After watching the Minnesota Timberwolves trade Julius Randle to the Brooklyn Nets in a three-team swap, could it be the first step toward making a trade for Memphis Grizzlies guard Ja Morant? While there haven’t been any reports confirming the Timberwolves’ interest in Morant, Minnesota trading away Randle for draft capital raises suspicion.
Morant is viewed as a potential route for the Timberwolves, as The Athletic’s Jon Krawczynski noted.
“This could be just the first move in a multi-step roster restructuring,” Krawczynski said. “The Wolves are currently $31 million below the first apron, with a roster full of good-value contracts. They have more flexibility than they have had in years, and Connelly could go out looking for another significant piece to bring a more dramatic change to the team. The Wolves are not pursuing Memphis point guard Ja Morant, according to team sources, but will continue to canvas the league for other possibilities.”
While the Timberwolves haven’t expressed interest in making a move for Ja Morant, they’re expected to keep their options open throughout the summer.
What’s the market like for Grizzlies’ Ja Morant?
Coming off a tumultuous season, including an argument with head coach Thomas Iisalo, Ja Morant isn’t any team’s Plan A target amid the early stages of the NBA’s offseason. While that could change at some point, there hasn’t been much traction surrounding Morant, thus far, according to ClutchPoints’ Brett Siegel.
“Teams just don’t view him as a positive asset right now,” Siegel said. “I haven’t heard anything on this front in terms of any team really being interested. It’s just speculation of hey, could this team get involved? Could that team get involved? And that’s why we’ve seen some of these rumors pop up. We’ve debunked one of them.
“We spoke directly with multiple sources tied to the situation in Phoenix of whether or not they would a team interested in Ja Morant. We have been adamently told no. That they are not interested in Ja Morant whatsoever.”
The NBA Draft is on Tuesday.
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