Before Ja Morant's whirlwind of a weekend reached a critical climax, Bomani Jones, a tenured on-air personality at ESPN (and host of Game Theory on ESPN), had an introspective discussion about Memphis Grizzlies' star Ja Morant and his recent wave of controversies during his weekly podcast The Right Time with Bomani Jones.

In a segment regarding Ja's alleged gun incident, Bomani and his frequent collaborator at ESPN, Domonique Foxworth, went back and forth in an attempt to dissect the influence of Ja Morants parents and close friends while also questioning his decision-making during times of confrontation. The thought-provoking topic prompted Bomani to suggest that the Memphis Grizzles enlist the help of perhaps one of their greatest players of all time, the retired Zach Randolph (commonly known by NBA fans as Z-Bo). As Bomani dived further into his assertion, he cautioned that Ja Morant's path could lead him to a fate similar to the late Young Dolph if he doesn't make some changes to his social circle, environment, and behavioral patterns in his life.

"I say this somewhat jokingly, but I honestly think: Ya'll ain't call Z-Bo?" said Bomani. "I'm taking about the Grizzlies."

"Yeah, I know," responded Domonique Foxworth.

"If there's anybody that it seems very clearly this young man needs to talk to, to understand what his life is no, it's Z-Bo," Bomani added. "You can go look it up on Z-Bo, I'll let you go find the particulars of it, but in the end, Z-Bo became a model citizen. Retired jersey, [and a] community stalwart, all of that stuff...Also, Z-Bo was 'of it,' Ja Morant does not appear to be 'of it,' but Z-Bo's gonna explain to him, 'Hey man, the way you kickin' it, that's ain't necessarily going to end well.' I will say this; I don't think I'm being dramatic: Boy, they shot Dolph outside the cookies store. Like, you out here in Memphis amongst regular people with guns out, rolling up with nine, ten, eleven people rolling up to go handle something? I don't know why it is all the cats like Ja think they bought the last gun...You think you're the only person that's out here with a gun?"

To listen to the full segment, click on this Spotify link and skip ahead to the 40:16 mark. The episode is titled "Foxworth Friday: LeBron, Durant, and Ja Morant."

Source: ESPN