Ja Morant Suspended for 25 games: the Longest Sanctions Ever Imposed by the NBA

The NBA made a drastic decision against Grizzlies basketball player Ja Morant, a player who is considered one of the great promises of this sport. However, his decisions off the pitch and his bad friendships currently have him in check, which is why many experts are concerned about the reality of the young talent.

At just 23 years old, the Memphis Grizzlies point guard has been involved in various problems with carrying weapons. This was an aspect that did not fall in the best way on all NBA executives, who have historically shown that the image of the competition is above any athlete. Given this, a new sanction was confirmed against this player.

25 Days Without Playing

Through a statement, the NBA headed by Adam Silver made Morant's suspension official for 25 games. The suspension came after the basketball player displayed a firearm in the middle of an Instagram live. This sanction is the second that this player has received, since in March of this year, the Memphis Grizzlies point guard had an almost identical situation, which left him off the field for 8 games.

From this confirmed suspension, we will make a count of the most drastic suspensions carried out by the NBA. This competition is clear that this tournament can never be implicated or stained by the decisions of its players. This is why, over the years, long sanctions have been imposed against basketball players who undermine the positive image of this sport.

Another Case for Carrying Weapons

One of the most recognized cases for carrying weapons, and which is similar to that of Ja Morant, is that of guard Gilbert Arenas. This basketball player attended several engagements with unloaded firearms in his suitcase. In 2009, it was confirmed that he had a confrontation with his partner Javaris Crittenton, in which both athletes pointed their firearms at each other without firing.

Despite the fact that, at that time, both players were not suspended, with the passing of the days a strong sanction came against them. After Arenas made a gesture with his hands as if he were going to shoot some teammates, then-league commissioner David Stern determined that this player could not continue on the courts. Consequently, he suspended this basketball player indefinitely.

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In the end, both players were suspended for more than 38 games. Likewise, it should be mentioned that the one most affected by this sanction was Arenas, since he was away from the courts for 50 games, an aspect that ended up marginalizing him in the league. That was essential for his career as a professional basketball player to collapse.

Domestic Violence

The Miles Bridges case is one of the most recent and remembered for this aspect, the player was suspended by the league for violence against his wife. In the 2021-2022 season, the forward was considered one of the players with the greatest projection, to the point of being close to receiving a multimillion-dollar contract for the following season. Despite this, the 25-year-old saw his career as a professional athlete end in the worst way.

In June 2022, Miles Bridges was arrested by the police for domestic violence, in which it was proven that the basketball player hit his wife in front of their two children. As a consequence of this, his team, the Charlotte Hornets, automatically suspended his contract, a sanction that made him a free agent for the following season.

Likewise, the NBA suspended him for 30 games, a sanction that was not fully complied with, since no team in the league wanted to have this basketball player for the 2022-2023 season. For this reason, Bridges has not played an official match in this championship for more than a year.

Physical Violence within Matches

Physical violence is one of the aspects that has had the most sanctions in the history of the NBA. On this there are two well-remembered cases, the first occurred in 1997, when Latrell Sprewell hanged his coach in the middle of a practice. For this act, the Golden State Warriors team revoked this player's contract and the league suspended him for 68 games.

The most remembered case of physical violence in stadiums is the “Malice at the Palace”. In this confrontation between players and fans, the NBA suspended a total of 9 athletes, who ended up adding more than 146 suspension games. The main victim of these sanctions was Ron Artest, who went up to the stands and attacked a fan after he threw a glass of water at him.

From this, the NBA suspended him for 84 games, a sanction that is classified as one of the strongest imposed by this league. With all these cases, we can mention that the NBA always handled these acts unequally, an aspect that causes all these controversies against managers. They must solve these fundamental problems if they want to better control these acts.