Ranking the top 50 NBA players of the 2021-2022 season: 40-31

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Top 50 NBA players: 37. Ja Morant

Previous Rank: 43

Slowly but surely, Ja Morant is climbing up the list. In just his second season in the league he helped push the Memphis Grizzlies back into the postseason and showed out on the biggest stage. In the five-game series against the top-seeded Utah Jazz, Morant averaged a stellar 30.2 points, 8.2 assists and 4.8 rebounds per game. He dropped 47 points on the third best defensive unit in the league.

There is still plenty of room for Morant to grow. He needs to incorporate the long ball into his game (30.3 percent on 3.8 attempts per game last season) to keep defenses honest. On the defensive end he can do more to help out his teammates. But overall, Morant is a star in the making and will make the Grizzlies a perennial contender for a postseason berth.

There is a real chance this ranking looks far too low a year from now. Morant is one of the leading candidates for the Most Improved Player award considering his work ethic and the show he put on in the postseason. As the team around him grows there is greater opportunity for his skills to be put to their best use. Morant truly wants to be great and he is increasingly close to that platitude.