Ja Morant has been going through quite a bit as of late. Following an Instagram Live in which he flashed a gun, Morant was suspended from the league. Subsequently, he checked himself into a counseling program where he sought help for his behavior. Overall, it was a sad story to bear witness to as Ja has so much potential. You never want to see a young player go down this path, and Ja realized his actions were detrimental to himself and those around him.
Yesterday, it was revealed by Adam Silver that Morant would be retroactively suspended for eight games without pay. Moreover, he could return to the league on March 20th. In the midst of this, he sat down with Jalen Rose, where he cleared up some facts about the situation. For instance, he revealed whether or not the gun belonged to him. “The gun wasn’t mine. It’s not who I am," Morant said. "I don’t condone any type of violence, but I’ve taken responsibility for my actions. But in the future, I’m going to show everybody who Ja really is, what I’m about, and change this narrative that everybody got.”
Ja Morant Speaks Up
Throughout the interview, Morant also touched on how he had been using these actions as an escape. Ultimately, Morant realized the error of his ways and decided to seek help. The Grizzlies superstar doesn't want people to get the wrong idea about him. “I used that as an escape, which I shouldn’t have. I feel like that’s the reason I made many bad decisions in my past, which doesn’t pretty much describe me, doesn’t describe Ja as a person," Morant said. "I’m a totally different person than what’s been shown in the media. That’s my job now. That’s why I took that time away, to become a better Ja, so everybody really can see who Ja really is and you know what he’s about.”
Now, fans are reacting to all of this, and there are a lot of mixed feelings. For instance, some believe this is just some sort of PR stunt that will help Morant in the short term. Moreover, there are other fans who do not believe anything Ja is saying. Overall, NBA Twitter can be pretty judgmental, and that is exactly what we are seeing right now. Whether or not Morant will be able to prove all of these naysayers wrong, remains to be seen.