Ja Morant on Trash-Talking James Harden: 'No Reason to Be Afraid of Anybody'

Ja Morant has played just 48 games in the NBA so far, but the rookie second overall pick already has a veteran presence. 

The Memphis Grizzlies high-flying point guard sat down with ESPN's Rachel Nichols and didn't back down from trash talk he tossed toward 2017-18 league MVP James Harden in mid-January. 

"I just don't care, honestly," Morant told Nichols. "I feel like everybody puts their shoes and stuff on the same way I do. So, there's no reason to be afraid of anybody. I came in this league to try to prove that I can compete with the best, and that's just my mentality."

The play in question came during the first quarter of the Grizzlies' 121-110 win over the Houston Rockets on Jan. 14. Morant sunk a three when Harden opted not to guard him and had some words for him as he walked down the court:

Morant also addressed with Nichols the drama that overtook NBA Twitter just before the Grizzlies traded three-time NBA champion Andre Iguodala to the Miami Heat earlier this month.

Iguodala did not play for Memphis since arriving there from Golden State last summer, and Memphis guard Dillon Brooks didn't appreciate the way the 36-year-old veteran handled his Grizzlies tenure. Brooks told reporters he couldn't wait for Memphis to "find a way to trade him so we can play him and show him what Memphis is about."

Morant seconded:

Iguodala's former Warriors teammate Stephen Curry stood up for him as a result, which led to Curry and Morant airing things out privately in direct messages:

"I just felt like we're not gonna take no kind of disrespect," Morant explained to Nichols. "Still have respect for both [Curry and Iguodala] as a person and a player—vets in this league—but I just didn't respect how [Iguodala] handled it on national television. I felt like there could have been a better way, another way." 

Morant has disrespected plenty of opponents on the court, however, with physics-defying dunks:

More importantly, the Murray State product is leading Memphis toward playoff contention one year removed from finishing 33-49. The Grizzlies are 28-26 at the All-Star break. Morant is the team's leading scorer at 17.1 points per game and leading distributor with 7.1 assists per game.

The Grizzlies have not made the postseason since the 2016-17 campaign. With Morant in the fold alongside 2018 fourth overall pick Jaren Jackson Jr., though, that figures to change.