Ja Morant ruling coming after NBA Finals, Adam Silver says - ESPN

DENVER — NBA commissioner Adam Silver indicated that he has reached a decision regarding the league office's looming disciplinary action against Memphis Grizzlies superstar guard Ja Morant but would wait until after a champion has been crowned in the Finals to announce the punishment.

The Grizzlies suspended Morant on May 14, pending league review, after a social media post circulated showing the All-Star brandishing a firearm. The NBA suspended Morant for eight games after a similar incident in March, when Morant traveled to New York to meet with Silver and other league officials to discuss the issue.

During his annual news conference before the NBA Finals opener, Silver said the «history of prior acts» and «the individual player's history» would be considered when assessing what discipline was appropriate.

«We uncovered a fair amount of additional information since I was asked about the situation,» Silver said Thursday. «I would say we probably could have brought it to a head now, but we made a decision — and I believe the players' association agrees with us — that it would be unfair to these players and these teams in the middle of the series to announce the results of that investigation. And given that he has now been suspended by the Memphis Grizzlies indefinitely, and so nothing would've changed in the next few weeks, it seemed better to park that at the moment, at least any public announcement.

»My sense now is that shortly after the conclusion of the Finals, we will announce the outcome of that investigation."

Asked if Morant's eight-game suspension was too light in hindsight, Silver said that Morant came across as «heartfelt and serious» during their March meeting.

«Maybe by definition to the extent that we've