Ja Morant taking shots even when sidelined

Ja Morant continues to be in the news, even when he's not on the court.

The Grizzlies point guard, who remains sidelined with a calf injury, is expected to be re-evaluated now that the team has returned from a four-game road trip. Memphis went a solid 3-1 on that trip, and could have swept it if not for a fourth-quarter meltdown against the San Antonio Spurs. That was yet another loss to a winning team, but the good news for the Grizzlies is their next three games are against teams with losing records.

If the Grizzlies win those games, we may hear even more how they don't need Morant, who was playing poorly (turnovers and missed three-pointers galore) prior to his injury. Already Wednesday, there was a report on ESPN.com that was highly critical of Morant and dubious of his value around the NBA. One anonymous executive called him "a pain in the a--, injury prone, not that good anymore and big contract."

An NBA executive says Ja Morant is a “pain in the ass, injury-prone, and not good anymore,” and people around the league compare him to John Wall and Derrick Rose, per @espn

"‘The combination of pain in the ass, injury prone, not that good anymore and big contract is a bad… pic.twitter.com/9olPt0kZWk
— NBACentral (@TheDunkCentral) December 3, 2025

There was additional speculation in the article that Morant could be part of a take our problem and give him a change of scenery trade that could involve another former top five pick who plays point guard and was once considered a franchise player, such as Atlanta's Trae Young or Charlotte's LaMelo Bell. Young has never been an issue off the court, but the Hawks have pivoted behind emerging star Jalen Johnson and have been winning more without Young. The Hornets never really win at all, whether Ball is playing or not.

These types of trades used to happen in the NBA all the time.

In the piece, the three players were described as "unwanted superstars," who may have "negative value" in the trade market unless it was for another diminished former asset.

People around the league believe Ja Morant, LaMelo Ball, and Trae Young all have “negative value” and wouldn’t be surprised if they were traded for one another, per @espn

"I wouldn't want any of them,"

"They all might have negative value,"

"When there are these sort of… pic.twitter.com/RdVzyp5trV
— NBACentral (@TheDunkCentral) December 3, 2025

For the purposes of a trade, the matches between the point guards would actually be fairly close.

Morant makes $39 million this season.

Young makes $46 million.

Ball makes $38 million.

While the change of scenery scenario does make some sense, it's hard to see how Ball would be a good fit in Memphis, since his play has never translated to winning at this level. Young could be another story; he at least has a conference finals appearance and several playoff (or at least play-in) appearances. And his passing could unlock Zach Edey even more. But would Atlanta want Morant's baggage, even with the unmistakable talent he's flashed?

Overall, it seems unlikely that there's an immediate move coming for Memphis, at least until the Grizzlies see what the team looks like what Morant comes back.