Ja Morant Is Grateful for ‘Fresh Start’ in Portland—Why Trail Blazers Were His Best Trade Destination

Among the slew of offseason trades that found NBA stars new homes this summer, former Memphis guard Ja Morant landed with Portland as a destination he hopes can revive his career.

After he signed a five-year extension with the Grizzlies ahead of the 2022–23 season, the next few years in Memphis were muddied by numerous suspensions for on- and off-court issues plus injuries that largely kept him off the floor. The Grizzlies pivoted to a full rebuild in the meantime by trading Desmond Bane to the Magic last summer, then Jaren Jackson Jr. to the Jazz at the NBA’s February trade deadline.

That left Morant, Memphis’ biggest star once upon a time, whose trade value had dwindled down to nearly zero. With No. 3 pick Cameron Boozer in the fold and an adjusted roster built for the distant future, Morant was the last piece standing with no room for him in Memphis any longer.

The Grizzlies cut ties by dealing Morant to the Trail Blazers for Jerami Grant and Kris Murray two weeks ago. Grant has two more years left on his contract which includes an expensive $36.4 million player option for the 2027–28 season, while Murray has just one year left on his deal. The trade brings the Grizzlies around $8 million in cap savings for 2027–28, while it provides the franchise’s longtime star point guard an opportunity to renew his career.

“I feel like over the years, I’ve grown a lot,” Morant said to reporters Saturday via The Athletic’s Jason Quick. “You know, I learned a lot. My mindset changed. … I go into things differently now. So, I just feel like I’m more mature. I’m just ready to work, y’all.”

You can take him for his word or you can wait and see. The past few seasons were filled with issues, most notably multiple suspensions for flashing a gun on social media and another suspension for conduct detrimental to the team after he challenged Grizzlies coach Tuomas Iisalo last season. In Morant’s own view, though, he’s learned from the past and the longstanding issues are in his past.

“I mean, obviously, I’ve done what I’ve done in the past, but it’s been addressed and handled already,” he said via The Athletic, “so I don’t see why, years later, that’s still the topic, when nothing happened since. You know? And I felt like if I was that guy, y’all wouldn’t be talking to me now. I wouldn’t be here.”

Whether the change of scenery does wonders for Morant’s career remains to be seen but on paper, the Trail Blazers are the best fit for the star guard both on the court, in the locker room and, so he says, geographically.

Why the Trail Blazers were the best destination for Ja Morant to revive his career

Basketball wise, Morant’s fit with the Blazers is wonky on the surface. It’s a crowded guard room—Damian Lillard will return from a torn Achilles next season, while Scoot Henderson and Jrue Holiday remain on the roster. Shaedon Sharpe is there, too, but he’s more of a scorer than a facilitator. Deni Avdija is on the heels of a breakout, All-Star campaign and he took the majority of the on-ball workload.

Lillard’s return and Morant’s arrival doesn’t mean less ballhandling duties for Avdija or even Holiday, but the two guards give new head coach Micah Nori flexibility. And, more importantly, it puts Morant in a low-pressure environment where he doesn’t have to be “the guy,” an environment that includes two accomplished veteran guards in Lillard and Holiday. That helps the entire locker room, Morant included.

If all goes right, Morant stays healthy and the off-court issues truly subside, he could be another young star alongside the core of Avdija, Sharpe and Donovan Clingan. If the Morant experiment doesn’t work, then his contract turns into an expiring deal next year and the Blazers could part ways without any long-term negative impact since the franchise didn’t give up any draft capital in the trade with Memphis.

That’s the perfect situation for Morant—he gets to play basketball in a carefree environment for a team seemingly on the rise, even in a loaded Western Conference. Portland finished eighth in the West last year and earned the No. 7 seed by beating the Suns in the first play-in game. What followed was a five-game ouster to the Spurs in the first round. The Blazers’ roster isn’t ready to compete with the likes of San Antonio and Oklahoma City, but Lillard’s return and the addition of Morant makes Portland interesting at the very least.

On top of the roster fit, Morant is happy to land in a locale like Portland, too, as a new outdoorsman.

“It rains a lot, I took fishing in the rain,” he said of his new home Saturday via ESPN’s Ben Golliver. “I feel like [Portland] is a very quiet spot, it’s nice. I don’t know y’all pay attention to me lately but I’ve been kind of into nature so I feel like that’s a bonus for me also. I’m not hiking, but I can go walking, ride a bike, I’ve been kayaking lately.”

Being happy where your feet are is an underlooked factor for professional athletes, especially one in a situation like Morant’s. Most of all, though, it’s a new beginning for a player who was one of the NBA’s most exciting young stars once upon a time. He’s ready for the clean slate and, luckily for him, it’s in a place and with an organization where he gets an opportunity to resurrect his career and leave the past in the past.

“Just being grateful for, you know, being alive … the things I do have, my family, and to now have a, you know, a fresh start,” Morant said via The Athletic. “It was just mind-clearing.”

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