Grizzlies’ Ja Morant Aims ‘Finger Guns’ at Warriors

Ja Morant is facing calls for suspension after the Memphis Grizzlies star made a gesture pretending to point guns at Golden State Warriors players during Tuesday’s loss.

Morant wasn’t the only one involved in the ‘finger gun’ act, as both he and Golden State’s Buddy Hield received technical fouls for pointing at one another. However, Hield doesn’t share Morant’s history with firearms.

Morant has served two suspensions totaling 33 games due to gun-related incidents, including one where he displayed a firearm at a strip club. Although Tuesday’s incident didn’t involve a real gun, fans were still upset about Morant’s pantomime.

“Ja Morant literally just pretended he was shooting a gun at the Warriors’ bench,” one fan commented on social media. “And that’s the guy you want to be the identity of your franchise, Memphis? Pathetic. Suspend his a** again @NBA.”

“Dude will never EVER learn,” another fan added.

However, some didn’t find Morant’s gesture as problematic.

“He’s pointing,” one fan pointed out. “I don’t see a trigger finger. Ease up, drama queens.”

Several Warriors players, including Stephen Curry, Draymond Green, and Hield, who stood near the Golden State bench, were seen reacting to Morant.

This wasn’t the first time Morant made this gesture this season. When sidelined for a game against the Los Angeles Lakers in November, Morant mimed pointing a gun at Anthony Davis.

“Ja Morant doing the shooting gun fingers at AD is crazy,” one fan posted on X. “This man will never learn.”

The NBA has not yet decided on any potential punishment for Morant, though other players have been disciplined for similar actions. For example, Phoenix Suns forward Josh Jackson was fined $35,000 in 2017 for a ‘menacing gesture’ aimed at a fan.

The NFL has also started fining players for firearm-related celebrations.

Morant’s history with firearms is well-known.

On March 3, 2023, Morant displayed a gun on an Instagram Live video at Shotgun Willie’s strip club in Glendale, Colorado, after a loss to the Denver Nuggets.

The incident caused significant backlash, leading to an eight-game suspension for Morant, who sought help at a private counseling facility in Colorado.

However, eight games didn’t seem sufficient to convey the message. Just ten weeks later, Morant was caught in another gun-related incident when he was filmed waving a firearm in a car on friend Davonte Pack’s Instagram Live.

Once again, Morant faced backlash, and this time the reaction was more intense. It was his second such incident in just three months, and after much deliberation, the NBA handed Morant a 25-game suspension.

NBA Commissioner Adam Silver called Morant’s actions “alarming and disconcerting” and “reckless and irresponsible,” emphasizing that he is a role model for many children.

The suspension forced Morant to miss a large portion of the 2023-24 season, with his return on December 19, 2023.

The Grizzlies have been struggling, losing eight of their last ten games, and head coach Taylor Jenkins was fired ahead of the playoffs. The 44-32 Grizzlies are at risk of falling to seventh in the Western Conference standings, which would send them into the play-in tournament to secure a postseason spot.