Coca-Cola has reportedly pulled its Powerade advertisements featuring Ja Morant after the Memphis Grizzlies’ star displayed a gun on Instagram Live while in a strip club. According to The Drum, the company has made ads featuring Morant private on its social platforms. The Grizzlies have also suspended Morant indefinitely. Glendale police have said there is not enough evidence to pursue criminal charges against Morant for the incident.
While the Grizzlies haven’t given an exact return date for Morant, they’ve said he’s going to miss at least six games. This would put him on track to come back on March 17 in San Antonio. Grizzlies coach Taylor Jenkins provided an update on the 23-year-old’s timeline on Thursday.
Ja Morant On The Court
“We have had conversations in the past trying to guide him and help him continue to evolve as a person and a player,” Jenkins said. “Obviously, this came to a head the other day, so we put this process into action.” He added: “There are definitely steps that are going to have to be met — personally and professionally — as he deals with some stuff personally to get better.”
Quickly after the incident, Morant released an apology for his behavior. “I take full responsibility for my actions last night,” the statement read. “I’m sorry to my family, teammates, coaches, fans, partners, the city of Memphis and the entire Grizzlies organization for letting you down. I’m going to take some time away to get help and work on learning better methods of dealing with stress and my overall well-being.”
While Coca-Cola appears to be backing away from Morant, one of his other biggest sponsors, Nike, has already released a statement in support of the young star. “We appreciate Ja’s accountability and that he is taking the time to get the help he needs. We support his prioritization of his well-being,” the company said, according to ESPN.
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