Ja Morant takes stand, says he punched teen in self-defense

Ja Morant stands up and says his punched the teenager to protect himself.

Grizzlies guard Ja Morant appeared in court for the first time within a lawsuit on Monday in Memphis.

He did this about a week before he was supposed to come back from a 25-game NBA suspension. When he hit a teenager that his house in July 2022, he said it was in self-defense.

During the first day of his protection hearing that Shelby County Circuit Court, Morant said that he “swung first” at Joshua Holloway, who was 17 at the time, “to protect myself” during a fight that ended with Holloway suing Morant for assault in September 2022.

Lawyers for both sides questioned Morant in great detail about the fight that happened after Holloway, who was upset about losing a few games, had been accused of throwing a with one hand pass at Morant during an intercepted ball situation. The altercation happened at Morant’s home in the Memphis area.

Morant said Monday that the ball hit him on the left side of the face. “You testified that this basketball occurred a weapon, yes?” During Morant’s cross-examination, Holloway’s lawyer, Rebecca Adelman, asked him if the basketball could be used as a weapon.

Grizzlies guard Ja Morant joined the stand in Memphis on Monday to talk about his lawsuit for the first time.

He said he punched a teenager at his place of residence in July 2022 out of self-defense, about a week before he is due to return after serving a 25-game NBA ban.

During the first day of his protection hearing that Shelby County Circuit Court, Morant said that he “swung first” at Joshua Holloway, who was 17 at the time, “to protect myself” during a fight that ended with Holloway suing Morant for assault in September 2022.

During a pickup basketball game that Morant’s house in the Memphis area, Holloway was angry about losing a few games and is said to have thrown a one-handed pass at Morant throughout a check ball situation. Morant said Monday that the ball hit him on the left side of the face.

During the trial, a recreation showed Morant’s point of view, showing how he said he hit Holloway first within self-defense because he thought he was going to be attacked.

A lot of people think that what Ja Morant did to Joshua Holloway was wrong. But his lawyer, Keenan Carter, knows that his client is only following Tennessee’s “Stand Your Ground” rule to protect himself.

It was set by Carter, who said that both legal teams had to end the meeting by Wednesday, December 13. A safety date for December 20 is being set aside to take care of any unfinished business, if necessary. It is said that a civil hearing will start by April if there is one.

Right now, Ja Morant is serving a 25-game ban. He is likely to play for the Memphis Grizzlies on Dec. 19 when they play the New Orleans Pelicans.

It was set by Carter, who said that both legal teams had to end the meeting by Wednesday, December 13. A safety date of December 20 was set aside to take care of any unfinished business, if necessary. It is said that a civil hearing will start by April if there is one.

Right now, Ja Morant is serving a 25-game ban. He is likely to play for the Memphis Grizzlies on Dec. 19 when they play the New Orleans Pelicans.

In the opening comments, Holloway’s lawyer said that Morant has a condition called “sports fluenza,” which means that people think he is above the law because of how good he is at basketball.

Ja’s dad, Tee Morant, talked about video games they played in the backyard of their Eads house. He says that Holloway had been to his house about six times before the claimed event. He was polite to his family.

A lot of the day was spent by lawyers for both Morant as well as Holloway having Morant show them the “ball check” pass that caused the fight.

After being suspended for 25 games by the NBA for a different episode, Ja Morant is getting ready to play for the Grizzlies again.