Best of NBA Offseason MOVES Part 2: JA MORANT & Damian Lillard on SAME TEAM, Giannis BLOCKBUSTER trade to Heat, Wemby takes a PAY CUT?!

**Shannon Sharpe** (0:05)
The Memphis Grizzlies are trading Ja Morant and the Portland Trail Blazers for Jeremy Grant and Chris Murray. John 26 played only 79 games in the last three seasons because of off-court issues and injuries since his second consecutive All-Star appearance in 2023 He joined the Young Blazer team fresh off of his first playoff appearance in 2021, headlined by, did he? Yeah, him.
I'll be you, Joe, you like that. Am I mic out?

**Chad Johnson** (0:38)
No, I hear you.

**Shannon Sharpe** (0:40)
Okay. Do you like John going to Portland?

**Chad Johnson** (0:43)
Yeah. I mean, I guess I'll get Ocho. For me, when you think about it, no team carries four-point guards, so you got Morant, Dame, Holiday, and Skoo.
I thought Skoo Henderson showed a lot of growth and maturity in his game throughout the postseason, especially in that series against the Spurs. I know they only won one game, but hell, he played a pivotal role in winning that game too, in San Antonio. Them first two games, he looked like you might have had something as important. And then after that, he was kind of, you know, non-existent, but I thought he showed flashes that, you know, you'll still continue to take chances on the young man, because I think he got potential to be pretty damn good, honestly. But, with bringing Ja over there, you gotta be thinking that you're gonna get rid of one of these guys, at least. Because I'm saying, one, you're probably gonna carry three because, hey, they...

**Shannon Sharpe** (1:44)
Two gon start, and what, can Scoot play the point?

**Chad Johnson** (1:47)
We need some insurance.

**Shannon Sharpe** (1:48)
Holiday is your defender.

**Chad Johnson** (1:50)
We need some insurance, Unc and Ocho, meaning, maybe Scoot come off the bench, Scoot Henderson come off the bench. Maybe you deal Holiday, because he probably has value and can go play for a championship contender team. You know, but man, the biggest thing is, Ja gonna have to learn how to play without that ball, Unc and Ocho.
You got to, you got to. You think so? You're going to be...

**Joe Johnson** (2:16)
I mean, but Dame, Dame don't have no problem playing with the ball.

**Chad Johnson** (2:19)
No, I understand that. Dame, no, Dame is a great catch and shoot guy. He can play off the ball, but I think they're going to take turns, but hell, it's going to be a lot of times. I want to see Ja hit that lane, go catch a lob. Hell, hey, hey, hey. I think he can play off the ball as well, meaning being cerebral as far as cutting to the basket with his elite athleticism, bro. He just can't be a statue when Dame over there running, pick and roll or something. You got to be able to mix it up a little bit, be able to cut in there, get you some layups, get you some floaters, catch a couple of lives, got to get that three ball percentage up.
We can say what we want, but shooting 20 something percent from the damn three, nine days as a point guard, ain't going to cut it, bro. You got to get in the lab. I'm talking about you should be in there right now tonight.

**Shannon Sharpe** (3:05)
Yeah, yeah, you know, like last year.

**Joe Johnson** (3:09)
Yeah.
Hey, Uncle Joe, I'm happy he's gone. Obviously, you know, I was wanting him down here in Miami. I think as far as leaving Memphis and having a reset, a mental reset and having a change of scenery, obviously I don't think Miami would have been the right place for Ja, even with the infrastructure that the Heat have, as far as, you know, discipline and being able to watch where their players and those inside that organization always knowing where their players are at all times. I think Portland is a good place. It's a good place. It's not too fast. It's a good city.
And for him to have a restart on this- It ain't fast at all. Yeah, for him to have a restart on this career, I think he's in a good place and he's around some good people. Obviously, Dane being in the game for a very long time, he's someone that he can take up on his wing and, you know, show Young Bull the ropes on how to conduct himself with this fresh start that he's having. So, I'm excited for Ja. I'm excited to see, you know, what he does. He put up a post on his Instagrams about, you know, those that have counted him out. You know, so I'm curious to see the bounce back.