Ja Morant, the star player for the Memphis Grizzlies, has come under a lot of scrutiny lately, so when Morant posted mysterious remarks on Instagram, the NBA community was alarmed.
On his Instagram stories on Wednesday, Morant posted a number of images and messages honouring his mother Jamie, father Tee, and daughter Kaari. The first caption was, “Love ya ma.” I adore you, Pops. I love you, darling girl. You’re the best. Then Morant shared a selfie with the words “Bye.” Later, Morant removed the posts.
The heartfelt parting letters were seen by some as a potential sign of self-harm ideation given the extreme strain and considerable criticism Morant had recently faced. According to TMZ, the Shelby County Sheriff’s Office in Memphis, Tennessee checked on Morant’s wellbeing because of this worry to make sure he was secure.
“A spokesperson for the Shelby County Sheriff’s Office said cops went to the NBA star’s home in Tennessee shortly after Morant shared the concerning messages on his Instagram page… and they say he told them simply ‘that he is taking a break from social media.’
‘He is fine,’ the spokesperson added.”
After the police conducted a wellness check, Ja Morant confirmed his mysterious social media remark.
After being caught with a gun in an Instagram Live video, Morant has been suspended from all team activities. Following the team’s suspension, Morant issued a statement via Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN.
“I am aware that I have let many of my supporters down. There is more work to be done, as this is a journey. Even though my words may not mean much at the moment, I accept full responsibility for my deeds. I’m determined to keep improving myself.
Morant previously discussed how his hand injury and NBA suspension in March had impacted his mental health in an April speech.
Regarding his mental health, Morant noted, “It’s very tough.” “Stressful. Now that I feel like you guys can tell by my body language and other things, obviously. I don’t know guy, I’m just pretty much numb to anything right now. How, I’m pretty much taking what happened. It seems like there is always something new, which I am not even shocked by.
Following the March event, Morant sought counselling in Florida. Morant said he made the decision to go to counselling at the time “to get help and work on learning better methods of dealing with stress and my overall well-being.”
Numerous academic research papers have thoroughly documented the harmful impacts of social media use on mental health. A research by MIT found that having access to Facebook on campus increased cases of severe depression by 7% and anxiety disorders by 20%.
Alyson Watson, a former student-athlete who founded the business Modern Health that provides digital resources for mental health, has been outspoken about how social media might increase the pressure that well-known athletes may have from the wider community.
Ja Morant’s Instagram story:
“Love ya ma 💙”
“Love ya pops 💙”
“You da greatest baby girl 💙 love ya”
“Bye.”Stay strong, Ja 🙏 pic.twitter.com/hur6UJnRby
— Courtside Buzz (@CourtsideBuzzX) May 24, 2023
Watson said to Forbes, “You weren’t on Twitter for doing well or not doing well. There are now entire Twitter streams dedicated to the way players are competing live on a court. We are dependent on technology and social media. People are under more stress than ever before.
We frequently receive alerts from Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook, and Instagram on our phones. We frequently observe that everyone has a wonderful life story, said Waston. “You don’t see people posting updates to their social media accounts to say, ‘Hey, I’m really struggling.’ On the one hand, you could say that all these incredible advantages of technology have had a good effect. However, it has proven a two-edged sword.
In recent years, both professional and collegiate athletes have worked to lessen the stigma around mental health problems and crises, particularly in light of the surge in college players’ suicide rates.
In a two-month span last year, “at least five NCAA athletes committed suicide,” CBS News reporter Debby Waldman said in March. Additionally, according to a 2021 NCAA poll published in May, student-athletes report more mental health issues, anxiety, and despair than they had in polls taken before to the arrival of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020.
Theoretically, if Morant walks away from social media pressures, he will receive more support and sympathy, despite Watson’s observation that the majority of social media users don’t openly ask for aid on platforms.