Neither Zion Williamson nor Ja Morant has been in the league as long as the others featured here, but both could use a change of scenery.
In Williamson’s six years in the NBA, he has played 60 or more games only twice and missed an entire season once. He appears to be unstoppable when he’s healthy, but he rarely stays healthy for an extended stretch.
The Pelicans have already churned through three coaches during his tenure and just parted ways with team president David Griffin. They have cycled through different teammates around him, but nothing has seemed to stick. For one reason or another, the Pelicans and Williamson have not worked.
Meanwhile, Morant and the Memphis Grizzlies have had a shaky past few seasons. Between injuries and suspensions, he has played in only 177 of a possible 328 games over the past four years.
His game has also fallen off. He just averaged his fewest points per game since the 2020-21 season. He also had a career-high 3.7 turnovers per game, and his assist numbers were down.
Memphis fired head coach Taylor Jenkins late in the season, but even with the coaching change, it seems the core of Morant, Desmond Bane, and Jaren Jackson Jr. has gone stale. The roster is about to get more expensive with Jackson being eligible for an extension, which could be a supermax if he makes an All-NBA team. Something has to give, as this roster is not good enough to compete in the West.
Both Williamson and Morant and their teams would be better off if they part ways.
