Ja Morant Is Back and So Is His Card Market

Ja Morant returned from his suspension and his card market has immediately picked back up.

Over six months after receiving a 25-game suspension from the NBA, Ja Morant delivered a game-winning buzzer-beater to cap off his return to play on Tuesday night.

An MVP candidate for parts of last season, the Memphis Grizzlies star finished with 34 points, six rebounds and eight assists in the comeback win to more or less pick back up where he left off last year. From a collecting perspective, Morant’s market has done much of the same.

As expected, Morant’s card market declined after he received a suspension from the NBA for multiple gun-related incidents last year.

According to Market Movers’ Ja Morant Index, which tracks his key cards, Morant’s market is down 36% over the last year while dropping 13% from June 1 until Dec. 18 – the day before he made his return. Morant received his suspension on June 16, and after seeing some immediate price growth, his market saw a steady decline over the next 180 days.

A decline is expected for nearly all players during the offseason and Morant is no exception. His decline continued through the start of the season, however, and carried through the entire suspension.

Zooming into this week, we can see that his market has seen a major surge with a 3% collective price bump on the 183 cards tracked in the Morant Index.

Dialing in even further, Morant saw significant sales volume and price growth on several key rookies from Dec. 18 (the day before his return) to Dec. 20 (the day after). Over that three-day span, Morant’s 2019 Prizm Base PSA 10 jumped 35%, his 2019 Optic Base PSA 10 jumped 45% and his 2019 Panini Chronicles Base PSA 10 jumped 26%.

According to Market Movers, that Prizm Base PSA 10 sold 79 times over that three-day stretch and 48 times alone on the night of his return.

Where Morant’s market goes from here is a major question. The Grizzlies are just 7-19 through 26 games, and injuries to Steven Adams, Derrick Rose, Brandon Clarke and Marcus Smart have complicated any postseason outlook.

Even if Morant plays at an MVP level, it might be hard for his card market to overcome the team’s early struggles. Expect a decline in card prices as excitement from his incredible return fades.