BREAKING: Grizzlies Star Ja Morant Out Indefinitely
After the Memphis Grizzlies announced on Saturday that superstar point guard Ja Morant would not be with the team for their next two road games against the Los Angeles Clippers and Los Angeles Lakers, Grizzlies head coach Taylor Jenkins gave an update on when Morant could return to the team on Sunday.
"I'm not going to share what those conversations are," Jenkins said in regards to being asked what steps Ja needs to take to return to the team, via Mark Medina. "The focus right now is Ja taking on the responsibility to really get the help he needs to get into a better place, generally speaking. But also on the flipside, to be in a better place to embrace the responsibilities and expectations as a member of this team.
"That's what we're dialoguing about. That's what we're going to support him through. But we're also going to hold him accountable too."
The NBA announced on Saturday as well that they have launched their own investigation into Morant's situation with the firearm and Nike, a key sponsor of Ja Morant, announced that they "support his prioritization of his well-being."
"He understands. He's made some difficult decisions and poor choices in the past that he's got to account for and that's why you see in his statement, it speaks for itself that he understands he needs to get help to get into a better place not just for himself, but for his team," Jenkins went on to say ahead of the team's game against the Clippers on Sunday night. "He's definitely embracing the mistakes that he's made, but only time will tell. We are going to support him and hold him accountable to make those changes."
When asked whether or not Morant would miss more than the two games the Grizzlies already said he would not be with the team for, Taylor Jenkins clearly stated that there is not a "definitive timeline" and that the organization is taking things "one day at a time."
Morant, 23, was recently named an All-Star for the second straight season and has been the face of the Grizzlies franchise for the last few seasons.
Currently 38-24, the Grizzlies find themselves as the 2-seed in the Western Conference with just 20 games remaining on their schedule, including their game in Los Angeles on Sunday night.
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