Jets’ Sauce Gardner responds to Ja Morant gun controversy in since-deleted tweet
Jets star cornerback Ahmad “Sauce” Gardner appeared to talk out Sunday after embattled Grizzlies level guard Ja Morant seemingly brandished a gun in a social media video.
In a since-deleted message, the 22-year-old Gardner — who’s coming into his second season with the Jets — allegedly wrote, “Everyone have weapons bro. No must publish it on IG dwell lol.”
The tweet, based on a screengrab, was posted hours after Morant appeared to carry a firearm in an Instagram Dwell video that surfaced late Saturday evening.
That is the second time in lower than three months that Morant, 23, seemingly flashed a weapon on social media.
On March 4, he was seen with a gun in an Instagram Dwell video in a Denver-area strip membership and was subsequently suspended for eight video games.
The Grizzlies have since barred Morant from all team activities, the group introduced Sunday in a press release.
“We’re conscious of the social media video involving Ja Morant,” the Grizzlies stated in a press release.
“He’s suspended from all staff actions pending League evaluate. We now have no additional remark presently.”
ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski reported Sunday that Morant might face larger self-discipline this time round following this weekend’s incident.
“Ja Morant is going through the very actual risk of a prolonged suspension to start out subsequent season,” Wojnarowski stated on ESPN’s “NBA Countdown.”
“I sense already immediately that [commissioner] Adam Silver goes to really feel growing stress from different groups within the league who see this as a lot because it impacts the Grizzlies. It impacts their capacity to market their gamers.”
Warning: Graphic language
Wojnarowski added the league is “investigating and ensuring that this was a legit video and it was not doctored indirectly.”
“I assume there’s a actual risk if that’s what it gave the impression to be, a weapon in Ja Morant’s hand, he once more will possible face a big suspension to start out subsequent season,” he stated.
New York Publish Renaissance Man columnist and NBA analyst Jalen Rose speculated Morant might be hit with a 20-25-game suspension to start out the 2023-24 season.
The NBA issued its personal assertion on the matter Sunday.
“We’re conscious of the social media publish involving Ja Morant and are within the strategy of gathering extra data,” NBA spokesperson Mike Bass stated.
Morant attended a brief counseling program in Florida throughout his eight-suspension earlier this spring.
He returned to the Grizzlies in mid-March.