There was a concerning report about Memphis Grizzlies guard Ja Morant and his best friend, Davonte Pack, that was published on Sunday.
Morant, who is averaging 27.3 points and 8.3 assists per game so far this season, is the subject of an allegation that involves the continuation of a dispute than began when the Grizzlies played the Pacers on Jan. 29.
During the game, Morant was involved in an altercation that may have not stopped at the final buzzer of regulation. Instead, according to the report, the star guard and “associates” exacerbated this on-court issue in the loading area after the game.
Here is everything that we know about the incident based on reporting and comments from everyone involved:
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This likely started when an Indiana rookie told Ja's dad to 'shut up'
After the game against the Pacers, Morant was asked about the incident and he said it began when Indiana rookie Andrew Nembhard started talking trash to his father:
“Andrew told my pops to shut up. Pretty much, I heard my pops like ask him if he said shut up. So I was trying to figure out who he was talking to. Obviously, I had seen it was him, so I approached him, seeing what he was on. Checked his temperature. He didn’t have a fever. Then Duarte came over, tried to push me … I told him stop pushing me. He said he was cooling. Then his teammates came over, then he started talking.”
While that was the end of what the public saw, it apparently only got much bigger than that.
A few days later, Morant hinted that there was a “little situation going on now” and that the Grizzlies were the “most hated” team in the league.
This reportedly became a much bigger issue after the game
Pacers beat reporter Bob Kravitz and national insider Sam Amick likely provided more clarity to what Morant was referring to with those comments.
This particular issue with the Pacers was not resolved on the court and after the game, per an eye-opening report, tempers flared in the loading area of the FedEx Forum in Memphis (via The Athletic):
“Following a game between the Indiana Pacers and Memphis Grizzlies on Jan. 29 in Memphis, acquaintances of Grizzlies star Ja Morant aggressively confronted members of the Pacers traveling party near the team’s bus in the loading area of FedExForum, and later someone in a slow-moving SUV — which Morant was riding in — trained a red laser on them.”
Morant reportedly “aggressively confronted” individuals on the Pacers, which is bad enough — this incident should have been over during the game.
The details only continue to get more concerning as the report continues:
“The two members of the traveling party who spoke to The Athletic said that they did not see who shined the laser from the SUV. They also don’t know if the laser was attached to a gun, but they believed it was. A Pacers security guard in the loading area at the time remarked: ‘That’s 100 percent a gun.’
‘We felt we were in grave danger,’ one person who was present said.”
According to the report, these unnamed individuals felt they were in “grave danger” when they saw a red laser pointed at them from what they suspected to be a gun.
The league office could not confirm whether or not there was a weapon involved
While the Pacers did not alert the police, they did file a report with the NBA. The Grizzlies reportedly “complied completely” with the investigation and are “abiding by” its findings.
Here is what league spokesman Mike Bass told The Athletic:
“NBA Security and league investigators conducted an investigation interviewing numerous eyewitnesses and reviewing video surveillance following allegations made by the Indiana Pacers organization regarding a postgame incident on Jan. 29. While we substantiated that a postgame situation arose that was confrontational, based on interviews and other evidence gathered, we could not corroborate that any individual threatened others with a weapon.
According to the league office, a “postgame situation arose that was confrontational” but could not confirm whether or not anyone on the Pacers was threatened “with a weapon” during the incident.
Ja Morant's best friend was banned from FedEx Forum
Bass added that “certain individuals involved” were banned from attending games at the FedEx Forum.
“Certain individuals involved in the postgame situation and a related matter during the game that night have been subsequently banned from attending games in the arena. If additional information becomes available related to the postgame situation, the league office will conduct a further review.”
At least one of those individuals is Ja Morant’s best friend Davonte Pack, who is also known as DTap.
Ja Morant and Andrew Nembhard got into it and eventually James Johnson got involved. Looks like Ja Morant’s friend Davonte Pack was escorted off the floor. pic.twitter.com/etvu1yIXHZ
— Damichael Cole (@DamichaelC) January 30, 2023
DTap had his own dispute with Indiana’s James Johnson and other players on the court during the game:
“In the third quarter, Pack walked onto the court and directed expletives at multiple Pacers players. A game referee interceded, called arena security, and Pack was removed from the floor.”
After the game, DTap was reportedly waiting “30 to 40 yards away” from Indiana’s team bus. He and “four to five other men” came “within 30 feet” of the bus and began shouting at the Pacers.
He tweeted that everything in this report was “ALL FALSE INFO” and that no camera could confirm that any of this happened.
What was Ja Morant's role in the post-game incident?
Approximately 15 to 20 minutes after Pack and other men began shouting at the Pacers is when Morant reportedly arrived at the scene.
He then allegedly joined DTap and one other man in an SUV. Per the report:
“The SUV moved toward the Pacers bus, turned, slowed, and that was when members of the Pacers traveling party noticed a red laser coming from the car and being trained on players, coaches and others.”
That doesn’t leave us with much definitive information, but this story is ugly.
What have we heard from Ja?
did a investigation seen they were cappin . still let a article come out to paint this negative image on me & my fam . & banned my brother from home games for a year . unbelievable 😂 https://t.co/08p4E8xhJJ
— Ja Morant (@JaMorant) February 5, 2023
Morant was not able to play in Sunday’s game for the Grizzlies due to wrist soreness. Because he was hurt, he was not obligated to speak to the media.
However, the Grizzlies guard tweeted that “they were cappin” and posted an Instagram story indicating a similar reaction. Morant believes the article paints a “negative image” of him and his family. He also clarified that DTap is banned from the FedEx Forum for the duration of one year.
It is essential to hear from Morant, who is scheduled to represent the Western Conference in the 2023 NBA All-Star Game on Feb. 19, about this incident.
While security camera footage could not confirm whether or not there was a weapon involved, this is not the only controversy surrounding Morant of late.
Last season, Morant posted a since-deleted terrible tweet that could have been read as a threat involving gun violence.
Morant is also being sued for attacking a minor during a pickup basketball game, per TMZ Sports. Davonte Pack is also listed as a defendant in the suit. The police report indicates Morant was acting in self-defense and the district attorney declined prosecution.
As he continues to get better and better on the court, it would be in the best interest of his career to avoid making headlines for the wrong reasons so he can focus fully on his game.
