NBA already decided Ja Morant’s fate after new gun incident but will wait until Finals are over

Before the start of Game 1 of the NBA Finals in Denver, league commissioner Adam Silver addressed the press and talked about many subjects, one of them being Ja Morant‘s situation after he was suspended once again by the Grizzlies after his second video holding a firearm some weeks ago. 

He revealed on Thursday that the NBA’s investigation into the young star’s latest incident with a gun could “come to a head” now, but they are waiting until the Finals are over.

The Memphis point guard got in trouble again after waving a firearm on an Instagram Live once again, only this time it was on his friend Davonte Pack’s social media account, and only two months after he appeared on his own platform partying drunk inside a nightclub in Colorado.

Silver was asked why the league was taking so long to determine his punishment, and he laid out the situation.

“In assessing what discipline is appropriate, if that’s the case, we look at both the history of prior acts,” he explained. “But then we look at individual player’s history as well and the seriousness, of course, of the conduct. So, those are all the things that get factored. It’s not an exact science. It comes down to judgment at the end of the day on the part of me and my colleagues in the league office.”

The commissioner also detailed on the reasons why the timing still wasn’t right to discuss the investigation’s findings, considering it “would be unfair” to those currently concentrated in winning the NBA Title.

“In terms of the timing, we’ve uncovered a fair amount of additional information,” Silver expressed. “Since I was still asked about the situation, I would say we probably could’ve 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 this series to announce the results of that investigation.

“It’s better to park that at the moment, at least any public announcement, and my sense now is that shortly after the conclusion of the Finals.”

So, the fact that the Memphis franchise already suspended the player during this offseason, is one of the main reasons why the league isn’t rushing to make it public, as they are not currently competing.

Morant already made a public statement over this unfortunate second incident

The first time the league commissioner Adam Silver mentioned the situation was right before the NBA Draft Lottery, saying that he expects the worst to come down on Morant as they began their investigation.

After the first incident happened at the start of March, he had personally met with the 23-year-old and said he genuinely believed him to be ashamed of his actions as he promised to never repeat.

“I know I’ve disappointed a lot of people who have supported me,” Morant said days after his second mistake. “This is a journey and I recognize there is more work to do. My words may not mean much right now, but I take full responsibility for my actions. I’m committed to continuing to work on myself.”

The young star was selected an All-Star for the second-consecutive year during this 2022/23 regular season, after averaging 26.2 points per match with 8.1 assists and 5.9 rebounds over 61 games.