NBA star Ja Morant accused of threatening shoe salesman in new report: 'I was actually afraid'


Memphis Grizzlies star Ja Morant was back in the limelight Thursday as a new report emerged about the point guard allegedly threatening a shoe salesman last summer.

Givon Busby, the salesman who worked at a sneaker store in a Memphis, Tennessee, mall, told The Washington Post he hid in the back of the sneaker store scared as Morant threatened him. Busby reportedly filed a report for Memphis police but never heard from authorities again. Authorities reportedly never listed Morant as a suspect.

He told the paper he spent about an hour hiding from Morant “shaking” with emotion while the NBA player and about eight or nine others shouted at him through the door.

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Memphis Grizzlies guard Ja Morant, #12, handles the ball in the second half of an NBA basketball game against the Portland Trail Blazers Tuesday, April 4, 2023, in Memphis, Tennessee.

Memphis Grizzlies guard Ja Morant, #12, handles the ball in the second half of an NBA basketball game against the Portland Trail Blazers Tuesday, April 4, 2023, in Memphis, Tennessee. (AP Photo/Brandon Dill)

“I was actually afraid,” Busby said.

It was the same time when Morant was accused of threatening the head of security at the mall.

Busby said the incident at the mall stemmed from a woman getting angry at him because he allegedly helped two White women before her. Busby told the paper he did not have the sneaker she wanted in her size, and she began following him around and yelling at him. He was reportedly sent to the storeroom “fearing for his safety.”

The woman was later identified as Morant’s mother, Jamie. Busby said he did not realize who she was until an allegedly irate Morant came to the store and began shouting. He allegedly told Busby he would wait for him to get off work.

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Memphis Grizzlies guard Ja Morant, #12, handles the ball against Portland Trail Blazers guard Skylar Mays, #8, in the second half of an NBA basketball game Tuesday, April 4, 2023, in Memphis, Tennessee.

Memphis Grizzlies guard Ja Morant, #12, handles the ball against Portland Trail Blazers guard Skylar Mays, #8, in the second half of an NBA basketball game Tuesday, April 4, 2023, in Memphis, Tennessee. (AP Photo/Brandon Dill)

“I thought, ‘Oh, he’s really trying to get me,'” Busby told The Washington Post. “Like, he’s trying to hurt me.”

According to The Washington Post, a police report indicted a potential offense as “intimidation” but the name of the suspect was listed as “unknown.” Memphis police told the paper there were no reports listing Morant as a suspect.

It is the latest in a string of incidents involving Morant. The NBA declined to comment, and the Grizzlies did not give a comment to The Washington Post. He was never charged in any of the incidents which were brought to light over the course of the 2022-23 season.

He received an eight-game suspension for flashing a gun on Instagram Live inside a Denver nightclub. He also checked into a facility to get treatment for stress management.

“It’s not who I am. I don’t condone any type of violence, but I take full responsibility for my actions,” Morant told ESPN in an interview last month. “I made a bad mistake, and I can see the image that I painted over myself with my recent mistakes, but in the future, I’m going to show everybody who Ja really is, what I’m about and change this narrative.”

Memphis Grizzlies guard Ja Morant, #12, plays in the first half of an NBA basketball game against the Portland Trail Blazers Tuesday, April 4, 2023, in Memphis, Tennessee.

Memphis Grizzlies guard Ja Morant, #12, plays in the first half of an NBA basketball game against the Portland Trail Blazers Tuesday, April 4, 2023, in Memphis, Tennessee. (AP Photo/Brandon Dill)

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Morant was also accused of punching a teenager and flashing a gun at him in the summer. He did not face charges for that either.

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