The 50 greatest NBA players of the 2020s (so far), ranked
By Cal Durrett
25) Ja Morant
The Memphis Grizzles star seemed to be on the fast track to superstardom before he was suspended to start the 2023–24 season due to on-court issues, appeared in nine games and then was ruled out for the rest of the season with an injury. While that may have left people with a bad taste in their mouth regarding Morant, he is just 24 years old and has a chance to put that lost season behind him and have a strong second half of the 2020s.
In the first half, he averaged an impressive 22.5 points and 7.4 assists per game. Not only that but he won two major awards: rookie of the year and most improved player of the year, in addition to two All-Stars and one All-NBA selection.
Few players can say that, especially at such an early point in their careers. In fact, that bodes well for his ceiling, and he will have help from Desmond Bane and Jaren Jackson Jr., giving him plenty of help. Assuming that he doesn't have any more off-the-court distractions, Morant could help carry the Grizzlies to new heights and improve his ranking on the end-of-decade version of this list.