Ja Morant Latest NBA Star to Lose His Joy Amidst Rocky Patch in Memphis

Ja Morant continued to not have fun as a member of the Grizzlies on Monday as Memphis lost to the Pistons at FedExForum. Coming off a one-game suspension following a game where his effort was questioned by a number of people, Morant scored 18 points on 5-of-16 shooting and turned the ball over five times.

If there was any question about whether he's having a good time, he confirmed that no he is not. Much like Jimmy Butler in his final days in Miami, Morant is searching for joy and seems uninterested in clearing up any of the issues that led to his suspension.

Asked whether the things between himself and the coaching staff had been cleared up, Morant declined to give his own answer. "Ya'll asked that question to them, right? So ya'll know the answer to that."

When another reporter asked what the last three days had been like for Morant he said, "My last three days."

Then he was asked if the joy was the same for him right now. Morant simply said, "No." Asked why not, Morant shrugged and made a noise. Asked what could be done to get his joy back he said, "We'll see."

The final question he fielded was about whether he had any regrets about his play on Friday night. "That's your home run question? Sounds like a bait question."

As far as disgruntled post-game interviews go, this was both effective and tame. Morant is not happy, even if he is back on the court and as we all know when NBA stars are unhappy it's rare for an attitude to change without the scenery also changing.