Would Bill Simmons' LaMelo Ball-for-Ja Morant trade idea work for Charlotte and Memphis?

"I just would love to be in the room if Memphis and Charlotte started talking about Ja and LaMelo."

Yeah, so would we Bill.

On Tuesday's episode of The Bill Simmons podcast, an interesting trade idea was proposed by Simmons: the Charlotte Hornets sending LaMelo Ball to the Memphis Grizzlies for Ja Morant.

Well, thoughts #Hornets fans? pic.twitter.com/UTVBI9jpWD
— Owen O’Connor (@OwenOConnorNBA) April 2, 2025

Although both organizations trading their star is highly unlikely, they may listen to offers during the offseason. It's just hard to envision this deal happening, especially as it leaves more questions than answers for the Hornets.

LaMelo Ball, who was announced as out for the season on Friday, has played more games this season to this point than Ja. The two have been unable to stay on the court over the previous few years, as while LaMelo has been cursed with the ankles of a young Steph Curry, Morant has had lingering knee and shoulder injuries all season.

Ja Morant

The 25-year-old Morant's scoring marks have declined over the previous four seasons. After averaging a career-high 27.4 points per game in the 2021-22 season and being selected on the All-NBA second team, Morant has gone:

2022-23 (61 games): 26.2 PPG

2023-24 (9 games): 25.1 PPG

2024-25 (46 games): 22.7 PPG

His scoring has not been the only thing that has seen a decline, as the once alien-like athleticism that the Grizzlies star had feels like it is rapidly fading as the injuries pile up. His shooting (30.0%) has been a great concern too, as team's are seemingly leaving him open from three-point range as part of their game plans.

His inability to stay on the court, with his decline in both athleticism and scoring both spell out trouble for the Hornets. Now, that's not to say that if the Hornets were to acquire Duke superstar Cooper Flagg, Morant may fit better alongside the Maine product than Ball would.

LaMelo Ball

Even so, how would LaMelo fit in Memphis? Well, Memphis would be acquiring another young guard with limitless potential, who keeps being held back due to injuries. Outside of scoring, the Hornets guard had a down year, seeing a decline in rebounds, assists, steals, FG%, and 3P%. That being said, it may be due to playing on injuries for the vast majority of the season.

His fit with the Grizzlies may be better than Morant's, however, as Ball's ability to score and playmake would be perfect in the Grizzlies lineup.

A lineup of Ball/Wells/Bane/Jackson Jr/Edey is a contending lineup. It's a well-balanced lineup, with three guys who could score 20+ on any given night, and two rookies who are still getting better. Jackson Jr and Bane's scoring ability would take immense pressure off of LaMelo to score like he has in Charlotte, and with Memphis having one of the best benches and bench guard (Scotty Pippen Jr) in the league, it gives LaMelo a chance to both rest and thrive.

So if this deal were to happen, a fit for Ball with the Grizzlies makes far more sense than Morant with the Hornets. Unless a superstar from Duke is in the picture.

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