As the Clippers fall deeper and deeper into a hole, can they explore a trade with the Grizzlies for disgruntled star Ja Morant?
Could a Ja Morant to the Clippers Trade Work?
After their loss against the Atlanta Hawks on Monday, the Los Angeles Clippers fell to a 3-7 record—their worst start since the 2023-2024 season. Although the Clippers still went on to win 51 games that season and finish 4th in the West, that roster was vastly different from the squad now.
For starters, Kawhi Leonard, James Harden, Ivica Zubac, and Nicolas Batum are the only players who remained on the roster. Second, the players mentioned were three years younger. Third, the squad still had other scoring threats such as Paul George, Russell Westbrook, and Norman Powell.
Clippers played at a 53 win pace last season with Norm in the lineup.
Clippers played at a 57 win pace with Bogi in the lineup last season (granted it was 60 games to 30)Lost both of them (for different reasons) and were unable to sign playable guards. And now here we are.
— Mark Thompson (@mathomp_501) November 11, 2025
The Clippers of today do not have the luxury of two All-Stars and a proven regular-season threat off the bench. Granted, Ty Lue is still in his “examination phase,” in which he is still looking for optimal lineups that revolve not only around Leonard and Harden as the scoring options. This phase has existed for many seasons.
This season, however, is starting to feel like a nightmare. They have failed to meet the expectations placed on them in the offseason, following a 3-7 record after one of the easiest opening schedules in the league. No one aside from the two stars has stepped up during Lue’s experimentation. Steve Ballmer may have to look at shuffling the team around before things get much worse.
How would it work?
Morant is having a down year scoring-wise by his standards. The high-flying guard is averaging 19.2 points while shooting a career-low 35.8% from the field so far. His performance this season has been hampered by the ongoing saga between him and the Memphis Grizzlies. If you’re Steve Ballmer, and a player like Morant, who is still 26 years old, becomes available, perhaps it’s time for another significant change.
But what can the Clippers give to satisfy the Grizzlies to trade their franchise star? If NBA insider Marc Spears is to be believed, not much, due to the low interest that other teams have in trading for the controversial Morant.
A package that involves John Collins, Bogdan Bogdanovic, Kris Dunn, and a 2030 first-round pick could be the Clippers’ best offer without sacrificing the team’s championship hopes for the rest of Leonard and Harden’s contracts, which are set to expire next season.
If the Clippers were taking on Morant as something of a rebuild, they would have to trade Harden, who has shown that he is still capable of being a team’s primary scorer, in a deal that also involves a couple of first-rounders.
Is it worth it?
The exciting Morant will undoubtedly bring a much-needed burst of energy and youth to the Clippers, but would it really be worth it to trade away more of the team’s future picks alongside one of the team’s bright spots this season in Collins?
Granted, the team’s present state could still work out, just like it did two seasons ago. But most of the Clippers’ main problems so far are the lack of scoring options outside of Harden and Leonard. If Morant comes to Los Angeles, it would certainly fill the third-scoring hole left by Norm Powell, but it wouldn’t fix the rest of the team’s overarching problems on both ends.
On the other hand, if Ballmer chooses to trade for Morant by unloading Harden and thus starting a new era, he would have two choices: build around a Morant-Leonard partnership or go full-throttle in dealing all of the team’s trade pieces for young players and draft picks. The former setup would be similar to the current one, in which both stars become the primary ball handlers, focusing on isolation sets with shooters waiting on the wings.
If Ballmer decides to go with the latter and succeeds in trading away Leonard, it would effectively mark the end of what was once a promising era centered around Leonard, focusing more on building a new generation of Clippers basketball.
Whether or not Morant does indeed come to Los Angeles, the next couple of months will be pivotal for the Clippers, who will look to salvage their season, and for the ever-present Ballmer, who will keep a close eye on potential additions – or subtractions – that he can make to maximize the season.
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