Ja Morant Trade to Trail Blazers Fallout: Grizzlies Reset, Portland Bets Big
The Memphis Grizzlies moved on from Ja Morant. That sentence still looks strange typed out, but it is the reality of the 2026 NBA offseason.
The Grizzlies shipped Morant to the Portland Trail Blazers in exchange for Jerami Grant and Kris Murray. Morant is entering the fourth year of his five-year, $197 million designated rookie extension. He is Portland’s problem now. And Portland is thrilled about it.
This is the deal Portland has been chasing since Damian Lillard left. Their rebuild has produced two decent draft classes and a young frontcourt, but they needed a star to open a real title window. Morant is 26, still one of the two or three most explosive guards in the sport, and now paired with Deni Avdija, Scoot Henderson coming off the bench, Toumani Camara, and a stretch big in Donovan Clingan who can protect the rim.
The math for Portland works. Morant plus Scoot as backcourt options gives Chauncey Billups the ability to stagger looks and keep the ball in playmaking hands for 48 minutes. Camara guards the wing. Clingan guards everything at the rim. Avdija provides secondary creation and switchable defense.
Health is the entire story. Morant has not played 70 games in a season since 2022. The Blazers are betting a huge portion of their upside on him being healthy for 65 or more games and playing meaningful playoff basketball. If he does that, Portland is a top-six team in the West and a nightmare matchup.
If he does not, they are still stuck.
Memphis went the other direction. Zach Kleiman finally admitted that this iteration of the Grizzlies had hit its ceiling. The Morant era produced two second-round exits, a first-round sweep, and a lost season of injuries and suspensions. That is not the return anyone had in mind when Morant looked like an All-NBA guard in 2022.
Grant brings scoring at the four and slots next to Jaren Jackson Jr. and Desmond Bane. Kris Murray is a young forward with real defensive versatility. Neither replaces a franchise point guard. Both were the point of the trade for a front office that is going to give the Bane and Jackson core one more real look before deciding whether to blow up the whole thing.
The Grizzlies also picked up two lightly protected future first-round picks from Portland in the deal, which gives them ammunition to move at the trade deadline if they emerge as a play-in team.
The bigger reaction around the league has been about Morant himself. Some coaches and executives told ESPN they were shocked Memphis moved him. Others said the writing had been on the wall for a year and the Grizzlies were smart to get real value instead of watching him leave for nothing at some point down the road.
Both can be true. Morant is a top-15 player when healthy. He also has not been healthy or fully engaged since 2023. Portland just bought the lottery ticket.
If it hits, they are a Finals threat by 2027. If it does not, they are the newest team stuck with a max contract they cannot move.
A longtime sports reporter, Carlos Garcia has written about some of the biggest and most notable athletic events of the last 5 years. He has been credentialed to cover MLS, NBA and MLB games all over the United States. His work has been published on Fox Sports, Bleacher Report, AOL and the Washington Post.
