Sources: Ja Morant’s ‘silent’ Grizzlies trade request charted path toward potential Heat deal

Has Ja Morant played his last game for the Memphis Grizzlies? After seeing Trae Young traded from the Atlanta Hawks to the Washington Wizards, Morant has become the focus around the league heading into the NBA trade deadline, especially since his tensions from earlier in the 2025-26 season never dissipated.

Drama surrounding Morant and the Grizzlies dates back well before this season, with his suspensions for flashing a gun while live on social media and his vision for the team not always aligning with that of management, but the star guard’s agitations in Memphis grew to a point of no return at the end of October when he got into a verbal altercation with first-year head coach Tuomas Iisalo, league sources told ClutchPoints.

For starters, the firing of Taylor Jenkins wasn’t something Morant always agreed with. He held high respect for Jenkins, and while they did have their fair share of arguments at times, Jenkins and Morant were always able to move past the differences and put the Grizzlies in a spot to succeed.

The opposite can be said for Morant and Iisalo, as ongoing grudges stemming from their altercation on Oct. 31 have not, and will not be, healed. Iisalo made it a point to single out Morant in front of the team following a 117-112 loss to the Los Angeles Lakers, a game in which Morant was visibly distraught and the team’s energy as a whole was low as a result.

Morant did not hold back, as he too shared his opinion of Iisalo and the coaching staff in the locker room, making statements some of his teammates agreed with and let him know about when the situation ended, sources said. But for Morant, this moment was the spark that led to him being on the trade market three weeks before the NBA trade deadline.

Although Morant did not and has not formally requested a trade from the Grizzlies, he and his camp made what team sources described as a “silent trade request,” signaling to executive Zach Kleiman and front-office personnel that the two-time All-Star didn’t see a path forward with how Iisalo handled the situation and how some teammates, who sided with the coaching staff, didn’t respect Morant as the leader of the team.

As the Grizzlies and Morant’s side tried to mend relationships and smooth things over, constantly informing rival teams inquiring about the guard’s trade availability that he would not be traded under any circumstances, the reality of Morant not finishing the 2025-26 season in Memphis was becoming more believable.

Kleiman and the Grizzlies did not reach out to teams specifically offering Ja Morant in trades or seeing what they could potentially get for him, but various rival team personnel who spoke to ClutchPoints made it clear that Memphis was hinting at the star guard being unhappy.

Soon enough, conversations around the league began to snowball, and the talks Memphis’ front office held with other teams began to leak. Now, the big news surrounding the Grizzlies over the last week has been that they are entertaining offers to move Morant before the Feb. 5 trade deadline, something that has essentially been in the works since the Morant-Iisalo feud in October.

Tensions in Memphis have not died down whatsoever, especially with the team overseas to play two games against the Orlando Magic in Berlin and London.

Ja Morant trade on the horizon?

Morant, who has not played since Jan. 2 because of a calf injury, was, of course, questioned by reporters before Thursday’s game in Germany regarding his status with the Grizzlies and whether or not he wants to be traded over the next three weeks.

While the hope was that Morant would play in these games, that won’t be happening, and the Grizzlies guard claimed he has to simply “live with it” regarding all the trade rumors.

In response to being asked about if he would remain on the Grizzlies past the trade deadline, Morant snapped back and stated, “I’m the only one you asked that question to?”

Tensions overseas continued to elevate on Wednesday when Morant and Grizzlies wing Vince Williams Jr. were seen getting into a verbal altercation with one another during the team’s open shootaround.

Ja Morant appeared to have a heated argument with Vince Williams Jr. during a Grizzlies shootaround in Berlin

(via @songulsoysall)pic.twitter.com/JdkPcopi3p

— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPoints) January 14, 2026

While it is unknown what was directly said by either player, NBA fan page LegendZ, known for lip-reading and deciphering what was said in conversations around the league, claims Morant told Williams, “I don’t f**k with y’all, I’m with whatever.” Based on the lip-reading, it appears Williams told Morant to step off the court with him and “go to the back” multiple times before Morant yelled, “You’ve been here for five minutes! You’re not like that.”

There has been no confirmation from the team or players that this is the exact dialogue that occurred during the on-court incident. Team sources declined to comment on the matter when ClutchPoints reached out for clarification on what happened.

So, where do the Grizzlies go from here, knowing that Morant doesn’t appear to see a path forward in Memphis?

As has been widely reported, the Miami Heat do hold interest in exploring a trade for Morant, league sources confirmed to ClutchPoints. The Heat trade buzz only got louder this week when it was revealed that the point guard’s camp views the franchise as an “attractive” destination and that he recently purchased a $3.2 million home in Miami.

The Sacramento Kings, while not actively pursuing a trade for Morant, have also talked with the Grizzlies earlier this season and recently about Morant’s value.

At this time, it does not appear as if Sacramento is eager to make trading for Morant a priority before this year’s trade deadline, as Scott Perry and his front office will likely only pounce on the opportunity to do so if Morant’s value reaches that of Young’s with Atlanta. The Kings hold no interest in surrendering draft assets for Morant, sources said.

It has become no secret to anyone around the league that the Toronto Raptors are aggressive on the trade market and once again looking to make a substantial move like they did a year ago by acquiring Brandon Ingram before the trade deadline. Whether or not the Raptors would consider trading for Morant is dependent on the organization’s ability to move talents like RJ Barrett, Immanuel Quickley, and Jakob Poeltl.

The Raptors are clearly operating as buyers right now, and it appears as if the organization is more willing than ever before to move starting point guard Immanuel Quickley. Along with league personnel hinting that Morant is an option for Toronto, Anthony Davis is a known star-level player that the Raptors have interest in. Domantas Sabonis has also been linked to Toronto.

Should the Grizzlies move forward with the idea of trading Morant before Feb. 5, Kleiman and his staff will do so with the mindset of attempting to add draft picks and young talents to rebuild around star big man Jaren Jackson Jr. Whether or not Jackson envisions his future in Memphis in a post-Morant era is a whole separate topic that leads to many other questions for the Grizzlies.

As for Morant and his immediate future, the Grizzlies have three weeks to decide whether now is the right time to start fresh and move past the drama that has plagued their season.

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