If Adam Silver and the NBA decided to announce the sanction of Ja Morant after the Finals, so as not to overshadow the event, the boss of the league spoke again about the attitude of the star from Memphis.
As we know, the Grizzlies playmaker is suspended by his franchise for having, once again and in just a few months, shown a firearm during a live Instagram. A recurrence that shocked Adam Silver.
“Yes, given the resemblance to the first incident, I was alarmed and discouraged,” concedes the “commissioner” of the NBA at ESPN. “Wielding weapons and showing them in a certain context is not compatible with safety and is not the message that an NBA player, especially of the level of Ja Morant, should send to the tens of millions of people who follow. Especially on social networks. »
Ja Morant did not break any laws during this Instagram live, but the collective agreement between the league and its players stipulates that the players undertake to “not to do anything that is materially harmful or materially prejudicial to the interests” their team or the NBA.
Adam Silver sets the stage
Reputation with the general public and fans is thus the keystone of professional sports leagues, and the NBA can sanction a player or an owner who damages it.
“When we talk about a standard for harmful conduct, it’s based on the values of the league and what we expect of our players in terms of image for the fans,” summarizes Adam Silver. “It is therefore not a legal standard, but that of a private company. »
The “commissioner” does not want to make the sanction of Ja Morant a political subject, the carrying of arms being however very divisive and inflammable in the United States.
For Adam Silver, the question is that of the “gun safety”, while it is already the third time in a few months that the NBA is investigating the weapons of Ja Morant, the Pacers having explained in particular that they were threatened, in January, by a red laser from the SUV in which the leader of the Grizzlies game. At the time, however, the league did not find direct evidence of the use of a weapon.
The penalty remains to be seen. But the fact that Adam Silver did not want to announce it during the playoffs or the Finals, and the fact that he explained that he was working with the players’ union on the subject, when the latter is not generally consulted , indicates, for quite a few insiders, that the punishment could be very heavy.
| Ja Morant | Percentage | Bounces | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Crew | GM | Minimum | Shots | 3 points | LF | Off | Def | Early | pd | party | Int | bp | CT | Points |
| 2019-20 | SAME | 67 | 31 | 47.7 | 33.5 | 77.6 | 0.8 | 3.1 | 3.9 | 7.3 | 1.6 | 0.9 | 3.3 | 0.3 | 17.8 |
| 2020-21 | SAME | 63 | 33 | 44.9 | 30.3 | 72.8 | 0.9 | 3.1 | 4.0 | 7.4 | 1.4 | 0.9 | 3.2 | 0.2 | 19.1 |
| 2021-22 | SAME | 57 | 33 | 49.3 | 34.4 | 76.1 | 1.4 | 4.4 | 5.7 | 6.7 | 1.5 | 1.2 | 3.4 | 0.4 | 27.4 |
| 2022-23 | SAME | 61 | 32 | 46.6 | 30.7 | 74.8 | 1.0 | 4.9 | 5.9 | 8.1 | 1.6 | 1.1 | 3.4 | 0.3 | 26.2 |
| Total | 248 | 32 | 47.2 | 32.1 | 75.3 | 1.0 | 3.8 | 4.8 | 7.4 | 1.5 | 1.0 | 3.3 | 0.3 | 22.4 | |
How to read the stats? MJ = matches played; Min = Minutes; Shots = Shots made / Shots attempted; 3pts = 3-points / 3-points attempted; LF = free throws made / free throws attempted; Off = offensive rebound; Def= defensive rebound; Tot = Total bounces; Pd = assists; Fte: Personal fouls; Int = Intercepts; Bp = Lost bullets; Ct: Counters; Points = Points.
