Numerous current and former athletes have gutted NBA All Star Ja Morant for his second pistol fire this year; The move has been labeled “stupid”, “disappointing” and “fake gangster” by some of the biggest names in sports and entertainment.
The harshest comments came from former NBA player Kwame Brown, who gave the 23-year-old Memphis Grizzlies star a profanity tirade telling him his “brain is in a mess”.
“You have to be the dumbest son of a bitch in the league,” Brown said in a video posted on his YouTube channel. “You have $231 million promised and you want to be a goddamn thug?…What the hell are you doing?”
The Grizzlies said Sunday Morant was suspended indefinitely from all team activities for firing the pistol in a viral Instagram Live clip recorded in a car while NBA YoungBoy’s new album was playing in the background.
That comes just two weeks after the Grizzlies bounced back from the first round of the NBA playoffs, and just two months after Morant was kicked out for eight games for swinging a gun at a Denver strip club.
“You want to get in trouble for having a gun at a club, make a ridiculous apology, and then show a gun on Instagram Live,” Brown said. “I heard about the NBA young boy, but you NBA giddy boy.”
Brown has made some surprising comments, despite having a bumpy history. The former #1 overall pick, who caught fire from the NBA after making $63 million in a 12-year career, was accused of drunk driving and erratic behavior as a player.
Criticism of Morant went beyond the NBA. New York Jets star columnist Sauce Gardner has since deleted on Saturday in a tweet, “Everyone has a gun bro. No need to post on IG live lol.
Ja Morant received his second suspension months later.
via Reuters USA Today
ESPNs Stephen A Smith He mocked Morant, who averaged 27 points per game as a pro, saying he was “more associated with guns than winning.” Michael Wilbon, also of ESPN, said on Sunday that he would no longer allow his son to buy a basketball shoe attached to Morant. “fake gangsta theme.”
“Our money as a family is not going to that,” Wilbon said.
ESPN’s Keyshawn Johnson accused Morant, who grew up in the middle-class suburbs of Dalzell, South Carolina, for conforming to a lifestyle he “knew nothing about”. The former NFL star claimed that Morant’s actions offended at least one “important” Los Angeles gang member.
“[Morant] To some extent, Johnson portrays him as the sort of hip-hop street gangster who grew up in the neighborhood,” Johnson said. “These are the things I worry about because you’re getting into a position where you know nothing about it – zero about it.”
Johnson said the Grizzlies and the NBA needed “serious help” from Morant.
“I grew up in the ghetto on the streets of Los Angeles,” Johnson said. “I grew up around gangs and gun violence. I’ve been shot before. My sisters have been shot before… You don’t want that life there – sticks, guns, alcohol – that’s not the point.
NFL Hall of Fame talking about Fox Sports Shannon Sharpe has been gutted Those who defended Morant after his first shooting incident claimed it caused Morant to reactivate.
“That’s what brought us here,” Sharpe said. “I need someone to tell me about his fascination with guns and feel like he should be on IG live, that people should see him with that gadget on. What is it?”
Morant’s initial suspension meant he didn’t play enough games to qualify for an All-NBA team – something the young star is likely sure of even if he wasn’t suspended. This cost Morant an additional $39 million for the five-year contract extension he recently signed. Memphis Commercial Appeal reported.
Even rappers Snoop Dogg, Fat Joe, and The Game have spoken out against the 23-year-old actor, who will lose millions more based on the length of his current sentence, which has yet to be determined.
“That guy is trying so hard to play. [in] Turkey or China or Serbia-Montenegro,” Fat Joe said in a post on Instagram. “He’s trying so hard to get kicked out of the NBA. What about the guys next to you? They’re not your people, Ja. They don’t care.”