Grizzlies star Ja Morant receives 25-game suspension from the NBA after his second gun incident in three months

Former Rookie of the Year Ja Morant will be missing the first 2-3 months of the 2023/24 campaign, as the NBA finally decided on a 25-game suspension after last month’s second video incident involving a gun. Once a bright young star in the league, now the player will have to dedicate his time off court to find his way back to the best version of himself.

According to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski, who first reported on the matter, Morant’s return to the competition will come with conditions. Even though those factors are yet to be disclosed, we can only imagine that this will be the last time the NBA will allow him to be a part of another situation involving firearms.

Up to this point, the Grizzlies have also suspended the player indefinitely following the release of a video on social media where he’s seen flashing a gun in a car. This came after the point guard had been punished with an eight-match ban from the league as he had posted an Instagram Live partying with a firearm in a nightclub after a contest against the Nuggets in March.

This is why this decision doesn’t come as a surprise, as NBA Commissioner Adam Silver admitted he was in ‘shock’ after witnessing Morant’s second video. The league representative claimed that they were gathering new information on the matter as they were waiting until the end of the NBA Finals to announce their actions.

“We’ve uncovered a fair amount of additional information. We probably could have brought it to a head now, but we’ve made the decision that it would be unfair to these players and these teams to announce that decision in the middle of this series,” Silver said about Morant’s investigation on June 1.

The league understands that such a high-profile athlete as Morant plays an important part in society, as they’re perceived as role models to young fans and future basketball players. This is why their stance had to be harsh, especially as this was not the first time the young star proves he gets in plenty of trouble outside the NBA arenas.

Morant had shown his remorse after the firearm incident and then proceded to leave social media

As for the Grizzlies star, he did issue an apology following the most-recent incident and then proceded to leave social media indefintely.

“I know I’ve disappointed a lot of people who have supported me. This is a journey and I recognize there is more work to do. My words may not mean much right now, but I take full accountability for my actions. I’m committed to continuing to work on myself,” Ja Morant said in a statement back in May.

Some NBA analysts believe this is the point guard’s last opportunity to have an inspirational comeback and return both stronger and wiser:

“It’s important to point out that this is not about just discipline, and then we’ll just cross our fingers and then hope there’s not a third time,” Silver shared two weeks ago. “And my hope is that wherever we come out (with) in terms of discipline, that there’s an acceptance that we need to find ways to engage with each other going forward so he can change the trajectory he’s now on, which is not a positive one.”

The NBA Commissioner has been very clear that all the disciplinary actions taken with Morant are mostly a wake-up call attempt for him to realize he’s walking on the wrong side of life.