LeBron James welcomes Ja Morant, the Memphis Grizzlies guard, as he returns to the NBA.
Ja Morant, the guard for the Memphis Grizzlies, returned to action on Tuesday following a 25-game suspension and received a welcome back from LeBron James.
Memphis Grizzlies guard Ja Morant returned to the NBA on Tuesday night following a 25-game suspension and received a welcome back from Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James.
Morant made his season debut against the New Orleans Pelicans after serving his suspension for conduct detrimental to the league. James welcomed the guard back to the league with a message on X, formerly known as Twitter.
The Grizzlies struggled without their star, starting the season with a 6-19 record, including a 1-11 home record. However, Morant quickly made an impact, scoring 34 points, grabbing six rebounds, providing eight assists, and hitting the game-winning shot to secure a 115-113 win, despite battling cramps.
After the game, Morant discussed how he stayed focused during his suspension and how it contributed to his strong performance upon his return.
“I’ve been putting work in. I haven’t played a game in eight months,” Morant said after the win. “I had a lot of time to learn myself, a lot of hard days where I went through it. But basketball is my life, what I love, it’s therapeutic for me, and I’m excited to be back.”
Morant, the 2019-20 Rookie of the Year, has had an impressive start to his career, winning the 2021-22 Most Improved Player award and being named to the All-NBA second team. However, the 23-year-old was suspended in June after being seen on Instagram Live with a gun, marking the second incident of him being caught on social media with a firearm. He was initially suspended for eight games in March for a similar incident at a Denver nightclub.
