Trade & Free Agency 2026/2027

[HoosierDaddyKid]

For two hours, they dined and talked in a South Carolina steakhouse, and what Portland Trail Blazers coach Micah Nori noticed most about his lunch partner was the sincerity of his words, the seriousness of his facial expressions, and the excitement that was unable to be contained. Ja Morant told his new coach that he couldn’t wait to play for the Blazers. “I think we are going to get the best version of Ja,” Nori said. “I think we are going to get a motivated Ja.” When Nori settled into the steakhouse booth on Tuesday, he saw none of the petulance, none of the defiance, none of the attitude that has colored Morant’s image. Nori said he couldn’t help but notice the way Morant talked, and the way he carried himself. There was a seriousness, an enthusiasm, a focus. “The way he was talking, the way he looked … the intent he had, you could just tell in his face that he missed basketball,” Nori said. “And he assured that we were going to get the best Ja and that he was going to do all the right things.” “He’s excited to be on a team with vets like Dame and Jrue, and he loves the young talent of Deni (Avdija), Scoot, (Donovan) Clingan, (Toumani) Camara … I mean, he mentioned them all by name,” Nori said. As they left the restaurant, Nori asked Morant what he needed from him. How could he help? “He just said, ‘Make sure I get some Trail Blazers gear as soon as possible so I can start wearing it,’” Nori said.

New York Times


We'll see if he can bounce back. However, Ja and Dame are a very small backcourt.