The NBA Finals is a tremendous stage for the players and coaches who have earned it, and the NBA is reluctant to step into their or its spotlight to deal with a less savory topic that, frankly, isn\u2019t going anywhere in the meantime.<\/p>\n
That\u2019s the rationale given Thursday by NBA commissioner Adam Silver for having no resolution yet to Memphis guard Ja Morant\u2019s status heading toward the 2023-24 season. Morant was castigated in May for the second time in as many months for brandishing a handgun in content that found its way onto social media.<\/p>\n
Asked several questions about the disposition of Morant\u2019s case and anticipated discipline, Silver told reporters at his annual Finals news conference that the league\u2019s investigation is, in fact, concluded. A determination on what penalty Morant faces, if already made, has not been announced either.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019ve uncovered a fair amount of additional information,\u201d the commissioner said. \u201cWe probably could have brought it to a head now, but we made the decision, and I believe the Players Association agrees with us, that it would be unfair to these players and these teams in the middle of the series to announce the results of that investigation.\u201d<\/p>\n
Morant, 23, was shown last month flashing a gun in a friend\u2019s Instagram Live stream. It came just two months after he was seen holding a gun in a Colorado nightclub that sparked investigations by police and the NBA. That, too, aired on the social platform.<\/p>\n
After the first incident, the NBA suspended Morant for eight games. The Grizzlies star apologized and briefly sought counseling during his absence.<\/p>\n
After the more recent incident, the Memphis guard issued a statement in which he said \u201cI know I\u2019ve disappointed a lot of people who have supported me. \u2026 I recognize there is more work to do.\u201d The Grizzlies suspended him \u201cfrom all team activities,\u201d a ban still in effect.<\/p>\n
Silver, meanwhile, went on ESPN to say he was \u201cshocked\u201d by the video, however grainy. Morant and his friend were in the front seat of a vehicle, singing along to a rap song when Morant raised the gun into the camera shot.<\/p>\n
\u201cGiven that we\u2019re of course in the offseason,\u201d Silver said, \u201che has now been suspended by the Memphis Grizzlies indefinitely, so nothing would have changed anyway in the next few weeks. It seemed better to park that, at least any public announcement, and my sense now is that shortly after the conclusion of the Finals we will announce the outcome of that investigation.\u201d<\/p>\n
Morant is one of the league\u2019s rising stars, the 2020 Kia Rookie of the Year and two-time All-Star in his first four seasons. He is known for his spectacular dunks and quick, elusive drives, a marketable player for the team and the league until his recent spate of controversy.<\/p>\n
Beyond the two gun incidents, Morant allegedly was involved in a conflict with a mall security guard, was accused of assaulting a young man who had played pickup basketball at Morant\u2019s home gym and a verbal confrontation with members of the Indiana Pacers that the league investigated and, at least, found no evidence of a gun being pointed at Indiana\u2019s team bus, as initially alleged.<\/p>\n
Based on Morant doing almost exactly the same thing again in waving a gun, harming his reputation and arguably his team\u2019s and the NBA\u2019s, Silver was asked if the first suspension was too light.<\/p>\n
\u201cIn hindsight, I don\u2019t know. If it had been a 12-game suspension instead of an eight-game suspension, would that have mattered?\u201d Silver said. \u201cI know it seemed \u2026 appropriate at the time. That\u2019s all I can say. Maybe by definition to the extent we\u2019ve all seen the video that it appears he\u2019s done it again, I guess you could say maybe not.\u201d<\/p>\n
After the first uproar, Morant was summoned to New York to meet with Silver and Joe Dumars, the league\u2019s executive vice president, head of basketball operations. The commission repeated Thursday something he said then: \u201cHe understood that it wasn\u2019t about his words. It was going to be about his future conduct.\u201d
\nMost NBA insiders expect a much more severe penalty that will impact the start of next season for Morant and Memphis. After that, it will be about the guard\u2019s future future conduct.<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t think we yet know what it will take to change his behavior,\u201d Silver told the reporters. \u201cSame thing I said at the time \u2013 he seems to be a fine young man. In terms of my dealings with him, I think he\u2019s clearly made some mistakes, but he\u2019s young, and I\u2019m hoping now \u2026 that it\u2019s not just about the discipline. It\u2019s about now what we, the Players Association, his team and he and the people around him are going to do to create better circumstances going forward.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Commissioner Adam Silver says results of the NBA’s latest investigation into Ja Morant will be released after the Finals<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":146,"featured_media":278632,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_spbk_hide_featured":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[399],"tags":[],"rumors":[],"typology":[15727],"posizionamento":[],"class_list":["post-333265","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-nba","typology-press-release-en"],"yoast_head":"\n