Ja Morant and guns is the NBA’s version of peanut butter and jelly. On Friday the league announced that Morant would be fined $75,000 for making the gesture against the Heat.
Morant did the gesture despite receiving a warning from the NBA about doing it when the Grizzlies star and Buddy Hield of the Warriors pointed finger guns at each other. Typically this wouldn’t be that big of a deal, as NBA players routinely make the gesture without incident — but Morant isn’t in a position to play around like that.
In 2023 he was infamously suspended for 25 games for flashing a gun during two separate Instagram live sessions. Morant attended counseling during this time, which was a purported condition of his reinstatement to the NBA.
While there haven’t been issues recently, the gesture still came off as poking fun at the process, and seriousness of his prior gun issues — leading to the fine. The important thing for the Grizzlies is that there will be no suspension for Morant this time, which would impact their playoff run.
