“Yeah, we can’t build around him” – Colin Cowherd believes the Grizzlies trading Desmond Bane means they don’t trust Ja anymore originally appeared on Basketball Network.
For many, the Memphis Grizzlies’ decision to trade Desmond Bane — who just shot at a career-high 48.4 percent from the field and 39.2 percent from the three-point range this season — has come as a complete shock. But for Colin Cowherd, it only reinforces a belief he’s held for a while.
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Cowherd thinks the team has finally grown tired of Ja Morant as their No. 1 option and wants to slip him down the pecking order in order to stay relevant in the increasingly competitive Western Conference.
Ja hasn’t proved his worth as the Grizzlies’ No. 1 option
It once looked like Morant was all set to be Memphis’ long-time leader. In the 2021-22 season, he led the Grizzlies to the second seed in the West, averaging 27.4 points to win the Most Improved Player of the Year award and his first All-NBA (Second Team) nod. The following year, Ja averaged 26.2 points and improved his assist per-game tally to 8.1 per game, once again leading Memphis to the second seed. At that point, it looked like the electric point guard was destined to be one of the most reliable young leaders in the league.
However, things went downhill quickly. Constant injury woes and off-court issues kept Morant away from the court and derailed his momentum. He hasn’t made an All-Star selection since then, and according to Cowherd, that has frustrated the Grizzlies organization. Put simply, they feel they can no longer trust Ja to be the face of the league, especially when his words off the court speak louder than his performance on it.
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“Memphis signaled, ‘We’re rebooting. We’re getting rid of Desmond Bane. We don’t trust Ja Morant,'” Cowherd said. “Ja Morant’s always hurt. He’s always been fool’s gold, in my opinion. Maturity issues. You can’t rely on him… If you can’t shoot, as a smaller player, then you gotta score at the rim. He’s a lesser version, a thinner version, a smaller version of Derrick Rose. This league is overwhelmingly won by big and unbelievable wings, not by small guys who are hyper-athletic and can’t shoot. I like him as my two or three (option). Memphis finally acknowledging, ‘Yeah, we can’t build around him.'”
The Grizzlies need more than just Morant to win big
It certainly feels like trading Bane, a high-efficiency, two-way guard, could signal a shift in philosophy. The core of Ja, Desmond, and Jaren Jackson Jr. has failed to deliver, and they might be looking for a different big name or two to reinstate their team as championship contenders.
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Moreover, with teams in the West, like the Dallas Mavericks and San Antonio Spurs, expected to be better next season, the competition bar will be raised. The Grizzlies might not want a player focused on creating highlight-worthy dunk reels or generating hype with his words to stay relevant.
If Bane is the first bold domino to fall, the big question now is: will the Grizzlies go even further and trade JJJ or even Morant himself? If they genuinely want to reset the franchise direction, that might be the next seismic move on the horizon.
This story was originally reported by Basketball Network on Jun 18, 2025, where it first appeared.