Suns Should Pivot to Ja Morant Trade - On One Condition

Would Ja Morant be an ideal backcourt partner for Devin Booker?

Mar 10, 2025; Memphis, Tennessee, USA; Memphis Grizzlies guard Ja Morant (12) reacts during the fourth quarter against the Phoenix Suns at FedExForum. Mandatory Credit: Petre Thomas-Imagn Images | Petre Thomas-Imagn Images

PHOENIX -- The Phoenix Suns find themselves in a tough position to figure out how to maximize Devin Booker, who just turned 29 last week, in the next few years after signing him to a long-term extension through 2030 this summer.

It remains to be seen how Phoenix does with its new iteration of a team for the entirety of a season, as the Suns have yet to play a game with Jalen Green (right hamstring strain) and are 3-4 so far on the year.

However, the Suns don't have any draft picks to fall back on if they struggle, as they don't have any control of their first-round picks until 2032 and also don't have a first-round pick next summer.

Phoenix does have a lot of young talent, but no true star on the roster next to Booker as it looks to successfully move past the Kevin Durant and Bradley Beal era.

Is Ja Morant The Answer for the Suns?

Because of how the Suns are currently constructed, they will be mentioned in rumors surrounding any big-name younger players.

Most recently, the top name in rumors across the NBA has been Memphis Grizzlies star guard Ja Morant, who was suspended over the weekend for one game following his comments to reporters postgame to "go ask the coaching staff" about his lowly performance after Friday's loss to the Los Angeles Lakers.

CBS Sports' Sam Quinn named Phoenix as the No. 3 team who makes the most sense for Morant.

Quinn wrote that the Suns could have learned from their mistakes about pursuing All-Stars, but added "if you're looking for a team that should be willing to take a risk, it's Phoenix."

There is a pretty simple trade that works financially for both sides that Bleacher Report's Eric Pincus, who also had the Suns as a top landing spot for Morant, came up with:

• The Grizzlies get: Jalen Green, 2027 first-round pick (lowest selection between the Cleveland Cavaliers, Minnesota Timberwolves and Utah Jazz), $5.9 million trade exception
• The Suns get: Ja Morant

The 26-year-old Morant is in the third year of a five-year, $197.2 million contract, while the 23-year-old Green is on the first season of a three-year, $105.3 million rookie extension.

Should the Suns Consider This Trade?

The Suns' new system under Ott seems tailor made for Green to fit into once he returns, but his impact on Phoenix is completely unknown until he actually plays, especially given his consistency issues in the past.

Still, the Suns clearly have a plan for how they are going to utilize Green despite the positional overlap with Booker and are high on his potential.

Morant has not fully lived up to his potential the last couple seasons, so like Green, the Suns would have to take a flier on him that he can improve in their system, but he would provide a similar skillset to Green but at the point guard spot instead of the 2.

The Suns should wait and see what they have with Green before considering this trade, especially with how disgruntled Morant is, but it could be something they revisit down the line.

No matter what, Phoenix should not be willing to pay a hefty price for Morant given how limited the Suns were in terms of roster construction after trading for Durant and Beal, who they still owe $19.4 million per season to for the next five years.

The Suns also don't have any valuable draft picks they are able to trade away, so there are several other teams that could outbid them if they are interested in Morant.

If the Suns were able to get Morant for only Green and a heavily protected first-round pick, I don't think they would get any worse if they can figure out his antics, so if they feel comfortable taking him on, then why not go for it, but I would personally lean more no as of now because of the unknown element.

With that said, it would be better for the Suns to wait and re-evaluate down the line for two big reasons - one being to see how Green fits in Phoenix's system and the other being to see what Morant's value ends up being as this situation goes on.