And Morant breaks silence after second gun video: ‘This is the journey’

First video that paid Morant about $669,000 in lost wages, came out in March. Another photo was taken on Saturday night and was widely shared online. It was streamed on Morant’s associate Davonte Pack’s Instagram account, a person familiar with the situation told The Associated Press, speaking on condition of anonymity because the Grizzlies have not commented on the details of the latest video.

The video streamed by the Pack shows Morant momentarily displaying a handgun. In the very brief moment — perhaps less than a second — when Morant is seen holding what appears to be a gun while sitting in the passenger seat of the vehicle, the live broadcast had 111 viewers.

“He could have been injured, maimed, killed himself, by someone else doing something like that,” Silver said. “And also the recognition that he’s a star. He has an incredible following. And my concern — and I think he shared with me — that millions if not tens of millions of kids around the world saw him do something that celebrates the way a firearm is used like that.”

Morant said in March that he needed to work on himself, and when the season ended a couple of weeks ago, he offered similar thoughts.

“Let’s be disciplined on both sides, make better decisions off the field and be even more closed on the field,” Morant said. “As the leader of this team, it pretty much starts with me … I have to be better in that area.”

Morant’s five-year, $194 million max contract begins next season. He has deals with Nike and Powerade, though the sports drink company released an ad featuring Morant almost immediately after the March video surfaced.

This is the third known NBA investigation into Morant and its possible involvement firearms by now in 2023.

Morant was disciplined Jan. 29 over the gun video

Morant’s actions were investigated after the January 29 incident Memphis which he said led to Pack being banned from Grizzlies home games for a year. This incident followed a game against the Indiana Pacers; Citing unnamed sources, The Indianapolis Star and USA Today reported that several members of the Pacers saw a red dot pointing at them as they neared the loading dock where their bus was located, and The Athletic reported that a Pacers security guard believed the laser was attached to a gun.

The NBA confirmed that the unnamed individuals were banned from the arena, but said its investigation found no evidence that anyone was threatened with a weapon.

Then there was the Denver-area incident in the early hours of March 4, after the Grizzlies played a road game against the Nuggets, when Morant went live inside a strip club holding a gun. No charges were filed.

Morant and Packaging are also involved in a civil lawsuit filed after an incident at Morant’s home last summer in which the then 17-year-old alleged they abused him. Morant countersued on April 12, accusing the teenager of defamation, assault and battery.