Ja Morant Does Finger Gun Celebration Again After Hitting Game Winner vs. Heat

Ja Morant was handed down a warning from the NBA on Thursday after the league completed its investigation into the Grizzlies’ point guard gestures made on Tuesday against the Warriors. But that didn’t deter him from making the same questionable decision on Thursday, before he hit a game winner to take down the Heat.

Ja Morant Does Gun Gesture Again On Thursday

Late in the game against the Warriors on Tuesday, Morant turned to taunt Golden State. He mimicked the pointing of a gun at their bench, which prompted Buddy Hield to return the gesture. The situation prompted the NBA to look into the matter in order to hand down a punishment, which wound up being simple warnings issued to each player.

It is an issue that Hield can simply move past, but Ja Morant was certainly the focal point. The 25-year-old has already faced multiple suspensions over the past few years, some of which were for gun-related offenses. He was reinstated under good faith after having 1 on 1 conversations with commissioner Adam Silver, though it seems the lessons haven’t been fully learned.

Ja Morant was issued a warning by the NBA for making a gun gesture on Tuesday night.

Tonight, he brought the celebration back. pic.twitter.com/p71Z70oKup

— The Athletic (@TheAthletic) April 4, 2025

The warning didn’t help much, apparently. During the first quarter of action in Miami on Thursday, Morant hit a three-pointer and cameras caught him doing the same gun gesture that sparked the investigation just a day earlier. There is no word on what the penalty will be, if any.

He gave the people something else to talk about at the end of the game. With the score tied at 108 in the final seconds, Ja Morant ran down the clock before driving into the lane and pulled back for a step-back jumper. The shot bounced in as the buzzer sounded, giving the Grizzlies a much-needed win to keep themselves afloat in the Western Conference standings.

Memphis came into the game slotted in the 8th seed out West.

Will Morant Be Suspended?

Morant could be testing his luck with his latest celebration unless he was given clearance by Adam Silver to continue with the gun gesture, which seems unlikely.

It will be interesting to see how the NBA handles the ongoing situation. With the NBA Playoffs right around the corner, the Grizzlies can’t afford their star point guard to miss any more time and a suspension could ultimately doom their already bleak hopes of making a deep postseason run.

As of this writing, Memphis sits in sixth place in a competitive Western Conference playoff race. The Grizzlies are only a half-game ahead of the eighth-place L.A. Clippers, which would set up an impending first-round matchup against the 64-win OKC Thunder.