Ja Morant is risking his NBA career to act like an idiot on Instagram

Photo by Andrew D. Bernstein/NBAE via Getty Images

Is it worth it? No it isn’t.

As the NBA approaches the conference finals, where former MVPs and marquee franchises should be the center of attention, a young star’s fall from grace is again dominating the headlines. And this time, while some are still supporting Ja Morant, the calls for patience and understanding are being replaced by resounding disappointment and anger.

Even supporters of the Memphis Grizzlies and their young “leader” understand the old adage “Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me.” And those who had Morant’s back back in March when his poor decision making/off-court issues came to a head in a Denver strip club as he brandished a firearm on social media and was subsequently suspended by the NBA for a total of eight games (six of which Morant was simply “away from the team”) should feel foolish.

Morant was suspended by the team on Sunday for another video where he was seen waving a gun. He’s clearly learned nothing. And if he is still seeking help, as he did in the wake of the Denver incident, it may be time to take that process more seriously.

He said he would, if you remember correctly.

Then, roughly two weeks later, another viral video – this time on his friend (who is also a common denominator in these situations) Davonte Pack’s Instagram Live – in which he is seen for a second apparently holding a gun.

This is a two-time All-Star starter, a Most Improved Player winner, and an NBA Rookie of the Year award winner. A former All-NBA selection who partly was removed from the running for this season’s team because of a suspension for essentially this exact same act. Sure, Pack isn’t helping matters. But at some point, when you’re the NBA superstar with everything to lose, blame should only be pointed in one direction.

And it’s at who stares back at Morant in the mirror every day.

Rarely in life is the opportunity to generate “generational wealth” a possibility for any of us. The chance to ensure a better financial starting point not only for our children, but our children’s children and beyond. Morant, a potential heir to the thrones of LeBron James and Stephen Curry as the NBA’s best North American-born player (and possibly most marketable one), should be contemplating on how to take his good fortune as an electric athlete with charisma and not just be a millionaire, but a billionaire.

The surest way to do that is be that elite basketball player with a public image that is at worst non-existent, at best that of an impressive role model. Instead, he’s holding a gun during Instagram Live videos again and again. While no laws may have been broken, and open carry policies are becoming more common place the court of public opinion is speaking on Ja Morant.

And the verdict is not good, when it comes to “conduct detrimental to the league”.

As the best player on the Memphis Grizzlies, Ja Morant is seen as the leader of the team. He has suggested as much himself. And yet, instead of the attention being on one of the youngest rosters in the NBA winning 107 regular season games the last two seasons and being the No. 2 seed for consecutive NBA Playoffs, the focus is on Morant’s off-court issues and those manifesting in to problems for not just the Grizzlies, but the league at large.

And these decisions have consequences beyond himself. If Ja Morant is indeed suspended for a substantial chunk of the 2023-2024 season – say 20 or so games – will Memphis have to keep Tyus Jones to be the starting point guard for that time, instead of potentially trading him for an upgrade at the wing position with Dillon Brooks’ departure? How will his teammates respond to Morant’s selfish and frustrating behavior once again distracting from the team’s stated goal of NBA Finals contention sooner rather than later?

Avenues for the team to improve are dwindling. Morant says he wants to win a title, but his actions say otherwise.

What role do Grizzlies GM Zach Kleiman and head coach Taylor Jenkins have in this situation? More and more the franchise appears to have cultivated a culture that is far too loose and free, without true veteran leadership (Steven Adams being the main, and perhaps only, example) that can put the stars in check? “Tripling down on youth”, as Kleiman himself put it at end of season availability, seems to have been more of a mistake than initially thought for reasons beyond the on the court product. No player has been able to check Morant for his antics – or even speak to him about it, beyond Adams reportedly.

Taylor Jenkins has spent the last several years developing relationships with these players. As a non-former NBA player, he has prioritized getting to know them, empathizing with them, building a rapport that should be able to withstand conflict. Has Jenkins done enough to hold Morant accountable? We’re not privy to the inner working of the Memphis organization – but it would appear that the answer is not.

Even with the language of the original “suspension” – that word was not used by the Grizzlies until after the NBA announced their findings from the original video back in March. It was “time away from the team” to start.

Here, immediately, it was “suspended”. And perhaps that directness will extend to the league office this time as well. A more serious tone and disciplinary action must be enacted to stop this freefall, and make Morant realize that the NBA will carry on – as will the Memphis Grizzlies – with, or without, him.

The time for handling with kid gloves is over. Because Ja Morant is risking everything right now. His own health, his own wealth, his own career, and it is impacting the Memphis Grizzlies and the league as a whole. Mental health is important, and if a genuine issue must be addressed more completely. But the evidence before us suggests that Morant does not see the wrong in his current actions, and is more concerned about living a life that is the anti-thesis of what he should be prioritizing not just as a professional athlete, but as a person.

Because no amount of finger pointing and blame sharing will change the truth – the life and career of Ja Morant is ultimately his responsibility. And in order for change to occur, it must be seen as necessary on the part of the person that needs to change.