Will Ja Morant start for the Portland Trail Blazers?

It’s day 2 of the NBA season, and Wednesday brings some great matchups. One of those matchups features the Portland Trail Blazers hosting the Phoenix Suns. The Blazers’ Damian Lillard will play his first game since tearing his achilles in the 2025 playoffs, and Micah Nori will make his debut as Portland’s new head coach. Ja Morant is their big offseason addition, and many are wondering how he’ll fit in as the team rebuilds. The team has plenty of lineup options, with a ton of guards. One of the main questions was: Will Morant start? Well, we have our answer.MORE: NBA games on today, full TV schedule for Wednesday, October 21Is Ja Morant in the Trail Blazers starting lineup?Apr 25, 2021; Portland, Oregon, USA; Memphis Grizzlies guard Ja Morant (12) and Portland Trail Blazers guard Damian Lillard (0) share a moment during the second half of the game at Moda Center. The Grizzlies won 120-113. Mandatory Credit: Steve Dykes-Imagn ImagesNBA insider Chris Haynes reports that Ja Morant will join Damian Lillard in the Blazers’ starting lineup. It comes as a bit of a surprise because Nori initially didn’t believe that Morant and Lillard would start together. Portland Trail Blazers coach Micah Nori believes starting Ja Morant and Damian Lillard together doesn’t make any sense, per @jwquick“Nori said that starting Morant and Lillard doesn’t make sense. Both are undersized, and both have never excelled on the defensive end. The more… pic.twitter.com/aNtDsrVht7— NBACentral (@TheDunkCentral) October 2, 2026He initially told The Athletic:“The thing that concerns me most is just defensively, at the point of attack, (opponents) are going to be able to take advantage of us being a little bit small,” Nori said. “I know they have to guard us, but how can we protect the paint, protect the rim, protect those (guards)? … That’s probably the biggest thing for me.”His biggest concern was about defense, and Jrue Holiday is an elite defender. Teams wouldn’t pick on him, and Portland would get more lineup flexibility. Things obviously change throughout training camp and the preseason, so it will be interesting to see how this impacts the Blazers. The 27-year-old has started in 325 of his 327 career games. Morant played in only 20 games last year but averaged 19.5 points and 8.1 assists per game. For now, Ja Morant will reportedly be in the starting five.Trail Blazers projected starting lineupApr 10, 2026; Portland, Oregon, USA; Portland Trail Blazers guard Damian Lillard (0) watches his teammates during warm ups before the Trail Blazers play against the LA Clippers at Moda Center. Mandatory Credit: Jaime Valdez-Imagn Images Credit: IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect (Reuters)Point Guard: Damian Lillard Shooting Guard:Ja Morant Forward:Deni AvdijaForward: Toumani CamaraCenter:Donovan Clingan— Enjoy free coverage of the top news & trending stories with The Big Lead Newsletter —