The terrible start for Ja Morant and the Memphis Grizzlies makes that a big story for a potential trade coming soon. Morant is currently out for at least two weeks with a calf injury after having the worst opening month in his NBA career. Memphis’ short-term future looks worse, and they are already one of the worst teams in the league with a 4-11 record.
Popular NBA insider Zach Lowe shared accounts he heard from teams in the league monitoring the Morant trade situation. There is a fear out there that other franchises would avoid trading for Morant due to his terrible play this season and suspension for behavioral issues. Lowe claimed that the interest is still there.
“I will say with Ja, teams that are watching him, and I talked to one of them over the weekend, they’re throwing his current level of play into the trash,” Lowe stated about teams seeing the optimistic side. “They’re saying, ‘This looks to us like a guy who wants out.’”
The belief from opposing teams is that Morant’s poor play comes from his unhappiness in Memphis and his desire for a new situation. Throwing this poor play into the trash means that other teams think he’ll get back to form in a new situation with more passion.
Can Memphis Get Value For Morant?
Another report earlier in the Morant drama saw opposing teams not wanting to offer a lot for him. Recent years would see Memphis being able to completely rebuild with a Morant trade due to how dynamic of a player he is. Any team lacking a point guard would have loved to add Morant, but injuries and suspensions hurt his reputation more each passing season.
The Grizzlies must settle for a limited package to move their previous top franchise cornerstone. Morant is averaging 17.9 points on a woeful 36% field goal percentage and an even worse 17% from three-point range. Opposing teams will use that to bring down the trade value, but they clearly still want to acquire him and don’t forecast that impacting his play on a new team.
Lowe’s comments confirm Memphis will have teams ready to talk to them, even if the packages will be limited. The Grizzlies can’t get a top package of at least one young rising star and multiple draft picks right now. A true desire to move Morant is necessary to settle for a weaker package.
Teams That May Want Ja Morant
The Minnesota Timberwolves and Sacramento Kings are two teams that have been rumored to have a desire to acquire Morant. Minnesota still needs a point guard, but they’ll have to give up at least one important player to their current plan. Sacramento’s season is falling apart to make it harder to see them making a blockbuster trade.
Miami Heat fans have also expressed interest in a move for the team that’s been rumored in wanting big names, despite falling short. The weak Brooklyn Nets could swing for the fences since they currently have zero foundation pieces. Lowe’s quote made it clear that teams are still interested as the asking price is lower. Time will tell if anyone makes a bigger offer to secure Morant.
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