The NBA has launched an investigation into social media posts by Memphis Grizzlies guard Ja Morant after he live-streamed himself holding a gun at a club early Saturday.
The video was streamed by Morant on his Instagram page and was not archived after he stopped the stream. The Grizzlies played in Denver on Friday night and are scheduled to fly to Los Angeles on Saturday for games against the Clippers on Sunday and the Lakers on Tuesday.
“We are aware of a social media post involving Ja Morant and are investigating,” NBA spokesman Mike Bass said Saturday.
The Grizzlies did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The league, if it finds wrongdoing, could fine or suspend Morant.
Memphis is currently No. 2 in the Western Conference standings, led by Morant, a two-time All-Star averaging 27.1 points and 8.2 assists per game.
This is at least the second time in the past few weeks that Morant has been the subject of a league investigation. Morant’s actions were investigated by the league following a January 29 incident in Memphis, in which he said a friend of his was banned from home games for a year.
That incident was following a game against the Indiana Pacers; Citing unnamed sources, The Indianapolis Star and USA Today reported that several members of the Pacers saw a red dot pointed at him, and The Athletic reported that a Pacers security guard believed the laser was attached to a gun.
The NBA confirmed that unnamed individuals were banned from the arena, but said that its investigation found no evidence that anyone was threatened with a weapon.
Morant responded to the incident by tweeting that the report “paints this negative image on me and my family. And got my brother banned from home games for a year. Unbelievable.” During the January 29 game, there was barking between Pacers players and friends of Morant sitting on the sidelines. Devonte Pack, a close friend of Morant’s, was escorted from the arena as Pacers bench players shouted in Pack’s direction.
Pack and Morant are also involved in a civil lawsuit brought after an incident at Morant’s home last summer in which a 17-year-old alleged he assaulted her. The Shelby County District Attorney’s Office said in January that it was “aware of the incident, and after a careful review of the facts, decided there was not enough evidence to proceed with the case.”
There is precedent for the NBA when it comes to sanctioning a player over conduct involving guns. In January 2010, then-commissioner David Stern suspended Gilbert Arenas of Washington indefinitely without pay, saying the player’s behavior did not make him “currently fit to take the court.”
Following the suspension, Arenas was photographed before a game in Philadelphia pointing his index finger at his teammates in imitation of a gun while he was being investigated by federal and local authorities after bringing guns into the Wizards’ locker room. .
Arenas ultimately missed 50 games, the remainder of the 2009–10 season.
Morant, the No. 2 pick in the 2019 NBA Draft, has become an absolute superstar. His five-year, $194 million extension with the Grizzlies begins next season and will increase to nearly $230 million if he makes an All-NBA team this season.
He is also a sought-after endorser. On Christmas, Nike unveiled Morant’s first signature shoe, which is set to be released in the coming weeks. And earlier this week, Powerade announced a multi-year endorsement deal with Morant.
The same day as the PowerAid deal was revealed, The Washington Post published a story based on police records, describing how Morant and some associates have been accused of “intimidating and even violent behavior, said the newspaper.
The question about Morant’s conduct comes at a time when gun violence is again a major talking point in the sports world.
Top NBA draft prospect Brandon Miller and his Alabama teammate Jaden Bradley have been linked to the scene of a murder, according to court revelations. Neither has been charged nor charged with a crime, but then-teammate Darius Miles and another man are facing murder charges.
And New Mexico State’s men’s basketball season was shut down in February because of the fatal shooting and allegations of locker-room hazing. Mike Peek, the New Mexico State player implicated in November shooting death of New Mexico player Brandon Travis, said he was acting in self-defense and has not been charged with a crime.