Ja Morant’s move to the Portland Trail Blazers has already brought the spotlight back to the same place it’s often landed over the past few years: his public image.
The former Memphis star, whose seven-year run with the Grizzlies ended this offseason, spoke Saturday in Las Vegas for the first time since the trade and pushed back on the idea that he still deserves to be labeled a “bad guy.”
“My image. [That] I'm a bad guy," Morant said Saturday in Las Vegas.
"I'm Ja. I've done what I've done in the past, but it's been addressed and handled already.
I don't see why, years later, that's still the topic when nothing's happened since. If I was that guy, y'all wouldn't be talking to me now.
I wouldn't be here."
Portland officially landed Morant on June 29, sending Jerami Grant and Kris Murray to Memphis in the deal. The trade closes the book on a Memphis stretch that included four playoff appearances and an All-Star peak, but also a string of off-court headlines that never fully went away.
Those issues were front and center in 2023, when Morant twice drew league punishment after showing a firearm during a social media livestream. The NBA suspended him for eight games in March 2023, calling his conduct “detrimental to the league.” Two months later, he received a 25-game ban for a repeat of the incident and served that suspension to open the 2023-24 season.
His name surfaced again early last season amid reports of an alleged rift with Grizzlies coach Tuomas Iisalo. In November, Memphis suspended him for one game for “conduct detrimental to the team.”
Now the conversation shifts to Portland, where Morant is joining a backcourt that already includes Damian Lillard, Jrue Holiday, Scoot Henderson and Shaedon Sharpe. Deni Avdija, listed at 6-foot-8 and viewed as a “point-forward,” also handled most of the primary ballhandling duties last season.
Morant said Saturday that the guard crowding in Portland shouldn’t be a problem. ESPN’s Ben Golliver reported that Morant is “willing” to either start or come off the bench.
"All those guys will most likely unlock new parts of my game, and I'll do the same for them," Morant said. "I don't think it will be a problem having us on the floor or making sure minutes match or anything. We're all very unselfish."
Morant’s final season with Memphis in 2025-26 was cut down to just 20 games because of several injuries, but when he played, the production was still there. He averaged 19.5 points and 8.1 assists per game.
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