Kendrick Perkins sends a stern warning to Ja Morant

The Memphis Grizzlies made a big trade right before the deadline, but it included Jaron Jackson Jr., not Ja Morant. In fact, it sounds like Morant has little to no interest from teams around the league. On Thursday, the former center became an ESPN analyst Kendrick Perkins sent the star spy a rather stark warning about his career.

During the latest “NBA on ESPN” segment, Perkins calls out Morant for his take on the current situation. He believes the lack of interest Morant received at the trade deadline indicates that Morant’s NBA career it could come to an end sooner rather than later.

“I Morant better wake up,” Perkins said. “Because in two years, after this contract, he could be in the league. It’s upsetting to hear that a guy who’s gone, we’re talking about a former Rookie of the Year, All-NBA player, All-Star, a guy who was on the verge of becoming the face of the league, and the team can’t trade you. They can’t trade you! If nobody trades you! I don’t know what else will open your eyes.”

“Ja Morant better wake up. Because in two years, after this contract, he could be out of the league.”

– Kendrick Perkins 👀

(via @ESPNNBA)pic.twitter.com/isGIKkkoKz

— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPoints) February 5, 2026

Morant’s first four years in the league were considered successful. The now 26-year-old guard won Rookie of the Year honors for the 2019-20 season while also earning two All-Star honors along with second-team All-NBA selections in his first four seasons.

The 2023-24 campaign is where things seemingly went wrong. Ja Morant was suspended for a total of 33 games for two separate incidents of brandishing a firearm and conduct detrimental to the league. Once the suspension was over, Morant was forced to miss the rest of the season after playing just nine games, after suffering a season-ending labral tear in his shoulder.

Since then, Ja Morant has shown talent, but has not returned to his full potential. The Grizzlies star continues to find himself in the middle of controversy from time to time, and his numbers have dropped significantly.

Morant has only played 20 games so far this season dealt with a series of injuries. In the contests he’s played in, the former first-round pick is averaging 19.5 points, 3.3 rebounds (career low) and 8.1 assists (tied career high) per game while shooting 41.0% from the floor (career low) and 23.5% from beyond the arc (career low).