Grizzlies star Ja Morant has been accused of punching and flashing a gun at a 17-year-old as well as threatening a mall security guard.
The incident allegedly happened in July, two months after Memphis lost in the Western Conference semifinals to the Golden State Warriors, according to Molly Hensley-Clancy of the Washington Post. Police records reportedly said the All-Star guard punched the teen “12-13 times” during a pickup basketball game at Morant’s house.
The teenager told police Morant went into his house and “re-emerged with a gun visible in the waistband of his pants and his hand on the weapon,” according to interviews conducted by Shelby County Sheriff’s Office that were obtained by the Washington Post.
The gun was not pulled out, but the the teen’s father reportedly told Morant to go back to his house.
Days before the alleged assault, Morant received a call from his mother, who had got into a dispute with a Finish Line employee, according to a Memphis police report obtained by The Post. Morant showed up with nine other people and refused to leave the mall parking lot when asked by the head of security. A “verbal confrontation” broke out, and the security guard allegedly was shoved by someone in the group.
“Let me find out what time he gets off,” Morant said, according to the police report.
The security guard wanted to file a report, but no arrests were made.
The Washington Post report comes one month after the NBA launched an investigation regarding Morant’s encounter with Indiana Pacers employees, according to The Athletic. Morant allegedly was riding in a slow-moving SUV and trained a red laser on them, and they believed the laser to be connected to a gun.
The Grizzlies and Morant have not commented on the allegations, as of Wednesday afternoon.
