Ja Morant Suspended by Grizzlies amid Review of IG Live Video Flashing Alleged Gun | News, Scores, Highlights, Stats, and Rumors
Sarah Rodriguez The Memphis Grizzlies have suspended star guard Ja Morant from all team activities after he appeared to be brandishing a gun during an Instagram Live video on Saturday.
Chris Haynes @ChrisBHaynesMemphis Grizzlies say star Ja Morant is suspended from all team activities pending league review after he allegedly flashed a gun during an IG Live session over the weekend. <a href="">
ClutchPoints @ClutchPointsAppGrizzlies star Ja Morant was allegedly seen holding a gun on an IG Live yesterday.<a href="">
Legion Hoops @LegionHoopsJa Morant was allegedly seen showing off a gun on IG Live yesterday 😳 <a href="">
"We are aware of the social media post involving Ja Morant and are in the process of gathering more information," NBA spokesperson Mike Bass said in a statement.
Morant was in a vehicle with other people listening to music when the camera briefly flashed over to him holding an apparent handgun:
ClutchPoints @ClutchPointsAppGrizzlies star Ja Morant was allegedly seen holding a gun on an IG Live yesterday.<a href="">
Legion Hoops @LegionHoopsJa Morant was allegedly seen showing off a gun on IG Live yesterday 😳 <a href="">
In March, the NBA suspended Morant for eight games for "conduct detrimental to the league" after an Instagram Live video from inside a Denver nightclub also showed him holding a gun.
"Ja's conduct was irresponsible, reckless and potentially very dangerous," NBA Commissioner Adam Silver said in a statement at the time. "It also has serious consequences given his enormous following and influence, particularly among young fans who look up to him."
Morant apologized for his actions in the aftermath of his suspension.
"I take full responsibility for my actions last night," he said in a March statement. "I'm sorry to my family, teammates, coaches, fans, partners, the city of Memphis and the entire Grizzlies organization for letting you down. I'm going to take some time away to get help and work on learning better methods of dealing with stress and my overall well-being."
That situation perhaps played a part in Morant missing out on All-NBA honors this season after averaging 26.2 points, 8.1 assists, 5.9 rebounds and 1.1 steals in 61 games. In turn, Morant lost a significant amount of potential future earnings.
Tim MacMahon @espn_macmahonJa Morant did not make All-NBA and missed out on the supermax boost. <a href="">
Ja Morant @JaMorant🔙🔛🔝🔜 <a href="">
Drew Hill @DrewHill_DMI'm sure some voters held the off-court drama against him. But as Chris and I discussed on the pod, the on-court numbers were plenty good enough.
It remains to be seen how the NBA will handle this current situation after Morant's previous suspension. But at the very least, it will call into question just how genuine the star guard was in the past when he publicly expressed contrition.
"I've just got to be better with my decision-making," he told reporters on April 28. "That's pretty much it. Off-the-court issues affected us as an organization pretty much. Just [need] more discipline."
