At the end of the Warriors' 134-125 win over the Grizzlies on Tuesday night, Ja Morant appeared to make gun gestures towards the Golden State bench.
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That is, now the NBA is investigating this matter (per Shams Charania).
NBA is investigating Ja Morant for this 😭💀
— LakeShowYo (@LakeShowYo) April 2, 2025
Considering Morant's history with guns, this indeed caused some controversy.
Yet, it appears that upon further review, Warriors' Buddy Hield was the one to first initiate this gesture.
in Ja’s defense, he only pulled the choppa out in self defense because Hield whipped his out first, pause. pic.twitter.com/14qYWJ4eop
— David (@bydavidarriaga) April 2, 2025
Even so, others are questioning why Morant often portrays himself in this way, considering he grew up going to private schools.
One fan on X said, "The thing i can't quite figure out about Ja Morant is.. why does he try so hard to have this street rapper persona when he grew up in a relatively nice neighborhood where people had trampolines in their backyard?"
To point out, Morant has been suspended on two separate occasions in the past for brandishing a weapon on Instagram Live.
The first was an indefinite suspension (that lasted eight games) at the end of the 2022-23 season, after he was seen on IG Live at a strip club in Denver, holding up a gun.
Ja Morant is being investigated by the #NBA for flashing a gun at a strip club on his own Instagram live early Saturday morning after losing to the Nuggets 113-97 Friday night pic.twitter.com/8N3ALEsx2E
— Highlight Hoops 24/7 (@HLHoops247) March 4, 2023
Then following that, a couple months later, Morant didn't seem to learn his lesson as his friend captured a video of the two-time All-Star flashing a gun in the car.
And this led to Morant being suspended for the first 25 games of the 2023-24 season.
Ja Morant was seen on live with a gun AGAIN pic.twitter.com/41iL7Hqmes
— Barstool Sports (@barstoolsports) May 14, 2023
All in all, it is yet to be seen if Commissioner Adam Silver will issue out yet another suspension for Morant's recent pointing a gun hand signal.
In light of this, fans have expressed their opinions on the matter.
"Did Ja Morant "[point] the gun" gesture again? This is UNACCEPTABLE." One fan remarked on X. "NBA should fine and suspend him AGAIN. This is NOT the image the NBA wants. This behavior can not be tolerated."
Nevertheless, others are saying this is not a big deal, which includes ESPN TV personality Stephen A. Smith.
Come on @NBA — and the rest of us. Totally unnecessary. Let @JaMorant play in peace. Let’s not look for things. The playoffs are about to begin. Let’s enjoy the games. Morant didn’t do anything flagrant. Folks are reaching now. https://t.co/cmeWaGgYBu
— Stephen A Smith (@stephenasmith) April 2, 2025
In view of the current highly contested Western Conference standings, the Grizzlies as of now are the No. 6 seed (44-32 record), 0.5 games behind the Warriors (44-31), but are only 0.5 games ahead of the No. 8 seeded Clippers (43-32).
Important to keep in mind, Memphis will attempt to continue on their postseason push without their former head coach Taylor Jenkins, who was fired just last week.
And some are saying the coaching change falls on Morant's shoulders.
Former NBA player Patrick Beverley insinuated this on his most recent podcast episode, "He [Taylor Jenkins] has to deal with Ja Morant on and off the court, talking about a player who's waving around guns, possibly not knowing, maybe goes to jail."
Pat Bev says Taylor Jenkins was in a tough spot, not knowing whether Ja Morant would be going to jail or not
“He has to deal with Ja Morant on and off the court, talking about a player who’s waving around guns—possibly not knowing, maybe goes to jail.”
— NBACentral (@TheDunkCentral) April 2, 2025
Related: Ja Morant Has Priceless Reaction To Grizzlies Drafting Zach Edey With No. 9 Pick
