After a season full of unfortunate headlines, Ja Morant was once again shown with a firearm in a recent Instagram video. Can the Grizzlies star ever get his head in the right place?
The Grizzlies season has been over for a few weeks now, but they have unfortunately failed to stay out of the news. Star point guard Ja Morant was yet again shown with a firearm on Instagram Live, a disappointing development after already being suspended this year for the same thing. The situation is different considering the season is over and there are no questions about whether he transported it on a team bus or plane, but this is still a bad look for the young star.
Can the Grizzlies reign him in? Or is it time to question his commitment to all things basketball, including the public reception aspect? That is the question the team brass has to answer as they head into a pivotal offseason for the franchise.
Grizzlies are in a potential lose-lose situation with Ja Morant
Let’s start with the obvious: Ja Morant should know better. He just faced suspension and heavy criticism for a host of off-court concerns, most notably the Denver nightclub incident. The Grizzlies felt it necessary to keep him away from the team before he was ultimately suspended, and they seem to be taking that same approach again.
Ja Morant has been suspended from all Grizzlies activities after the Memphis star was seen flashing an apparent gun in recent social media video.
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) May 14, 2023
Regardless of whether the firearm seen in that video or in the most recent one was for protection, for show, or whatever else, it’s a bad look. He supposedly entered counseling once during his suspension, which clearly didn’t help. Morant doesn’t seem to realize that, whether he likes it or not, he is the face of an NBA franchise and will be expected to act as such. The Grizzlies are trying to build a championship team around his talents, and still, he feels the need to do things that could jeopardize it.
Maybe he doesn’t care about that part of it, or perhaps he cares more about whatever image or persona he is trying to show on social media. Either way, it puts the Grizzlies in a potential lose-lose situation. They could look to cut ties with him, but finding a reasonable return for him could be difficult. They could continue to support him, but at some point, he will have to want that support. The offseason for Memphis could get much wilder than anyone expected, and unfortunately for none of the right reasons.
The Grizzlies disappointing playoff series against the Lakers was already going to force potential changes next year. Now the uncertainty around Morant will only make it more difficult to navigate the offseason. If they go all-in, can they trust him to stay in check for the whole season? If they try and mostly run it back and hope for better health, will he do something like this again? Only time will tell.