“Making a comment questioning the integrity of the officials”

NBA official John Goble assessed one of the most shocking technical fouls on Ja Morant during the Memphis Grizzlies’ 115-109 loss against the OKC Thunder. Morant made the case that he was interacting with fans when he was issued the second technical foul just before the end of the first half.

However, Goble said he didn’t give Morant a second technical for his back-and-forth with the crowd. He claimed the Grizzlies star had questioned the officials’ integrity, which led to his ejection. Here’s what Goble said (via Drew Hill):

“Morant was assessed his second technical foul for making a comment questioning the integrity of the officials.”

According to Lisa, a Ja Morant superfan from OKC who was among the fans interacting with the reigning MIPOY, the Grizzlies star told her that he couldn’t do much, with the referees missing a call when she tried to hype him up as the team was down 20 points. Here’s what Lisa said (via Joe Mussatto):

“I was just telling Ja, ‘Let’s go.’ He was just like he can’t do much because (the refs) missed a call.”

It was probably a comment that may have led to Morant’s exit. Officials haven’t been consistent with their calls this season, but any jab players have taken at the refs hasn’t gone down well with them.

Ja Morant’s dad video calls his son mid-game so that he could talk to superfan Lisa after his ejection

Ja Morant ensured superfan Lisa and other fans he interacted with before his ejection found out that he didn’t blame them for his exit. While on his way out, he showed love to the crowd, gesturing with a heart sign toward them and saying:

“You good. I got you.”

Morant didn’t stop there. He video-called his dad, Tee Morant, after exiting the building so he could interact with fans who were partly responsible for his ejection and assure them they weren’t at fault. Here’s a clip of the incident:

Ja Morant was ejected for talking to a fan & then FaceTimed his dad during the game to tell the fan it’s not her fault

Ja Morant was ejected for talking to a fan & then FaceTimed his dad during the game to tell the fan it’s not her fault ? https://t.co/ksmCOmWuFS

Morant had already had a bump-in with an official just moments before, which led to his first technical. The Memphis Grizzlies had a torrid second quarter which took the game away from them, which may have added to Morant’s frustrations, leading to him taking a subtle jab at the officials again.

Ja Morant had a sub-par game himself up until that point. He scored only six points in 16 minutes on 3-of-10 shooting. Memphis was down 22 when he exited the game. It was surprising to see the Western Conference leaders struggle as the Thunder were missing key players like Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Josh Giddey, while the Grizzlies had a healthier roster.