The Memphis Grizzlies are kicking the tires on yet another rebuild, with Duke star Cameron Boozer as the new face of the franchise.
The team has been shopping Ja Morant for a while now, but to no avail. The former No. 2 pick has virtually no trade value, and teams have been rightfully hesitant to acquire his big contract.
Former NBA champion Kendrick Perkins revealed that other teams were asking the Grizzlies to attach draft picks to Morant’s contract to even start a conversation.
Now, NBA insider Jake Fischer has confirmed that report, revealing that the Sacramento Kings ended talks when the Grizzlies were reluctant to give them draft capital.
The Kings wanted picks to acquire Ja Morant
“The Sacramento Kings have been insistent that they only wanted to take Morant back if they were receiving draft capital, and the Grizzlies have been insistent that they are not willing to attach draft capital to move off of Morant,” Fischer said.
Ultimately, the Kings took rising star Darius Acuff Jr. early in the 2026 NBA Draft, all but ending the need to even consider taking on Morant:
“Then Sacramento, of course, just used the No. 7 pick on Darius Acuff, who is gonna be their new lead guard, and bringing on Morant would be contradictory and counterintuitive,” added Fischer.
The Kings have been in the market for a point guard since moving on from De’Aaron Fox, but not even a team with a long history of making questionable moves and bad trades was willing to go anywhere close to Morant without a pick as additional compensation.
Once considered a rising star and one of the potential faces of the league, Morant now has negative trade value.
Injuries, questionable decisions off the court, a lack of accountability and run-ins with his coaches have taken a huge toll on his reputation, and with him still being owed nearly $90 million over the next couple of years, the Grizzlies might be stuck with him.
