Ja Morant doesn't get the tag of "injury prone" like some other NBA point guards do, but he's somewhat quietly trending in a direction that Grizzlies fans do not want to see. Morant has missed at least 20 games in each of the past four seasons. He hasn't played over 65 games in a season since his rookie year, and he hasn't played over 70 games ever.
Availability has become a bigger problem for Morant than fans would like to admit, and with Desmond Bane no longer on the team, Morant being on the court this season will be even more important than it has been.
I understand the importance of players taking care of their bodies in the modern NBA, which is faster and more athletic than ever before, leading to a higher risk of injury. Morant's play style is also brutal on his joints and limbs; he runs, jumps, and lands with so much power, of course he's bound to miss some time.
Also, I have never been a fan of bashing players for sitting out games — and a lot of that missed time from Morant has been due to serious injuries or suspensions.
With all that being said, eventually Ja has to be on the court near-nightly for the Grizzlies to have even a shouting chance at competing in the Western Conference. There's still enough talent on this team to make some noise, but going into a season with the assumption that Morant will miss over a quarter of the year does not bode well. To continue being the building block superstar that Morant has been at points during his career, this trend needs to be bucked soon.
Ja Morant and the Grizzlies can't escape the injury curse
It's already started this year, too. Scotty Pippen Jr, who had a career year in 2024-25 (in large part because of Morant's absence) will miss at least 12 weeks to start the season, so the Grizzlies' backcourt already has some depth problems.
Factor in that Desmond Bane is now a member of the Orlando Magic, and things get hairy pretty quickly. Thus, Morant does not have much room to spare if he and the Grizzlies want this year to be more than a throwaway or "gap" year, as it's often so nicely phrased. Haven't the past three years been gap years? Four straight gap years is more akin to a chasm that the Grizzlies don't seem in a rush to escape.
Ja Morant is everything to this Memphis Grizzlies team. His long-term health is critical to the long-term outlook of this team. But if there's no short-term where Morant is on the court for more than 65 games, then long-term doesn't even factor into this equation.