade rumors this winter. Confirming recent reporting from Marc Stein, Afseth says there’s a sense that Dallas prefers to hang on to Marshall rather than move him in the coming weeks. The 28-year-old wing is earning $9MM in 2025/26 and will make $9.4MM in ’26/27 before potentially becoming a free agent.
- Although Daniel Gafford has been repeatedly mentioned as one of the team’s top trade chips, his value seems to be diminishing because of health concerns, Afseth reports. The 27-year-old big man has missed 13 games this season due to a right ankle sprain he initially suffered on the first day of training camp and is doubtful for Saturday’s rematch with Utah, tweets Mike Curtis of The Dallas Morning News. “If Gafford is healthy, he can help a team. I don’t think he’s been healthy all season,” one Eastern Conference scout told Dallas Hoops Journal. “That ankle has been a problem for months. It looks like he’s frequently playing through something. He doesn’t pop when you watch the Mavericks like he did last season.” No. 1 overall pick Cooper Flagg is also doubtful for tomorrow’s game with a left ankle sprain, Curtis adds.
- Veterans Klay Thompson and D’Angelo Russell are two other trade candidates for the Mavs, but neither player seems to have much of a market, sources tell Afseth. While one Eastern executive told Afseth he thinks Thompson can still contribute on a contending team, his contract — he’s earning $16.7MM this season and $17.5MM in 2026/27 — isn’t viewed positively. Russell, meanwhile, is shooting a career-low 29.5% from three-point range, has been out of the rotation for most of the past month, and holds a $6MM player option for ’26/27.
Pacers Notes: Missi, Mathurin, I. Jackson, Guy
The Pacers and Bulls are among the teams with interest in Pelicans center Yves Missi, sources tell Grant Afseth of DallasHoopsJournal.com. Multiple reports have indicated that Indiana has inquired about the second-year big man.
According to Afseth, the Pacers are believed to have some traction in trade talks for Missi, with Bennedict Mathurin potentially heading to New Orleans. Brett Siegel of ClutchPoints reported something similar on Thursday.
Here’s more on the Pacers:
- Speaking of Mathurin, head coach Rick Carlisle provided an update on the injured wing on Friday, writes Dustin Dopirak of The Indianapolis Star (subscriber link). Carlisle said he went through a workout with Mathurin on Thursday and would do so again prior to Friday’s game against New Orleans. While the fourth-year guard/forward was out again Friday as he recovers from a right thumb sprain, Carlisle said Mathurin is “making a lot of progress” and there’s a chance he could return during the team’s five-game road trip, which begins Saturday in Detroit.
- Carlisle also gave an update on big man Isaiah Jackson, who has been sidelined since December 23 due to a concussion, Dopirak adds. Jackson has recovered from the head injury and is ramping up his conditioning after missing three-plus weeks. “He’s closer,” Carlisle said. “He’ll be on the trip. He’s doing well.”
- As Scott Agness reports in a pair of stories for Fieldhouse Files (Substack links), former NBA guard Kyle Guy has agreed to a buyout with the Pacers’ G League affiliate, the Noblesville Boom, after reaching a contract agreement to play in China. “We try to put our players in the best position possible,” Boom GM Chris Taylor told Agness. “Hopefully it’s an NBA call-up to compete at the highest level, but this is a heck of an opportunity — and 100% checks that box of helping him get to a better situation.” A former second-round pick, Guy briefly retired as a player in order to pursue coaching opportunities. The 28-year-old was leading Noblesville in points and assists per game, averaging 21.1 PPG, 7.6 APG, 4.1 RPG and 1.7 SPG on .450/.372/.714 shooting in 20 appearances (40.0 MPG).
Injury Notes: Garland, Merrill, Heat, Coulibaly, Pritchard
Cavaliers point guard Darius Garland has been ruled out of Friday’s game at Philadelphia due to right great toe soreness, tweets Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com. As Fedor notes, Garland’s injury is not a recurrence of the toe ailment that required offseason surgery and has bothered him for several months — the injury on a different toe on the opposite foot.
Cleveland will also be without sharpshooter Sam Merrill on Friday, per Fedor (Twitter link). Merrill is dealing with a right hand sprain, the same injury that caused him to miss 14 games earlier in the season. Both players were injured in Wednesday’s win in Philadelphia.
Here are a few more injury updates from around the NBA:
- The Heat will be down two key rotation members for Saturday’s game against Oklahoma City, according to Anthony Chiang of The Miami Herald (Twitter links). Starting point guard Davion Mitchell will miss his second straight game with a left shoulder contusion, while sixth man Jaime Jaquez Jr. will be out for the second consecutive contest due to a left knee sprain. As Chiang writes for The Miami Herald, Jaquez underwent an MRI on Thursday which revealed irritation in his knee. Mitchell had not received an MRI as of Thursday. Guard Tyler Herro is questionable for tomorrow’s game due to contusions on his toe and rib.
- Forward Bilal Coulibaly, who exited Wednesday’s loss at the Clippers early due to a back injury, will miss the final two games of the Wizards‘ West Coast road trip with what the team is calling lower back stiffness, as Josh Robbins of The Athletic relays (via Twitter). Head coach Brian Keefe said the former lottery pick has returned to D.C. to receive treatment for his back.
- Celtics guard Payton Pritchard is doubtful to suit up for Saturday’s game at Atlanta due to left ankle soreness, per John Karalis of Sports Illustrated (Twitter link). Pritchard, the reigning Sixth Man of the Year, has appeared in all 40 of Boston’s games thus far in 2025/26. Forward Josh Minott will miss his seventh straight contest due to a left ankle sprain, Karalis adds.
Hawks Sign Christian Koloko To Two-Way Contract
4:27 pm: Koloko’s two-way deal with Atlanta is official, the team confirmed in a press release.
3:35 pm: The Hawks intend to sign free agent center Christian Koloko to a two-way contract, reports Lauren L. Williams of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution (via Twitter).
As our tracker shows, Atlanta currently has a two-way opening and won’t need to waive anyone in order to sign Koloko.
A 25-year-old big man, Koloko opened 2025/26 on a two-way contract with the Lakers, but was cut by Los Angeles near the end of November to make roster space for Drew Timme.
Koloko spent about a week with the G League’s Austin Spurs in mid-December and then signed a 10-day hardship contract with the Grizzlies on December 22. Memphis brought him back for a second 10-day deal, but opted not to sign him for the remainder of the season when that contract expired a few days ago.
Although Koloko played sparingly (six total minutes over two games) for the Lakers to open the season, he was a rotation regular during his 20 days with the Grizzlies, averaging 2.6 points, 4.0 rebounds, 0.9 steals and 1.2 blocks in 17.7 minutes per game across 11 appearances.
Koloko was selected No. 33 overall in the 2022 draft after three college seasons with Arizona. He showed some promise as a rookie with Toronto in 2022/23, but was forced to miss the entire ’23/24 season due to a blood clot issue which has since been resolved. Overall, the three-year veteran has played in 108 career NBA games, averaging 2.8 PPG, 2.9 RPG and 0.8 BPG in 12.5 MPG.
Clippers Sign Patrick Baldwin To 10-Day Contract
3:53 pm: Baldwin’s 10-day contract is official, according to NBA.com’s transactions log.
12:13 pm: The Clippers intend to sign forward Patrick Baldwin Jr. to a 10-day contract, reports Law Murray of The Athletic (via Twitter).
It doesn’t sound like the signing will happen immediately. According to Murray, the expectation is that Baldwin will join the team for Monday’s game in Washington. The Clippers play the Raptors in Toronto on Friday night before getting Saturday and Sunday off.
The 28th overall pick in the 2022 draft, Baldwin has appeared in 93 regular season games for the Warriors, Wizards, and Clippers since making his NBA debut. He finished last season on a two-way contract with L.A. and rejoined the team for training camp before being waived at the end of the preseason.
So far in 2025/26, Baldwin has played for the San Diego Clippers, L.A.’s G League affiliate. In 17 NBAGL contests, the forward – whose height is now listed at 7’0″, has averaged 21.1 points, 6.7 rebounds, 3.1 assists, and 1.7 steals in 33.9 minutes per game, with a .546/.321/.652 shooting line.
The Clippers have an open spot on their 15-man roster, so no corresponding move will be necessary to make room for Baldwin. He’ll carry a cap hit of $131,970, which will move the club to within about $1.15MM of its first-apron hard cap.
As Murray points out (via Twitter), carrying a full 15-man roster for 10 days will give the Clippers some extra flexibility with two-way players Kobe Sanders and Jordan Miller. While a player on a two-way contract is permitted to be active for up to 50 regular season games, a team carrying fewer than 15 players on standard deals can’t use more than 90 combined active games for its two-way players.
As long as the Clippers have a 15th man under contract, they could have Sanders, Miller, and TyTy Washington Jr. active without any of those games being considered an “under-15” game and counting toward the team’s 90-game limit. Those games would still count toward each player’s individual limit.
So far this season, the Clippers have used 74 total active games for five two-way players: Sanders, Miller, Washington, Jahmyl Telfort, and RayJ Dennis. Telfort and Dennis have since been waived.
Clippers Notes: Harden, Kawhi, Zubac, Collins, Ballmer, CP3
Reports earlier in the 2025/26 season suggested that at least a handful of teams around the NBA were hoping star guard James Harden would land on the trade block with the Clippers off to a very slow start. But Harden, a Los Angeles native, has helped the team turn things around in recent weeks and tells Ramona Shelburne of ESPN that he has no desire to leave L.A.
“It’s hard to explain,” Harden said. “Being at home, that’s like the opportunity of a lifetime for me. Just be able to hoop in front of my family, friends, people I grew up with, people that raised me. It’s a different feeling. So as much as people talk all the time. That’s social media, that’s what people’s jobs are to talk. For me, it’s just like I’m actually living in it so I can’t get caught up in what people talk about, how people feel, whatever the case. I’m from L.A. and I’m blessed to be here.”
The Clippers have gone 11-2 since losing 21 of their first 27 games, but they’d still technically be out of the postseason picture if the season ended today — they have the same 17-23 record as the No. 10 Grizzlies, but Memphis holds the tiebreaker. Still, Harden is confident in the Clippers’ ability to “come all the way back” and continue climbing up the Western Conference standings.
“Some teams, when it gets that bad, they just let the wheels fall off,” Harden told Shelburne. “I had interviews where people were asking me, ‘How do you find confidence?’ and I’m like, ‘The confidence is there. The losses are frustrating, but the confidence is still there.’
“I think finding little tweaks and being a lot better defensively is what really helped us out. … Now we got to take one game at a time, just like when we were in the hole. We can come all the way back, but we have to chip away, chip away and really build some momentum going into the All-Star break.”
Here’s more on the Clippers:
- Along with Harden, star forward Kawhi Leonard has been leading the Clippers’ surge in recent weeks, writes Janis Carr of The Orange County Register. During their 11-2 stretch, Leonard has averaged 32.7 points, 6.9 rebounds, 3.8 assists, and 2.6 steals per game, with a .507/.440/.916 shooting line. “He’s been huge for us in the fourth quarters the last, what, three, four weeks,” head coach Tyronn Lue said. “Just going down the stretch and taking those games over down the stretch has been huge for us.”
- Leonard will be inactive on Friday for the first time since November 22, having been ruled out of a rematch vs. his former team in Toronto due to a right ankle sprain. Center Ivica Zubac (left ankle sprain) and forward John Collins (right groin soreness) are considered questionable to suit up after missing Wednesday’s victory after Washington.
- Attorneys representing Clippers owner Steve Ballmer have filed to dismiss a lawsuit alleging that Ballmer used the former green banking company Aspiration to commit fraud by funneling money to Leonard. Ballmer’s lawyers refer to the allegations as “sensational” and “patently false,” according to Baxter Holmes of ESPN, who has the full story on the latest development in the Aspiration saga.
- Although the Clippers announced they were “parting ways” with Chris Paul in early December, he’s stuck in limbo as the team remains on the lookout for a trade opportunity to avoid waiving his guaranteed contract. Appearing on Good Sports with Kevin Hart & Kenan Thompson (YouTube link), Paul said he’s still hoping to land in a more favorable situation for the second half of the season. “I’m working out and training every day,” he said. “In all honesty, with the way all that stuff went down and all that, I think for me, I just love this game so much that I don’t want it to end like that. I’ve enjoyed the time (off), for sure. I get a chance to go to my kids’ games, but I don’t know yet (where I’ll end up).”