Paul Pierce relates to Ja Morant in ways that few people can. The Celtics’ great can attest to the challenges that Morant faces as an NBA superstar and ultra-rich young Black man. But when it comes to Pierce’s take on Morant brandishing a gun at an apparent nightclub, and then broadcasting his dangerous actions on Instagram Live, the 10-time All-Star misses the mark.
Early Saturday morning, following the Grizzlies’ loss to the Nuggets, Morant posted video of himself at a club. In it, the electrifying point guard is dancing shirtless and waving around a firearm. The disturbing clip emerged just a couple of days after the Washington Post reported on a pair of Memphis police reports that detail threatening and violent behavior from Morant. In one incident, Morant is accused of repeatedly striking a teenage boy in the head during a pick-up basketball game, and then heading to his house with a gun visible in the waistband of his pants. (Morant told police he was acting in self-defense, for what that’s worth.)
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The Grizzlies suspended Morant two games for his ridiculous actions, and the NBA is investigating. Earlier this season, members of the Pacers’ security team accused Morant’s friends pointing a red laser dot at them. They believed the laser was attached to a gun.
From a distance, it seems as if Morant’s self-destructive and dangerous behavior is jeopardizing his nascent NBA career. But Pierce attempted to offer a different perspective. On Sunday, he tweeted the following: “I don’t care what y’all say about Ja I carried a gun after I was stabbed y’all don’t know what he going thru everyone got something to say until u really know what’s really going on in someone else’s life when you black and rich u a target period.”
Pierce is referencing an attack he experienced as a rookie, when he was stabbed 11 times at a nightclub in Boston. He was rushed to the hospital and underwent emergency lung surgery to recover from the altercation.
In recent years, Pierce has spoken about how the nightclub episode served as a wake-up call for him. On an edition of his Showtime podcast, Pierce said the stabbing propelled him to prioritize basketball. “My stabbing incident really motivated me to be on the court,” he said in January. “I wanted to just be on the court, keep my mind off it. It really helped me lock in. Some things you go through in life really help you lock in, to do what you really need to do.”
Pierce lived up to his epiphany. He became the face of the Celtics and one of the greatest players in franchise history. When the Celtics won the 2008 NBA championship, his near-death nightclub experience was nothing more than a distant memory.
But right now, Morant’s indiscretions are his present. To our knowledge, he hasn’t been attacked or threatened, unless you count a 17 year old throwing a ball hard at his chest during a pick-up game.
It’s flat-out dumb for Morant to wave around a gun in public, especially at a nightclub where patrons are consuming large quantities of alcohol and possibly illicit substances.
With that kind of behavior, Morant is making himself a target.
Not smart.