Minnesota needs help at point guard if they are going to take the next step and reach the NBA Finals. Ja Morant is disgruntled playing in Memphis. That has led people to connect the dots and speculate about a Morant trade to Memphis.
It’s not pure speculation, Minnesota has contacted Memphis to “test the waters” of a Morant trade, Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic said on SiriusXM NBA Radio. However, the sides are nowhere close to a deal, he added. This is something that would come together closer to the trade deadline. Here is what Krawczynski said (hat tip to SportsKeeda).
“There’s no real point guard on the roster. They’re asking Anthony Edwards to do it. They’re asking Julius Randle to do a lot of point forward stuff. They certainly have checked in with Memphis on Ja …
“They’re testing the waters a little bit. I don’t get the sense that there’s anything real close. I do think that, if we get to late December and the Wolves are still treading water and that point guard position still has not solidified … I do think that they could explore at least looking harder at Ja Morant.”
A few thoughts about any potential Morant to Minnesota deal:
• This is not the first time the Timberwolves have been mentioned as a team with interest in Morant. That said, league sources have told NBC Sports the market for Morant league-wide is not that strong, at least not as strong as Memphis would want considering the haul it will ask for in a trade.
• Morant is a guy who sells tickets and sells jerseys in a small market in Memphis, trading him is a massive shift for the franchise (and would lead to questions about whether they should also trade Jaren Jackson Jr., who would have a strong market). If Memphis decides to trade Morant, it’s going to want either another star player to sell tickets (could we see a your-problem-for-my-problem trade?) or a boatload of picks and young players to jump-start a rebuild. The market for that may not exist, at least not to the level Memphis hopes.
• Minnesota still has the No. 4 offense in the NBA this season. Even with Mike Conley no longer being the point guard they need, the offensive end of the floor has not been the issue behind a sluggish 6-4 start. The bigger concern is that last season’s top-10 defense is now in the middle of the NBA pack, and Morant is not going to fix that.
• Is Morant’s ball-dominant style really a great fit on a Minnesota team that needs more of a classic floor general?
• If a mid-season trade happens it will be after the calendar flips to 2026 and closer to the February trade deadline. However, the most likely outcome is a trade next offseason.
