Two months after Memphis Grizzlies star Ja Morant was suspended for flashing a firearm on social media, the guard is once again heading down a dark path by brandishing a gun in another video this weekend.
The Grizzles announced Sunday they were suspending Morant from all team activities and the NBA said it is investigating after yet another video emerged of Morant briefly holding a weapon, this time on an associate’s Instagram Live broadcast.
“We are aware of the social media video involving Ja Morant,” the Grizzlies said in a statement Sunday. “He is suspended from all team activities pending League review. We have no further comment at this time.”
“We are aware of the social media post involving Ja Morant and are in the process of gathering more information,” the NBA added.
In early March, following a Grizzles game versus the Denver Nuggets, Morant shared an Instagram Live video from inside a Denver nightclub where he flashed a gun at the camera. Both the team and the NBA suspended Morant, who then enrolled in a Florida counseling program before he was allowed to make his return to the court in late-March. Denver police declined to charge Morant over the incident.
“It’s not who I am. I don’t condone any type of violence, but I take full responsibility for my actions,” a then-repentant Morant told ESPN in an interview following the incident. “I made a bad mistake. I can see that the image I painted of myself with my recent mistakes, but in the future, I’ma show everybody who Ja really is, what I’m about, and change this narrative.”
NBA commissioner Adam Silver said in a statement at the time of Morant’s reinstatement, “Ja’s conduct was irresponsible, reckless and potentially very dangerous. It also has serious consequences given his enormous following and influence, particularly among young fans who look up to him. He has expressed sincere contrition and remorse for his behavior.”
The initial IG Live video came just days after a Washington Post report accused Morant of both beating up a 17-year-old boy and threatening a mall security guard during separate incidents in July 2022.
Morant’s alleged fight with the teenager during a pickup basketball game was previously reported — the boy and his mother sued Morant in Jan. 2023, at which point the incident became widely known — but the report earlier this week revealed new details culled from police interviews, including a claim that Morant threatened the teenager with a gun following the physical altercation.
While Morant didn’t pull the gun on the teen, he had his hand on the firearm, the teenager told police. Morant didn’t deny “brandishing” a weapon at the time of his police interview. Witnesses, however, told police that the teenager “squared up” to fight Morant after the ball-throwing incident and didn’t mention the gun. No charges were filed against Morant.
As the Commercial Appeal reports, during his season-ending exit interview following the Grizzlies playoff loss, Morant said, “I have to be better with my decision-making. That’s pretty much it. Off-the-court issues affected us as an organization. Yeah, just more discipline. Less drama. Less Ja on the blogs for something I said.”
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