NBA Commissioner Adam Silver admits he is ‘shocked’ after Ja Morant flashed a gun for second time

NBA commissioner Adam Silver admitted he was “shocked” when the latest video of Ja Morant flashing a gun surfaced just weeks after meeting with the young star about his previous incident.

The Memphis Grizzlies suspended Morant “from all team activities” on Sunday after he brandished a gun for the second time in two months on Instagram.

Morant was seen on Instagram Live on Sunday in the driver’s seat of a car holding a gun.

The clip came just two months after Silver met with Morant in New York, after he was seen at a strip club in Denver with a gun in an Instagram video that led to a police and league investigation.

League Commissioner Silver explained that he thought Morant understood the seriousness of the first incident and was therefore in disbelief when the second clip surfaced over the weekend.

“Honestly, I was shocked when I saw that video this weekend,” he told ESPN Tuesday night ahead of the NBA Draft Lottery.

“Now we are investigating it. We are trying to find out exactly what happened. Again, the video is grainy and all, but I’m assuming the worst.’

Morant’s incident in March showed him dancing topless at a strip club before holding a gun to the side of his head.

Hours after the incident, it was reported that it was under investigation by the NBA and that Morant had been suspended by the Grizzlies for “at least two games” while the investigation continued.

Morant then issued a statement taking responsibility for his actions and explaining that he would be taking time off from the game to work on his well-being.

“I take full responsibility for my actions last night,” he said. “I am sorry to my family, teammates, coaches, fans, partners, the city of Memphis and the entire Grizzlies organization for letting you down.

“I’m going to set aside some time to get help and work on learning better methods of coping with stress and my overall well-being.”

An investigation by the Glendale, Colorado Police Department resulted in no criminal charges and found no wrongdoing.

Although Morant took time off for his well-being, including a brief stint in a Florida treatment facility, he met with Silver where he was told he would be suspended for eight games – including time he had already served.

Silver revealed on Tuesday that he also discussed the seriousness of Morant’s actions with him and got the impression that the point guard understood the seriousness.

“We talked directly about the consequences of the first one before coming to a subsequent potential to have done something wrong,” Silver said when asked by ESPN if he had informed Morant about the subsequent consequences if a similar incident were to happen again .

“We were very focused on the misconduct ahead of us at the time. Honestly, most of our conversation was about how incredibly serious the first incident – the waving of a firearm on social media was.

“Again, the fallout there – an eight match suspension was pretty serious and something that, at least to me, he seemed to be taking very seriously at the time.

“We talked at length, not only about the implications that could have for his career, but also about the security issues surrounding it – he could have mutilated, injured or killed himself or someone else with such an act – and also the acknowledgment that he a star, he has an incredibly large following, and my concern, and I thought he shared it with me, was that millions if not tens of millions of children worldwide would see that he had done something that was celebrated.

“I certainly felt like he was taking this incredibly seriously.”

After Silver’s interview, analyst Stephen A. Smith insisted that the commissioner do his best to end repeat offenders in the league.

“You’re now looking at a commissioner (Adam Silver) who wants to discourage repeat offenders, he’s going to send a message,” Smith said.

In the latest clip. Morant was seen on Instagram Live in the driver’s seat of a car with a gun as he sang along to rapper YoungBoy NBA’s song “1.5.”

After revealing the firearm, the person recording the video immediately turned the camera away from Morant for the rest of the clip that has surfaced.

In a statement to DailyMail.com on Sunday, the league said, “We are aware of the social media post involving Ja Morant and are in the process of gathering more information.”

Silver now seems to confirm that the NBA is investigating the incident, but it’s unclear whether it will lead to criminal charges or what further action the NBA will take.

The scandal is just the latest in a series of controversies that have dogged Morant throughout the season – something he recently recognized as a distraction for the team.

After the Grizzlies were eliminated from the playoffs by the Lakers, Morant said, “I just need to get better at my decision making. That’s it, actually. Issues out of court had a great impact on us as an organization. Just now [need] more discipline.’

Morant was charged in September for allegedly punching a Tennessee teen, Josh Holloway, in the face during a pick-up game, but the NBA star claims he acted in self-defense.

Police interviews obtained by The Washington Post show that the 17-year-old Shelby County Sheriff’s Office detectives told the point guard hit him “12 to 13 times,” adding that Morant’s friend hit him an additional “four to five times.” hit. ‘

Holloway claimed that when Morant got up to leave after the fight, Morant entered his house and reappeared with a gun.

Morant reportedly had the gun visible in the waistband of his pants and had his hand on the gun.

The 17-year-old accuser claimed he was playing pick-up basketball with Morant when the two got into an argument, which quickly escalated. He admits to throwing a basketball at Morant and “accidentally” hitting the six-foot guard in the face.

Morant and his friend reportedly responded by beating the 17-year-old “with a closed fist, knocking him to the ground” and leaving him with a “big knot” on the side of his head, according to a police report written by deputies who said they observed the boy’s injuries.

Most recently, Morant filed a countersuit against Holloway saying he had lied to police officers and that the youth was the aggressor in the situation.

Morant was also involved in a separate incident at a Memphis mall last summer after the New York Post reported that the chief of security told police that Morant had “threatened” him during an altercation in the parking lot.

Morant’s mother reportedly got into an argument with an employee of a shoe store at the mall and called her son, who arrived shortly afterwards with a group of “as many as nine people.”

According to the police report, Morant and his friends refused to leave the parking lot when confronted by the mall’s director of security.

Police arrived and a “verbal confrontation” reportedly escalated before someone in Morant’s entourage shoved the security chief to the head, the report said.

“As the group left the premises … Ja Morant said, ‘Let me find out what time he gets out,’” the police wrote.

In addition, there was an alleged incident following the Grizzlies’ game with the Pacers on January 29, when Morant’s acquaintances “aggressively confronted” members of Indiana’s tour party — and someone allegedly pointed a red laser at them.

The athletic said that Morant was driving an SUV with friend Davonte Pack and another person when a red laser was pointed at the Pacers bus.

Two people who spoke anonymously to the publication said they believed the laser was attached to a gun, while an Indiana guard nearby claimed “that’s 100 percent a gun.” However, it was not confirmed whether the laser was attached to a weapon.

The league opened an investigation into the allegation, but concluded that it “did not confirm that someone threatened others with a weapon,” an NBA spokesman said.