The Memphis Grizzlies are sitting Ja Morant for the rest of the season. It's likely the end of an era.
Ja Morant may play another game for the Memphis Grizzlies. It's unlikely.
It's far more likely that we've witnessed the end of an era. Morant is done for the 2025-26 season. It's overwhelmingly likely that he's done in Memphis forever.
There's some relief, and there's some sadness. The last couple of years have been tumultuous. Morant has spent as much time injured or suspended as he has producing. There was a time when optimism around his future was abundant.
Let's talk about the good times.
It was the 2021-22 season. Morant was in his third year. He averaged 27.4 points and 6.7 assists per game with a 6.1 Box Plus/Minus (BPM). You couldn't have found a soul who doubted the 22-year-old was a franchise-altering talent. Whatever the Grizzlies did, they'd do with Morant in mind.
So what happened?
Start with the basketball.
Morant is a career 31.1% shooter from long range. He connected on a gruesome 23.5% of his triples in 2025-26. He is almost inarguably the worst-shooting lead guard in the NBA. He's small. He's a defensive negative. For all his talent and proven production, he's a difficult player to build around.
Perhaps the Grizzlies would have worked around his limitations if not for the off-court difficulties. They've been such a prominent piece of the Morant puzzle that it's impossible to avoid discussing them.
If you want one stat to explain his tenure's unraveling, look at games played. He suited up 61 times in 2022-23. In the following years, he managed 9, 50, and 20 contests. Nothing else matters if a player isn't on the floor.
If the Grizzlies don't trade Morant this summer, it will be a surprise.
The fun part: the Grizzlies have a blank slate.
The Grizzlies don't have a can't-miss franchise player. Cedric Coward or Zach Edey could reach that level, but until they do, that's a fair statement. With lottery luck, they'll land their guy this summer. It's a stacked draft class. The presumptive top three of AJ Dybantsa, Cameron Boozer, and Darryn Peterson all look like franchise players. Even Caleb Wilson may fit the bill.
If they don't get lucky, their roster is young. There's talent here, whether it's franchise-caliber or not. This franchise has a solid foundation with which to move forward.
It's just likely to happen without Ja Morant.