Michael Scotto reports<\/a> the Bucks \u201chave canvassed the trade market in search of talent upgrades around Antetokounmpo, including the possibility of acquiring Morant\u201d, ahead of the February 7 deadline. <\/p>\nAnd while the disgruntled former no.2 draft pick is statistically down this season amid off-court issues, a change of scenery could do wonders for the explosive guard \u2014 particularly if Giannis became his new running mate. <\/p>\n
In terms of Memphis\u2019 likely asking price in a deal with the Bucks for Morant, Scotto reported the Grizzlies \u201chave desired Milwaukee\u2019s 2031 or 2032 first-round pick and Most Improved Player of the Year candidate Ryan Rollins\u201d. <\/p>\n
Celtics run down Heat in thriller | 02:38<\/p>\n
Rollins, 23, would be an attractive asset in the eyes of rivals, having staged a career-best season, averaging 16.2 points, 4.6 rebounds and 5.5 assists. <\/p>\n
But Rollins alone wouldn\u2019t be enough in terms of matching salaries, with Morant earning US$39,446,090 (AU$59,023,600) this year. <\/p>\n
Kyle Kuzma and Bobby Portis are names worth monitoring in this sense as the Bucks \u201cgauge their trade value\u201d, according to Scotto. <\/p>\n
In addition to the Bucks, Scotto reports the Heat, Kings, Raptors and Pelicans have shown a level of interest in orchestrating a deal for Morant. <\/p>\n
Of the Heat\u2019s chances, Scotto wrote: \u201cWithin league circles, there have been rumblings that Morant\u2019s desire for months has been to land with the Miami Heat.\u201d<\/p>\n
If Miami were to ultimately be Memphis\u2019 trade partner, he says guard Terry Rozier\u2019s expiring contract \u201cwill almost assuredly be a part of any trade package\u201d, while forward Simone Fontecchio \u201ccould also appeal\u201d given his shooting strengths beyond the arc. <\/p>\n
Sacramento, meanwhile, is looking for a long-term answer at the point guard position after offloading stars De\u2019Aaron Fox and Tyrese Haliburton in recent years in moves that have backfired on the franchise. <\/p>\n
Toronto, on the other hand, could truly elevate itself into title contention in the East with Morant to fill its void at point guard. <\/p>\n
The Raptors have scoring guards RJ Barrett and Immanuel Quickley alongside prolific forwards Scottie Barnes and Brandon Ingram, but they lack a true dynamic facilitator. <\/p>\n
NBA Wrap: Curry gets hot in the 2nd half | 02:20<\/p>\n
PISTONS EYE BIG TRADE PLAY<\/p>\n
The Detroit Pistons have reportedly shown an interest in Morant\u2019s star teammate Jaren Jackson Jr., a two-time All-Star and 2023 Defensive Player of the Year. <\/p>\n
According to Scotto, Detroit \u2014 alongside Boston \u2014 has emerged as a possible destination for Jackson Jr., though the big man\u2019s availability for trade could be entirely dependent on Morant\u2019s situation. <\/p>\n
In any case, Jackson Jr., 26, would yield a big return for Memphis, given he\u2019s still ascending on both ends of the floor, and Detroit has good young assets in its possession. <\/p>\n
A prominent rim protector and defensive presence in addition to his ability to stretch the floor on the offensive end, Jackson Jr. is averaging 18.8 points, 5.5 rebounds and 1.4 blocks this season. <\/p>\n
The Pistons, in sole possession of the East\u2019s one-seed, would elevate even further into title contention should they add someone of Jackson Jr.\u2019s calibre ahead of the deadline. <\/p>\n
Though if such a deal were to eventuate, they\u2019d likely have to part with one of their young, ascending players such as Jaden Ivey, Ron Holland or Ausar Thompson, in addition to premium draft capital. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The Memphis Grizzlies\u2019 reported asking price in a potential Ja Morant trade with the Milwaukee Bucks has been…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":418149,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[557],"tags":[2095,79599,64,19702,63,104593,7214,11238,800,3231,183050,20448,220442,733,5851,7223,187552,5130,4620,590,2041,2067,220446,220447,12995,38760,220444,15924,220440,85,17205,220443,973,41165,63380,112096,209832,2535,1140,42264,2614,12216,220445,220441],"class_list":["post-418148","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-nba","tag-america","tag-asking-price","tag-au","tag-ausar-thompson","tag-australia","tag-defensive-presence","tag-detroit-pistons","tag-draft-pick","tag-espn-inc","tag-jack-jovanovski","tag-jaren-jackson","tag-kyle-kuzma","tag-league-circles","tag-memphis","tag-memphis-grizzlies","tag-miami-heat","tag-michael-scotto","tag-milwaukee","tag-milwaukee-bucks","tag-nba","tag-north-america","tag-northern-america","tag-pistons-eye","tag-prominent-rim-protector","tag-ron-holland","tag-rumour-mill","tag-running-mate","tag-ryan-rollins","tag-shooting-strengths","tag-sports","tag-steph-curry","tag-talent-upgrades","tag-tennessee","tag-terry-rozier","tag-trade-market","tag-trade-package","tag-trade-partner","tag-trade-rumours","tag-trade-table","tag-trade-value","tag-united-states-of-america","tag-wisconsin","tag-worth-monitoring","tag-young-assets"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/418148","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=418148"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/418148\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/418149"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=418148"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=418148"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=418148"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
![](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/1768365730_454_poster-fallback.png\"\/)
<\/p>\n