After months of rumors, the Memphis Grizzlies have finally pulled the trigger on a Ja Morant trade.
The Grizzlies are trading Morant to the Portland Trail Blazers, according to Shams Charania of ESPN. Forwards Jerami Grant and Kris Murray will head to Memphis in return.
BREAKING: The Memphis Grizzlies are trading two-time NBA All-Star Ja Morant to the Portland Trail Blazers for Jerami Grant and Kris Murray, sources tell ESPN. pic.twitter.com/FJOTzGe5Tr
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) June 29, 2026
The Grizzlies essentially give up on Morant for a pair of expiring contracts, though Grant does have a player option for 2027-28. It is still a remarkable drop in value for a player who was named to an All-NBA team as recently as 2022. Part of that is down to injuries, but he has faced off-court questions and was reportedly the cause of some tension within the organization last season.
Injuries limited Morant to just 20 games last season, and he averaged 19.5 points and 8.1 assists per game when he did play.
While Morant had popped up in plenty of trade rumors, he was never really linked to the Blazers, who were instead rumored to be targeting a bigger name. He joins a backcourt that already contains Scoot Henderson and a return for Damian Lillard, plus a scoring forward in Deni Avdija. Presumably, Portland will be asking him to be a facilitator as they try to take another step toward contention in the Western Conference next season.
Morant has two seasons remaining on his contract. The 26-year-old should have plenty of motivation to perform in Portland, and if he can approach anything close to his best, this would go down as a steal for the Blazers.
