Ranking the top 5 point guards for the 2023-24 season
Ranking the top 5 point guards for the 2023-24 season: 3. Ja Morant
Ja Morant has become one of the most controversial players in the NBA. He has dealt with many off-the-court issues, including more than one instance of carelessly displaying a firearm on social media, for which he was suspended for the first 25 games of the 2023-24 season. Even with that, Morant will be considered a top-3 point guard for next season.
Last season Ja Morant averaged 26.2 points, 5.9 rebounds, a career-high 8.1 assists and 1.1 steals, shooting 46.6 percent from the field, 30.7 percent from 3, and 74.8 percent from the free throw line.
Morant is not the best shooter from 3 but what he does very well is score in the paint averaging 14.4 paint points per game last season and shooting 65 percent from within three feet. He is also a solid mid-range shooter, shooting 46.3 percent from 10-16 feet and 46.7 percent from 16 feet to 3-point range.
Shooting the 3 will be an aspect that Morant will get better at, making him even more deadly. His elite athleticism and ability to score at the rim have made him an elite playmaker. His ability to distribute the ball has made Desmond Bane and Jaren Jackson Jr. threats to score on any play.
His off-the-court problems may put into question whether or not Morant is a good leader. Considering that since Morant has got there, he turned the Grizzlies into a championship-caliber team within his first three seasons. He led them to the Play-in his rookie year, the playoffs his sophomore year and the second-best record in the Western Conference for the last two seasons.
There has been a direct correlation between the Memphis Grizzlies' success and the ascension of Ja Morant. He leads his team to wins and will do so when he comes back from his suspension. He will remind everyone why he was drafted to be a franchise player and why he should be considered to be a top-three point guard in the NBA.