After the Grizzlies’ once-promising season came crashing down piece by piece earlier this year, it was hard not to look back on all the things that could have served as warning signs.
Yes, Memphis was incredibly talented, boasting not only explosive guard Ja Morant and sharpshooter Desmond Bane, but also eventual Defensive Player of the Year Jaren Jackson Jr. As late as mid-January, Memphis was tied with Denver, the eventual NBA champs, for the best mark in the Western Conference.
Behind the scenes, though, a lot was happening. Later that month, members of the Pacers’ traveling party said that someone in the SUV Morant was riding in trained a red laser on them shortly after a confrontation between that group and some of Morant’s acquaintances. (The NBA investigated the incident and corroborated the postgame confrontation but couldn’t substantiate anyone being threatened with a weapon.) Apart from that, there were allegations of Morant having directly or indirectly threatened both a mall security officer and a teenager following disagreements. The incidents all took place before separate instances of Morant flashing a gun on social media, which the Grizzlies and the NBA have made a point of suspending him for. Morant will miss 25 games this season for the latest offense.
