We corrected, summary of the day's events in sports, May 15 (Sports5)
The controversy surrounding Ja Morant hasn't calmed down, and NBA commissioner Adam Silver admitted Tuesday night that "I was shocked" when I saw him brandishing a weapon again. The Memphis superstar then released a statement acknowledging the disappointment he caused those who supported him.
The Grizzlies suspended Morant from all team activities on Sunday pending the league's review of the video that surfaced over the weekend — less than two months after Morant and Silver met to discuss a similar incident that resulted in his eight-game suspension.
"Honestly, I was shocked when I saw this video over the weekend," Silver said during the NBA draft draw, "Now, we're in the process of investigating, and we're going to figure out exactly what happened to the best of our ability. The video is a bit grainy, but I'm assuming the worst."
Following Silver's interview with ESPN, Morant released a statement through his representatives, his first public response since the video was released over the weekend.
"I know I've disappointed a lot of people who supported me," Morant said in a statement. "It's a journey and I recognize there's more work to do. My words may not mean much right now, but I take full responsibility for my actions. I'm committed to continuing to work on myself."
Morant was previously suspended in March after he was seen in a live Instagram video holding a gun while drunk at a Denver area club when the Grizzlies were in town to play against the Nuggets.
Morant enrolled at an institute in Florida — to learn how to handle stress better, he later said — before traveling to New York to meet with Silver, the commissioner, 11 days after the incident.
Silver chose to suspend Morant for eight games without pay for conduct harmful to the league — a punishment that included six games the point guard had already missed — and issued a scathing statement calling Morant's conduct "irresponsible, reckless and potentially very dangerous."
"We talked directly about the consequences," Silver said, "We were very focused on the conversation about the misconduct we were facing at the time. In fact, most of our conversation was about how serious the incident of brandishing firearms was on social media.
"Again, the consequences there — an eight-game ban — were pretty serious and something he, at least to me, seemed to take incredibly seriously at that time. And we talked for a long time about not only the implications it could have on his career, but also the safety issues around it — Morant could have injured someone, or hurt himself — but also about recognizing that he's a star. Tens of millions of children around the world see him celebrating the use of firearms in this way. So at least I was left with the feeling that he was taking it very seriously."
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The Instagram Live video that appeared over the weekend came from the account of Morant's best friend, Devonte Puck, who was involved in some of the incidents outside Morant's court that are being investigated. Pack was banned from Grizzlies home games for a year following a confrontation with Indiana Pacers players on Jan. 29, when it was alleged that a red laser was pointed at them from a vehicle in which Morant was traveling with Puck.
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