Draymond Green has a warning for Ja Morant amid Grizzlies suspension

Jeremy Beren

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Draymond Green has a warning for Ja Morant amid Grizzlies suspension image

Cary Edmondson-Imagn Images

Draymond Green does not like what he sees in Memphis.

The Grizzlies have been ensconced in controversy in recent days following their decision to suspend star guard Ja Morant for one game after the two-time All-Star engaged in "conduct detrimental to the team."

The suspension was handed down after Morant instructed reporters to "ask the coaching staff" as to why he shot 3-of-14 in a 117-112 loss to the Los Angeles Lakers on Friday. Morant then missed Sunday's 117-104 loss to the Toronto Raptors, but he is expected back in the lineup on Monday night when the Grizzlies host the Detroit Pistons

During the newest edition of The Draymond Green Show, the Golden State Warriors forward opined on the situation surrounding Morant and the Grizzlies, which he predicts is going to come to a head soon.

MORE: Why Grizzlies suspended Ja Morant for 'conduct detrimental to the team'

Draymond: The Grizzlies don't care what Morant, JJJ think

Green, Stephen Curry and the Warriors defeated Morant and the Grizzlies at Chase Center last Monday. On his podcast, Green said he noticed something odd in how the Grizzlies' coaching staff — led by Tuomas Iisalo, the former assistant elevated to replace the fired Taylor Jenkins — was utilizing Morant, who scored a team-high 23 points in Memphis' 131-118 defeat.

"When we got on that plane, I was telling Steph like, 'Man, Jah ain't in it at all. It looked like something happened. It ain't Ja.' He was giving the ball to Cam Spencer and going and standing in the corner," Green recalled. "And Steph was like, 'Huh, quiet protest going on, huh?'"

Morant, who is in the third season of a five-year, $197 million contract, publicly expressed surprise when Jenkins was fired late last season — though ESPN reported in April that Morant had "tuned out" Jenkins before his dismissal. When Iisalo was hired, he reincorporated the pick-and-roll into the Grizzlies' offense.

While Morant is Memphis' leader in touches by a wide margin, the Grizzlies have started the 2025-26 season with a 3-4 record. They sport a bottom-10 offense and a bottom-10 defense, seemingly confirming to Green that Morant's latest suspension — even if for one game — marks "the beginning of the end" for the All-Star point guard.

"When you looked at their team, Jaren (Jackson), Ja and those guys, I think they rocked with Taylor Jenkins," Green said. "If that's the case, and you just up and fire him, you're almost signaling to Ja and possibly Jaren that you really don't give a damn what they think about who's coaching them.

"And usually, when they show stars that they don't care what you think, the next move is usually you."

Only time will tell if a bombshell Morant trade is on the horizon, or what a trade package for a player whose scoring has declined every season since his 2022 peak would look like. But Green's analysis may well prove cogent as Morant and the Grizzlies try to put another controversy behind them.

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Editorial Team