I’m rooting for Ja Morant, the man, as much as Ja Morant, the NBA superstar

And finally, after 235 days and a 25-game suspension, after criticism and questions and worry his career was wholly slipping away, there was Ja Morant walking onto an NBA floor, a second return from suspension marking this second second-chance.

He was back, for now, his skills on the floor and the worry of what he may do off of it equally powerful enough to make you hold your breath.

The steps to this place had been a case study in how to try to destroy a career on the rise and ruin a team otherwise calibrated to be a contender. What happens next with Morant is anyone’s guess, and those around the NBA asked about it could muster only answers like:

“Who the hell knows.”

“No idea.”

“Talented kid. Glad he’s not my problem.”

Much rides on Morant now, for him, his future, and that of his team. Memphis barely resembled a professional basketball team without him, but this new beginning in New Orleans was starkly, stunningly different. Morant shined, hitting a buzzer-beater as time expired to give the Grizzlies a 115-113 win against a good Pelicans team. 

Morant was back, all glory and greatness, to one of the two places that will decide his and his franchise’s future: The court.

There, he played 35 minutes, racked up 34 points, eight assists and six rebounds. There, he made Memphis look like the team they had been before his suspension.

The other place that will shape the things to come, of course, will be away from the game, where all this trouble started. 

It was away from the court where the litany of problems for Morant mounted. He allegedly threatened a security guard at a mall. He had an alleged physical altercation with a teeanger over a pick-up basketball game and then, the accusation went, a gun for good measure. There was the time Pacers officials reportedly felt under threat when a car Morant was in passed by, a laser pointed in their direction and the specter of yet more weapons adding to overall worry about the young man. After all this, he flashed a gun on Instagram Live last spring at a Denver nightclub and found…

Source link : https://www.cbssports.com/nba/news/im-rooting-for-ja-morant-the-man-as-much-as-ja-morant-the-nba-superstar/

Author : Bill Reiter

Publish date : 2023-12-20 04:32:54

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