Ja Morant was drafted second overall by the Memphis Grizzlies in the 2019 NBA Draft, and that same year he signed a multi-year footwear and apparel deal with Nike, becoming the first member of his draft class to land a shoe deal with the brand. An explosive, high-flying guard, he became Nike Basketball’s first Gen Z signature athlete, and his Nike Ja line is built around his quick, dynamic game.

The Nike Ja 1 made its on-court debut on Christmas Day 2022 in a game against the Golden State Warriors before releasing in the spring of 2023 at $110, making it the most affordable Nike Basketball signature shoe on the market at the time. It featured a forefoot Air Zoom unit for an explosive feel underfoot, a midfoot lockdown system for quick changes of direction, and a raised sidewall guardrail with a cushioned foam collar for landing support, while Morant added handwritten notes to his family, friends and community across the colorways. The Ja 2 arrived in 2024, keeping the forefoot Air Zoom and sidewall guardrail while adding a molded midfoot panel for lockdown and a traction pattern inspired by semitrailer tires. In 2025, the Ja 3 became the first Ja shoe built from scratch and the first Nike basketball performance shoe with layered full-length hybrid ZoomX foam, and its outsole used a repeating Ja logo as the traction pattern. The 2026 Ja 4 switched to Cushlon 3.0 foam for more stability, added a supercritical foam sockliner and introduced a TPU JA-Frame that wraps around the foot to keep players secure on hard cuts.