Memphis Grizzlies suspended two-time All-Star guard Ja Morant for Sunday's game against the Toronto Raptors, citing what they called conduct detrimental to the team.
Morant scored just eight points in the 117-112 loss to the Grizzlies. Los Angeles Lakers on Friday night and appeared visibly upset. During a brief postgame press conference, he repeatedly dodged questions, several times responding with some version of, “Go ask the coaching staff.”
At one point in the game, Morant appeared distant and even took a few steps away from the bench during a timeout in the second half. When asked what went wrong, he again replied, “Go ask them,” referring to the coaches. Asked if he thought he should have played more, Morant replied: “In their opinion, maybe don't play me, honestly. That's what the message said. It's cool.”
Morant actually played eight minutes and 25 seconds in the fourth quarter—more than any other Memphis player—and logged 16 minutes and 11 seconds in the second half, second only to Jaren Jackson Jr. He missed all seven of his shots after the break.
The suspension is the latest in a string of disciplinary violations against the 25-year-old security guard. Morant was suspended twice in 2023 for separate gun-related incidents, costing him 33 games and an estimated $8.3 million in salary.
The first was an eight-game ban after he appeared intoxicated while displaying a weapon during a live broadcast from a Denver nightclub. Later that year, he was suspended for 25 games for brandishing a firearm in a car during another live broadcast—despite early assurances from the league that he would not repeat such behavior.
Last season, Morant was fined $75,000 for making a pistol-like hand gesture after hitting a 3-pointer. NBA deemed “inappropriate”. The league noted that it had previously been warned that the gesture “could be interpreted in a negative light.”
Morant, who is in the third year of a five-year, $197.2 million contract, is averaging 20.8 points per game in six games this season.
