NBA commissioner doesn't want Ja Morant to be 'kicked to the curb'

"I mean, it’s the offseason, but he’s suspended from team activities and I want to find a way where, frankly, he’s not being kicked to the curb, but basketball will take a backseat," Silver said. "And first and foremost we’re gonna focus on him as a young man developing as a better person, as someone who’s more responsible. Particularly when it comes to guns. I mean, this is a really serious issue."

The Grizzlies announced in mid-May that they had suspended Morant indefinitely from all team activities following the posting of an Instagram video where he is seen in the passenger seat of a car appearing to briefly brandish a gun. This came two months after the former Rookie of the Year's first suspension during the 2022-23 season following another video that showed Morant holding a gun in a crowded Colorado nightclub. The two-time All-Star later apologized and said he was going to take time away from the game to better learn how to deal with stress.

Earlier this week, a report from "The Breakfast Club" show said that Morant may have been holding a toy gun instead of a real firearm.

"The validity of such a report has not been determined, and was even disputed while on air by the show, but has reached Silver’s desk and is significant enough for him to bring them up publicly," Mike Vorkunov of The Athletic wrote on Thursday.

Vorkunov added that Silver was "inconclusive as to whether it would make a difference if the gun was real or not."

The commissioner said last week that the league had "uncovered a fair amount of additional information" regarding the investigation, but they would wait to announce a punishment for the 23-year-old until after the NBA Finals, which the Denver Nuggets lead over the Miami Heat, 2-1.

Game 4 between the Nuggets and Heat will be at 8:30 p.m. ET on Friday.

Silver also said regarding the eventual punishment "It’s important to point out that this is not about just discipline, and then we’ll just cross our fingers and then hope there’s not a third time."