Memphis Grizzlies star Ja Morant will not face criminal charges after he livestreamed himself on Instagram holding a gun at a club in Glendale, Colorado, The Athletic‘s Shams Charania reported Wednesday. Glendale police concluded an investigation of the incident and determined “there was not enough evidence to charge anyone with a crime.”
The incident took place at Shotgun Willie’s — a “gentleman’s club” — hours after the Grizzlies’ game against the Nuggets on Friday. As a result, Morant has not appeared in the team’s most recent two games.
Glendale police said in their report that they did not receive any calls or reports of disturbances from patrons of the club. Additionally, “no one was threatened or menaced with the firearm and in fact no firearm was ever located.”
Morant, who was named an all-star this season, is averaging 27.1 points, 8.2 assists and six rebounds this season. The Grizzlies (38-26) are tied for second place in the Western Conference and next face Golden State on Thursday.
“I take full responsibility for my actions last night,” Morant said in a statement released on March 4. “I’m sorry to my family, teammates, coaches, fans, partners, the city of Memphis, and the entire Grizzlies organization for letting you down. I’m going to take some time away to get help and work on learning better methods of dealing with stress and my overall well-being.”
Ja Morant Still Facing NBA Investigation Over Gun Incident
Although he is criminally safe, Morant could still face potential suspension from the NBA. He has missed the Grizzlies’ past two games as the NBA launched an investigation into the incident.
NBA rules prohibit a player from possessing a firearm while on team property or traveling on team business. Morant has remained away from the Grizzlies as the league conducts its investigation. The team revealed Wednesday that Morant will miss at least the next four games.
The investigation is not the first the NBA has conducted on Morant for an incident involving a gun. The league also investigated a Jan. 29 occurrence in which members of the Pacers traveling party claimed someone in an SUV that Morant was traveling in shined a red laser at them. The Pacers believed it to be a gun. However, the NBA said it could “not corroborate that any individual threatened others with a weapon.”
