Heat and Grizzlies negotiate a Morant trade! Riley refuses to give draft picks or top young players

On January 15th Beijing time, Heat reporter Anthony Chiang revealed that initial negotiations between the Heat and Grizzlies about a possible Morant trade have taken place. Nevertheless, these talks have not escalated, and a deal is not urgent. Insiders suggest it is premature to connect the Heat strongly with Morant.

Previously, reporter Kelly Iko reported that after ESPN revealed the Grizzlies were considering offers for Morant for the first time in his career, "in recent days, Miami has quickly emerged as an appealing destination for Morant and his camp."

Iko stated in her report: "The Heat have long been regarded as one of the NBA’s most detail-oriented and well-run organizations, a key factor attractive to Morant—who has missed 34 games due to various suspensions. Morant also holds great respect for Heat coach Erik Spoelstra, who also leads the USA men’s basketball team, and Morant is eager to represent the U.S. at the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics. Additionally, the veteran presence on the Heat roster is a major draw, which is exactly what Morant desires."

How much are the Heat willing to give up for Morant? Shams reports that "the Grizzlies want draft picks and young players as primary trade compensation," but the Heat are unwilling to part with any draft picks or their best young talent in a potential Morant deal.

A hypothetical trade scenario involves the Heat sending Rozier and Funtaiqiao’s expiring contracts in exchange for Morant. This would be feasible salary-wise, but it would require the Heat to absorb Morant’s remaining $89 million salary over the next two seasons instead of letting Rozier and Funtaiqiao’s contracts expire this summer.

Morant, 26 years old, is earning $39.4 million this season, with two seasons left on his contract: $42.2 million next season and $44.9 million in 2027-28. He will only become an unrestricted free agent after the 2028 offseason.

After winning NBA Rookie of the Year in 2019-20 and making the All-NBA Second Team in 2021-22, Morant’s performance has declined recently. This season, he has played 17 games for the Grizzlies, averaging 19.2 points, 3.2 rebounds, and 7.4 assists, with a shooting percentage of 40.2% and a three-point percentage of just 21.6%. Since January 2nd, he has been sidelined due to a right calf contusion.

So far this season, among 238 players league-wide with at least 70 three-point attempts, Morant ranks third from the bottom in three-point shooting percentage.This is a stark contrast to his only All-NBA selection season: in 2021-22, he averaged 27.4 points, 5.7 rebounds, and 6.7 assists, shooting 49.3% from the field and 34.4% from three.

This season, Morant’s attempts at the rim have decreased, along with his finishing efficiency. In 2021-22, he averaged 7.9 attempts at the rim per game with a 66.9% success rate; this season, he is down to 4.5 attempts per game, shooting 60.5% at the rim.

Morant is eligible this summer to sign a three-year contract extension worth $178 million in total.According to Iko, Morant "hopes to secure a max contract extension by next summer."