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Memphis guard Jay Morant will miss at least the Grizzlies' next two games after his Instagram Live video of him brandishing a gun at a strip club Saturday night prompted a major public outcry and an NBA investigation.
The Grizzlies announced Saturday that Morant is "out for at least the next two games," meaning he will not play Sunday against the Clippers and Tuesday against the Los Angeles Lakers.
The league is also examining the implications.
"We are aware of Morant's social media post, and it is being looked into," an NBA spokesman announced yesterday.
More on the subject,
Ja Morant took a picture of himself with a gun in a strip club, Memphis suspended him
Ja Morant claims that Memphis is the most hated team in the NBA: "You see it on the Internet"
Great player, shame on him.
Morant (Photo: Reuters)
Morant began his live Instagram session at 5:19 a.m., just hours after the Grizzlies' 113-97 loss to Denver.
The All-Star could be seen shirtless, holding a gun in his left hand, in what was claimed to be a strip club.
"I take full responsibility for my actions last night," Morant responded yesterday to the incident, "I apologize to my family, my teammates, the coaches, the fans, the owners, the people of Memphis and the entire club - for letting you down."
Morant added: "I plan to take a break and get away for a bit to get help, and work on learning better ways to deal with stress and stress and my overall health."
One of the first steps was to cancel (it is not clear whether temporarily or permanently) his Twitter and Instagram accounts.
This incident adds to the difficult day for the Grizzlies: Brandon Clark suffers from a torn cruciate ligament and will no longer play again this season, after averaging 10 points and 5.5 rebounds per game.
In addition, the Grizzlies will also play the next game without starting forward Dillon Brooks, who received his 16th technical foul of the season, resulting in an automatic one-game suspension.
Difficult problems for the group.
Memphis and Jha (Photo: Reuters)
Morant's video followed a Washington Post story published Wednesday detailing two incidents involving Morant.
In one of the incidents, it is alleged that a 17-year-old boy testified that Morant came out of his house with a gun in his belt and his hand on the weapon after a fight between the boy and Morant during a game in the guard's backyard.
The other incident was a confrontation with a mall security guard in a parking lot.
"Every allegation involving a firearm was fully investigated and could not be substantiated," Jim Tanner, Morant's agent, said in a statement in response to the Post's story.
"That includes the NBA investigation last month, where they found no evidence."
That investigation stemmed from a confrontation after Memphis' game against Indiana on Jan. 29.
Players from the Pacers claimed that a red laser was aimed at them from a vehicle in which Morant was driving - the laser is suspected to be from a gun aimed at them.
In that game one of Morant's old friends was removed from the court, after a verbal altercation with the Pacers players.
As mentioned, it is not clear how Morant can be punished for the sequence of these incidents.
What threatens him is the fact that he used a weapon outside the country where he is registered and resides.
Either way, many in the US are fed up with the "thugly" behavior of the player, who is believed to have brandished a gun in a defiant segment, in response to criticism of him following the affairs. In recent games, he even made a gesture of a gun on the bench.
Shannon Sharp, the football commentator who confronted Morant and the Grizzlies players at the Lakers' game in Los Angeles, said of Morant: "I wish Jah would realize he's not a gangster. Jah is a really good basketball player. Jah did everything he could to lift himself and his family from this environment and away from it. And for some reason, he wants to surround himself with these kinds of people. Why? Too bad. You are not a bully. This is not your life. People who are in this life would give anything to be in your life. "For some reason, you
got A $200 million contract, and you want people in the NBA to think you're a gangster.
Thinking you're a gangster because you hang out with those kinds of people.
Bro, you're causing yourself damage you don't need!
"Nobody looks at you, Jah, and thinks, 'Oh man, he's a bully, he's tough, he's real, he's about it.' You don't! Stop pretending! All you do is yell and say, 'Oh, I'm going this way and that'. You're not going to do anything! What you're going to do is get yourself into trouble. Put yourself and your family in a vulnerable situation, which is unnecessary!"
Former player Jaylen Rose, now an ESPN commentator, was on the verge of tears as he pleaded with Morant, asking him to learn from the mistakes he made when he was younger.
"I'm Jay Morant. I've been in his place, I understand what he's going through. I've been involved in drugs, I've survived attempted murders, I've been this undisciplined young man who doesn't understand how to be a successful and famous man, how to change the story of your family. What people don't understand Sometimes, it's that people like us, from the moment they get drafted, there's a lot of pressure on them. They turn overnight from family members, to the leaders of the family. When you're the leader, it's all about you. I was there too, I carried a gun with me too, but to brandish it like that , it can make you die.
"Publicity can be a drug. I don't know what hurts Jah in life, does he suffer from anxiety, what kind of substances he might be using. But I'm glad he understands that he needs to make this change for himself. You choose the people who are around you. Sometimes when we start getting famous and rich, we try to be tough. Fortunately for him, no one has been arrested yet and no one has been hurt, but I hear too many stories about guns. From here he needs to heal, and I believe he is on the right path. He will come back, and thanks to his willingness to change , he will realize his potential."
Commentator Stephen I. Smith is also very afraid of the possibility that Morant throws his tremendous talent in the trash, and addressed him in a direct message, comparing him to another exciting and problematic basketball player, Allen Iverson.
"I covered Allen for his first 10 years in the NBA, and I know what this life that Jah is trying to live is like. Ebron took so much fire because of the people he hung out with. Jah seems to be in a similar situation, but in the last video it's He himself, and no one else around him. You're a superstar, you're 23 years old, you have a contract that could net you more than $200 million over the next five years, and all over the United States you're being talked about in a criminal context. Think about it for a moment, and then ask the yourself if it's really worth it. No, it's not worth it. You're a superstar, you represent your club, your family, your city. You have to be calculated. In the NBA, they know exactly who you are, and what you do . They're connected to the FBI, they have connections to everyone. They know what you're doing, and who you're with, at any given moment."
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Memphis Grizzlies