Memphis Grizzlies star Ja Morant has become a bit of an infamous figure in the NBA recently. Despite being one of the budding stars in the league, his alleged involvement in gun-related incidents and gang-like activity has prompted plenty of criticism.
Morant reportedly punched a kid during a pickup basketball gameand then flashed a gun at him. Also, some of his friends reportedly threatened to shoot people from the Indiana Pacers staff after a game.
Now, in the midst of a potential legal turmoil, anew accusation states that the former second-overall pick also threatened a mall security guard after his mother got into a heated altercation in a store.
Ja Morant Slammed With More Accusations
“Confronted by the mall security, Morant and his friends refused the security guard’s demands to leave the mall parking lot. Police arrived and a ‘verbal confrontation escalated,'” reported The Washington Post. “As the group was leaving the premises, Ja Morant said ‘let me find out what time he gets off.’ The guard waited to file a report, police wrote, ‘because he felt threatened by the statement from Ja Morant’ and had been assaulted by the person who had pushed him.”
Morant’s Agents Denies All Claims
Unsurprisingly, Morant’s agents were quick to dismiss this and all accusations against their client, claiming that they’re nothing but defamatory. They also claimed that he punched the little kid in self-defense:
“Any and every allegation involving a firearm has been fully investigated and could not be corroborated,” the statement wrote. “This includes the NBA investigation last month, in which they found no evidence. The July 26th event was purely self-defense. Again, after this was fully investigated by law enforcement, they came to the decision not to charge Ja with any time.”
“Any of the dozens of witnesses will confirm Ja acted in self-defense and that he did not have a firearm. Ja is a family-first man who loves giving back to his community. He’s an extremely talented athlete. It’s disturbing that unsubstantiated rumors and gossip are being put out by people motivated to tear Ja down and tarnish his reputation for their own family gain,” it concluded.”
I’m no expert, but I don’t think an NBA player needs to repeatedly punch a kid in self-defense. Also, when you’ve been tangled up in not two but three gun-related incidents in no time, there must be some truth to it.
Morant is one of the most impactful players in the league right now, but it’s evident that he’s surrounded himself by the wrong people. So, you can either be an athlete and a millionaire, or you can choose that other path. You can’t have both.