New Ja Morant Trade Rumors as Grizzlies Look to 'Reset Their Franchise' After NBA Draft

The Memphis Grizzlies will attempt to move point guard Ja Morant during the 2026 offseason despite the lack of an ideal trade partner, according to ESPN's Brian Windhorst.

"It's not really a question for the Grizzlies, they going to really try to trade him," Windhorst reported Wednesday (0:11 mark). "I think we've probably have seen the last moments of Ja Morant in a Grizzlies uniform. It just depends on of how it's going to play itself out. They are looking to totally reset their franchise and Boozer's selection at No. 3 is a part of that. They've had difficulty finding a trading partner for Ja Morant. There's not that many teams that need franchise point guards, quite frankly. A lot of them just drafted them last night that they want to develop."

"The one thing they have on their side that they could use in a Ja Morant trade would be a $29 million trade exception, one of the largest trade exceptions in the history of the NBA," he added.

By parting ways with Morant, the Grizzlies could focus on building around forward Cameron Boozer after selecting him with the No. 3 overall pick in the draft.

There doesn't seem to be a clear landing spot for the two-time All-Star on the trade market, though.

Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic reported Monday that the Minnesota Timberwolves weren't targeting Morant, while NBA insiders Marc Stein and Jake Fischer reported the New Orleans Pelicans had "no plans" to pursue Morant on Tuesday.

The 26-year-old is under contract for two more seasons, as he'll earn $42.2 million for his 2026-27 campaign before receiving $44.9 million for the 2027-28 season.

Morant has been slowed down by injuries as of late, appearing in just 79 of a possible 246 regular-season games over the past three years.

In 20 appearances during the 2025-26 season, he averaged 19.5 points and 8.1 assists to go along with 3.3 rebounds per game. Morant shot a career-low 41.0 percent from the field and 23.5 percent from three-point territory, though.

The Grizzlies are familiar with sending out key contributors in order to obtain draft capital, as they dealt Desmond Bane to the Orlando Magic in exchange for four unprotected first-round picks in June 2025 before sending Jaren Jackson Jr. to the Utah Jazz while receiving three first-round picks in return on Feb. 3.

If Memphis can find a trade partner for Morant, his seven-year tenure with the organization could come to an end.