Ja Morant injury: Trail Blazers star expected to miss at least four weeks with hamstring strain

Portland Trail Blazers star Ja Morant will miss at least the next four weeks after suffering a Grade 2 left hamstring sprain on Thursday against the Memphis Grizzlies, the team announced. Morant was facing his former team for the first time since being traded earlier this summer and exited with 7:46 remaining in the game and didn't return.

Morant missed a floater in the lane and went to grab his own miss when he appeared to suffer the injury. Morant stayed in the game for two more defensive possessions before checking out at the next stoppage of play. In 23 minutes of action, Morant finished with 14 points, three assists and two rebounds.

The 124-103 loss to the Grizzlies marked Portland's first defeat of the 2026-27 campaign after starting the season with wins over the Lakers, Kings and Suns.

Morant played in just 79 total games over the last three seasons before being traded to Portland this offseason, including logging just 20 appearances during the 2025-26 season. In his first four games with Portland, Morant was averaging 15.8 points, 5.5 assists and 2.5 rebounds.

Where does Portland go from here?

With Morant set to miss at least the next four weeks, the Blazers will likely start veteran guard Jrue Holiday in his absence. Heading into the season, one of the main storylines and lineup questions in the NBA was who Portland would start in the backcourt. 

The Trail Blazers entered the season with a self-made logjam at the position with Morant, Damian Lillard, Holiday, and former No. 3 overall pick Scoot Henderson — who is set to be a restricted free agent this summer — all on the roster. The rotation questions didn't even factor in Shaedon Shapre, who is out for the foreseeable future after suffering a torn lateral meniscus in his right knee in late August.

First-year coach Micah Nori has played Lillard the most (29.5 minutes per game) of the bunch, with Morant (25.8), Holiday (25.3) and Henderson (18.8) not far behind. With Morant out, Henderson could slide into a larger role as the first guard off the bench, even though Sidy Cissoko (22.8) is averaging more minutes per game than Henderson.

Portland ranks No. 2 in the NBA (101.3) in defensive rating through the first week and a half of the season. That number should improve even more with Holiday set to enter the starting lineup.

Morant is the latest NBA star who will miss time

An unfortunate trend through the first week and a half of the season has been injuries. Morant is the latest NBA star who is set to miss time.

Current NBA stars set to miss the next few games, at minimum — with some set to be out for even longer stretches: Anthony Edwards, Paolo Banchero, Kawhi Leonard, Jaren Jackson Jr., Chet Holmgren and Jalen Williams. On top of those injuries, Brandon Ingram, Jimmy Butler, Kon Knueppel and Kristaps Porziņģis are among the players who have yet to make their season debut. 

Ben Simmons, who was expected to play a significant role for the Kings this season, tore his Achilles in practice days before the season opener and will miss the entire 2026-27 season.

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