Ja Morant replaced his gun gesture with a grenade celebration after the NBA fined him $75,000 for repeated inappropriate gestures.
The Memphis guard pulled an imaginary pin and threw the grenade after making three-pointers against Charlotte and Minnesota.
NBA fines Morant after warning
The league announced the fine on 4 April 2025 after Morant twice mimed firing a gun during a 110-108 win at the Miami Heat.
The NBA said it had already warned Morant that the gesture “could be interpreted in a negative light” following a game against Golden State two days earlier.
The issue carried extra weight because Morant had previously served two suspensions involving firearms. The NBA banned him for eight games in 2023 after an Instagram Live video showed him holding a gun in a nightclub, then for 25 games the following season after another video showed him with a gun in a car.
Morant explains his new celebration
Morant said the grenade mime would remain his celebration until somebody objected, at which point he would find another.
Asked about the fine, he said: “I wasn’t surprised.”
Grind City Media reporter Michael Wallace said Morant had explained the meaning differently. According to Wallace, the guard said he was throwing his words into the world and then blocking out the noise that returned.
Teammate Vince Williams Jr joked that the change was good because it would save Morant money.
Celebration follows big night in defeat
Morant used the gesture during a 141-125 home loss to Minnesota on 10 April. He scored 36 points and made five three-pointers, but Anthony Edwards answered with 44 for the Timberwolves.
Minnesota scored a franchise-record 52 points in the third quarter. The defeat left Memphis, Minnesota and Golden State tied at 47-33 in a crowded race for a top-six finish in the Western Conference.
