Imagine getting fined almost $100 thousand for firing off some finger guns.
It’s a bit more complicated than that for NBA star Ja Morant. The 25-year-old professional basketball player for the Memphis Grizzlies should be celebrated as one of the bright, young stars in the game. Instead, he continues to be embroiled in controversy because of… his affection for guns.
In case you need some more context, Ja Morant burst onto the scene at the pro-level (won NBA Rookie of the Year in 2020) after becoming a break out college basketball star at Murray State University. That just so happens to be my alma-mater, and I was present for many of his best moments in college.
He’s known as a high-flyer in the NBA, and he’s been doing that kind of thing for quite some time:
We’ve been good on dunk contests since Ja Morant shut it down at Racer Mania… #JaDropper
#GoRacers
pic.twitter.com/gQJgEI1L9D
— Murray State Racers Athletics (@MSURacers) February 17, 2019
But after his rookie year, Ja Morant started getting into some trouble off the court, and the NBA has brought the hammer down multiple times. In 2023, the Grizzlies star faced two NBA suspensions for making posts on social media that showed him brandishing a firearm. There were also some other incidents that caused concern, including Ja allegedly threatening someone with a gun, and a laser that may or may not have been attached to a gun being pointed out of an SUV that was transporting Morant.
Fast forward to 2025, and the NBA is on Ja’s case again because he’s been making gun gestures on the court. The picture on the left is from a Grizzlies-Warriors game, which happened a couple of days ago. After investigating, the league decided to let Morant off with a warning. Then he did it again last night – four minutes into Memphis’ game against the Miami Heat – as you can see in the picture on the right:
Ja Morant in back to back games
He keep it on him lmaooo pic.twitter.com/l1uUSTuWEe
— Hater Report (@HaterReport_) April 4, 2025
Now this all probably wouldn’t be as big of a deal if Ja and the NBA didn’t have a history with gun-related issues. But because he’s been suspended in the past for similar issues, the NBA – and much of the media that covers it – has been running wild with “we can’t believe Ja is doing this” storylines. And though it might not be all that big of a deal, the NBA gave him a warning, and then he proceeded to do the gun gesture anyways the very next game.
So they fined him $75,000.
BREAKING: The NBA has fined Ja Morant $75K for making “gun gestures” on the court twice, per @NBAPR pic.twitter.com/aK1a3qOGqn
— Legion Hoops (@LegionHoops) April 4, 2025
Makes you wonder if the gun gestures are worth it, huh?
Really, the issue seems to have a pretty simple solution. The NBA sees Ja Morant as one of the leagues talented stars that could be one of the many faces of the NBA in the future, but they also like to promote players that are good role models. And evidently, Ja likes guns and either actually holding them or pretending to hold them.
Social media has pointed that out:
“Ja you just hit the game winner, lets go celebrate”
Ja Morant:pic.twitter.com/KqKqxPO1z2
— Novo (@NovoHeat) April 4, 2025
Ja can’t keep his hands off da gat! https://t.co/g2esIuwpEV
— fbg, b. (@Free_BWes) April 2, 2025
Adam Silver: Stop the gun gesture.
Ja Morant: pic.twitter.com/zCXuieaoGZ
— NBA Memes (@NBAMemes) April 4, 2025
What does Morant have to do to fix things? Simply stop acting like he’s holding a gun while on the court. Otherwise, the magnifying glass is going to stay right on top of him, and as we’ve seen with the multiple suspensions and the most recent fine, the NBA doesn’t have much patience when it comes to the matter.
And it’s all a real shame, because this is how the Grizzlies game finished last night. Ja Morant hit a game winner (he does that a lot in the NBA), but all people are talking about his the gun gesture he did on the court in the first quarter and the fine that Ja was hit with because of it:
The post NBA Star Ja Morant Fined $75,000 Because He Can’t Stop Making Gun-Related Gestures On The Court first appeared on Whiskey Riff.JA MORANT GAME WINNER
pic.twitter.com/LpgnaZPEf0
— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) April 4, 2025
