A Tennessee Judge Rules That Ja Morant Was Acting In Self Defense When He Punched A Teenager While Playing Pickup At His House

Sean M. Haffey. Getty Images.

Last March, the Washington Post dropped a bit of a bombshell report about Ja Morant being accused of punching a teenager in the face over some pick up basketball

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This was about a month after there were reports of a different incident involving Morant's associates getting into a situation with the Pacers staff after a game, and just 3 days before Morant decided to hop onto IG with his gun (the first time)

You could say that ever since last February, it's been a bit of a whirlwind for Ja Morant. The suspensions, the missing out on All NBA and the supermax that comes with it, and then this year suffering a season-ending injury about 5 seconds after returning to the lineup.

While he was suspended, you may remember it was finally time for the trial of this supposed backyard beatdown, which gave us this all time moment

There was just something very funny about an NBA star explaining how to check ball in a pick up game. One of those moments that makes you feel like we're all truly living in a simulation. I'm not sure who leaked it or how that video hit the internet but it's one of the few reasons why living in today's day and age is great. Everything gets out.

Well, the verdict from that trial is in and wouldn't you know it….

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Memphis Grizzlies guard Ja Morant acted in self-defense when he punched a teenager during an altercation that stemmed from a pickup basketball game in 2022, per a Tennessee judge.

ESPN's Baxter Holmes cited a court filing and noted Shelby County Circuit Judge Carol Chumney ruled Monday that Morant was acting in self-defense when he punched then-17-year-old Joshua Holloway.

Holloway filed a lawsuit in September 2022 accusing Morant of assault, and the Grizzlies guard testified during a December 2023 civil immunity hearing that he only "swung first" in order "to protect myself" after the teenager allegedly threw the ball at Morant's face and stepped toward the NBA star.

Morant said that is when he punched Holloway, per Holmes.

Morant's friend, Davonte Pack, also punched Holloway and was arrested and charged with misdemeanor assault. However, the charge against Pack was eventually dismissed.

With that as the backdrop, Chumney ruled Morant "enjoys a presumption of civil immunity" under the state's self-defense immunity statute. Chumney also said the burden of proof falls to Holloway's legal team to show it wasn't self-defense.

Hit it Ja!

The old "self-defense immunity statute", of course! How did we not see that coming? Well, probably because the majority of us are not lawyers and had no idea what the hell that even is. Luckily for you, I did some research (googled twice), and here's what I found

The NBA player’s lawyers argued Morant is immune from liability under the law allowing people who feel threatened at their homes to act with force in certain situations. The law is used in criminal cases, but an earlier ruling by this same judge cleared the way for Morant’s lawyers to apply it in the civil case.

Gotta love it when an earlier precedent is set that directly helps your case! As a big Law & Order guy (both the original and SVU), you see this all the time. Pulling a rabbit out of a hat based on a previous ruling is the oldest trick in the book, especially when the current judge is the one who did it. That's just some A+ lawyering (??) by the NBA.

Now, do I think Morant was acting in self-defense? I'm going to say probably not. I'm of the impression that Ja Morant can hold his own against a teenager. But at the end of the day, that loophole existed, and in a court of law that's all that really matters (I think). 

With his gun suspensions over with and now this case closed, as someone who thoroughly enjoys watching Ja Morant play basketball, I am begging him to finally cut the shit and just hoop. We as fans deserve this guy back on the court every night

The Grizzlies just completed the season from hell with everyone either getting suspended or injured, so maybe this is the final step in a complete reset. They have a top 10 pick this summer (projected to take Donovan Clingan as they need a center) and with Smart and Morant back combined with everyone else being healthy, it shouldn't shock anyone if the Grizzlies are back in the 50 win range next season. Remember, before all this bullshit with Morant started, the Grizzlies went 51-31 and were the 2 seed in the West with Morant giving interviews like this

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OK, so they weren't fine in the West last year as it turned out. Whatever. Now with a new lease on life and what should be full health next season combined with the internal development of guys like GG Jackson, there's no reason why it shouldn't be a nice bounce back season as long as Ja can just hold off on doing some additional dumb shit that gets him suspended again.