Kevin Durant Being Traded To The Suns Is All Ja Morant's Fault, According to CJ McCollum

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The person to blame for Kevin Durant being traded from the Brooklyn Nets to the Phoenix Suns has nothing to do with either franchise. According to New Orleans Pelicans guard CJ McCollum, Ja Morant is the reason KD was shipped off to Phoenix.

The reason McCollum is pointing the finger at Morant is based on a rather bold statement the Memphis Grizzlies superstar made earlier this season.

Ahead of the Grizzlies' Christmas Day game against the Golden State Warriors, Morant sat down for an interview and for some reason thought that it was a good idea to say "I'm fine in the West," signaling that he doesn't see any real threat in the Western Conference.

Now with Durant in the Western Conference teaming up with Chris Paul and Devin Booker, it's safe to say there is a legitimate threat to the Grizzlies and everyone else in the conference.

Morant sending that message to the rest of the Western Conference did nothing but jinx the Grizzlies when looking at Memphis' run as of late.

READ: JA MORANT CONTRADICTS HIMSELF WHILE COMPLAINING ABOUT THE GRIZZLIES BEING THE MOST HATED TEAM IN THE NBA

The Grizzlies have gone 10-13 overall since Morant called out the West. In that same 23-game stretch, Memphis has posted a record of 6-8 against Western Conference foes.

It's also worth noting that it's not just the Suns who have gotten better ahead of the NBA trade deadline on Thursday, the Dallas Mavericks took a step forward in acquiring Kyrie Irving as well.

Follow Mark Harris on Twitter @ItIsMarkHarris

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Mark covers all sports at OutKick while keeping a close eye on the PGA Tour, LIV Golf, and all other happenings in the world of golf. He graduated from the University of Tennessee-Chattanooga before earning his master's degree in journalism from the University of Tennessee. He somehow survived living in Knoxville despite ‘Rocky Top’ being his least favorite song ever written. Before joining OutKick, he wrote for various outlets including SB Nation, The Spun, and BroBible. Mark was also a writer for the Chicago Cubs Double-A affiliate in 2016 when the team won the World Series. He's still waiting for his championship ring to arrive. Follow him on Twitter @itismarkharris.