Dec 15, 2023, 3:00 PM ET
Ja Morant admitted he has had “some horrible days” while serving his 25-game suspension.
MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Having been suspended for the first 25 games of the NBA season fIt’s tough for two-time All-Star Ja Morant, who said Friday he had “some horrible days” as he worked to focus on himself outside of basketball.
Ja Morant could return to play with the Grizzlies next Tuesday. AP Photo/George Walker IV
The Memphis Grizzlies point guard He did not say that he regrets having been suspended by the NBA commissionerAdam Silver, for the second time in the span of four months.
“In the end, I feel like it made me feel better,” Morant revealed. “I feel like I learned some things about myself that I learned during that process. It was very revealing. In a way he gave me a new vision of life. How I live my days; how I behave.”
Morant’s suspension ends Tuesday, day on which he will be available to play with the Grizzlies against the New Orleans Pelicans on the second night of a back-to-back road tour. Morant said he has been counting the days until he returns and that he is grateful to still be here.
The second overall pick in the 2019 draft, the 2019-20 NBA Rookie of the Year and the 2021-22 Most Improved Player He has been suspended for a combined 33 games since he was caught pointing a gun for the first time on a live social media broadcast on March 4.
Morant told reporters after the Los Angeles Lakers eliminated Memphis from the playoffs in April that he had to make better decisions, knowing that Off-court problems plagued the Grizzlies’ season. A team that earned a second straight berth in the Western Conference lasted just six games in the postseason.
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Just two weeks later, Morant was singing with friends in a vehicle when he raised a gun during a livestreamed video. Silver weighed the situation and announced the second suspension along with other measures for Morant.
That included speaking weekly with the NBA office and the National Basketball Players Association.
Morant also spoke personally with Silver this week, a conversation that he described as good and a check by the commissioner on how he is doing.
The guard knows that simply talking about being a better leader for Memphis won’t be enough. Silver has made it clear that Morant must meet a higher standard to play in the NBA.
“I can’t, you know, make anyone believe me outside of my actions,” Morant admitted. “So answering this question with just words probably won’t mean anything to anyone.”
The point guard, who shows no fear on the court when driving to the basket, He was not asked Friday if he still has guns.
Morant said that basketball has been his therapy throughout his life and that taking away the game made things more difficult. He credited his family, the Grizzlies and others, including therapy, for helping him since Silver handed down Morant’s second suspension in mid-June.
He was smiling and joking with his teammates at shootaround this Friday morning, pointing out when one of his shots would have gone in if it weren’t for someone else’s ball that deflected his attempt.
Under the terms of his suspension, Morant has been allowed to practice and travel with the Grizzlies and participate in morning shootarounds. But he has had to leave and not be in the arena while he plays Memphis. That has left him as a social media entertainer the only role available to him through the first 25 games.
Morant said he is counting the days until he can make his season debut Tuesday night in New Orleans.
2023-12-15 20:00:00
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