Reports: Bad Conduct By Ja Morant Started Long Before The Gun Incident

The NBA player Ja Morant’s spiralling conduct, which includes several gun incidents and reported physical altercations—one of which gave rise to an ongoing civil lawsuit—has by this point been extensively documented by a number of reporters.

Reports: Bad Conduct By Ja Morant Started Long Before The Gun Incident

We are aware that Morant received an eight-game ban after being caught on camera on Instagram Live in early March, seemingly brandishing a pistol in a nightclub in the Denver area. Less than three months later, Morant was seen on camera once more purporting to be carrying a pistol while in a car with friends. This incident earned him a 25-game ban that he will begin serving at the beginning of the following season and will cost him around $8 million in missed pay.

According to a recently published ESPN story, “…some warning signs emerged early in his pandemic-shortened rookie season.” “Team sources said there were concerns about how frequently Morant, underage and often accompanied by his father, would go out drinking, and at some of Memphis’ seedier establishments and strip clubs, including on nights before games.”

According to the article, Morant was the epitome of a professional before joining the league. But as he became a household name in the NBA, his conduct gradually got worse.

“Throughout that 2021-22 season, during which Morant was named the NBA’s Most Improved Player, a pattern emerged whenever the Grizzlies travelled,” the report states. “After landing, a Sprinter Van would often be waiting at the team hotel to shuttle Morant out for the evening with friends and family, whom he had flown into that city on a private jet, according to team sources. Morant would cover their lodging and foot the bill at establishments they visited. In some instances, team sources said, it wasn’t unusual for Morant to appear hungover, or to be late to team events the next day.”

A Grizzlies organization insider accused the team of condoning Morant’s actions.

They said to ESPN, “There was no discipline.” “They felt like they could do anything they wanted. In my opinion, the enabling was out of control. Just constant. Definitely s— was swept under the rug.”

This is just one of the new details in an extensive investigation that ESPN’s Baxter Holmes and Tim MacMahon released on Wednesday. The story also claims that the Grizzlies saw a negative shift in Morant’s conduct almost immediately after he joined the NBA, but they took no action.

The next incident was an alleged threat made by Morant against a sneaker seller who had gotten into a fight with his mother during a July 2022 argument at a Memphis mall.

“A 17-year-old was allegedly struck by Morant and a friend” less than a week later. Morant is currently facing legal action over the event.

Witnesses claim that in September 2022, following his sister’s altercation at a high school volleyball match, Morant’s entourage showed up and intimidated a youngster.

Morant was still under contract as a rookie at this point. By any measure, he was wealthy, but not excessively so. That all changed in 2022 when Morant, having been chosen an All-Star starter, inked a five-year, $194 million contract.

 

 

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