Memphis Grizzlies

Stephen A. Smith sparked quite the controversy after claiming NBA players avoid signing with the Grizzlies due to safety concerns in Memphis ... and while Danny Green says the talking head "isn't far off" with his take, he tells TMZ Sports it's more so due to the fact it's "not a pretty city" in general.

We caught up with Green -- who had a very short stint in Memphis (we're talking three games here) back in the 2022-23 season -- at LAX this week ... and he weighed in more on the city's apparent obstacles to landing free agents.

"I just don't think it's a destination city," he said. "Nashville is one of the cities that people enjoy. Memphis, it is in Tennessee so you get a tax cut. It's good on taxes, but it's just not a city that's pretty, people would say."

Memphis Grizzlies rookie Jaylen Wells was stretchered off the court after a brutal fall during a dunk attempt in Tuesday night's game ... and while he suffered a broken wrist as a result of the tumble, he's fortunate it was not more serious.

The frightening incident happened during the second quarter of the Grizzlies' road matchup against the Charlotte Hornets ... when Wells -- averaging 10.4 points this season -- went up for a one-handed slam.

Once Wells was airborne, he took a hard foul from Hornets guard KJ Simpson ... causing him to plummet onto the Spectrum Center court and seemingly hitting his head in the process.

Ja Morant went to his weapon wheel for his latest celebration ... electing for a "grenade" instead of his go-to "gun" gesture in Tuesday night's game.

The Memphis Grizzlies star debuted the move against the Charlotte Hornets at the Spectrum Center ... days after he was handed a $75,000 fine for pretending to unload a firearm on multiple occasions in competition, which the NBA publicly warned him to stop doing.

Morant apparently can't help but channel his inner "Call of Duty" as he goes to war on the court ... 'cause he mimicked the explosive-tossing stunt throughout the night -- acting like he was pulling a pin with his teeth and covering his ears.

8:55 AM PT -- The NBA just announced it's fined Ja Morant $75,000 for the finger-gun gestures.

In announcing the punishment, the league noted it warned Morant prior to Thursday's Grizzlies vs. Heat tilt that the acts "could be interpreted in a negative light."

Ja Morant made more references to firearms on Thursday night ... just hours after the NBA reportedly told him not to.

Things got intense on the Grizzlies' bench in a matchup with the Jazz on Tuesday ... with Desmond Bane forcefully shoving his own teammate during a timeout.

The incident went down early in the contest at the Delta Center ... when Utah came out the gates strong offensively.

As Memphis called for a break in the action, Bane was caught on video yelling at Santi Aldama to get a stop on defense ... and then extending his arms to push him into a seat.

Ja Morant had more than $1 million worth of items taken from his home back in December ... with the Memphis Grizzlies superstar getting hit in the same burglary sting that affected Patrick Mahomes, Travis Kelce, Joe Burrow and more.

Local outlets report the 25-year-old guard was "Professional Athlete 6" named in the federal complaint that was unsealed earlier this week ... which stated valuables were jacked from the crib while Morant was at the FedExForum to play against the Golden State Warriors.

Morant had nine points that night ... with the Grizzlies beating the Dubs, 144-93.

Luka Doncic wasn't just droppin' buckets on Tuesday ... the NBA star seemingly mouthed a soap-worthy phrase after receiving a controversial technical foul.

The apparent remark happened during the NBA Cup matchup between the Memphis Grizzlies and Dallas Mavericks at the American Airlines Center ... when a referee whistled a foul on the 6'7" guard as he was defending Ja Morant.

Doncic disagreed with the call and waved off the ref ... and the gesture resulted in his fifth tech of the season.

Joel Embiid just got hit with a suspension as a result of his physical altercation with a reporter ... receiving a three-game ban for his actions after the Sixers' loss to the Grizzlies on Saturday.

The whole issue stemmed from a column from Marcus Hayes of the Philadelphia Inquirer ... who criticized Embiid's absence from games -- making questionable comments about his late brother and son in the process.

Embiid confronted Hayes at Wells Fargo Arena shortly after the weekend matchup with Memphis ... reportedly saying, "The next time you bring up my dead brother and my son again, you are going to see what I’m going to do to you and I'm going to have to ... live with the consequences."

Ex-NBA star Shareef Abdur-Rahim is opening up on his brother Amir's tragic death ... saying his loved ones are thankful for everyone who has shared their support following the news.

"On behalf of my family, I want to express our gratitude to all who have reached out regarding Amir's passing," the former Atlanta Hawks forward and current G League president  said in a brief statement on his X account.

"Please remember our family in your prayers. As @sunsetAMIR would say, to God be the Glory."

Derrick Rose's face will look a little bit different the next time he steps on an NBA court ... as the Memphis Grizzlies star just got some new ink needled onto the side of his mug.

The 35-year-old point guard got the tattoos done by his go-to guy Jose Guijosa, a.k.a Killer Tattoos, over Memorial Day Weekend.

One sits on his cheek, just to the left of his left ear, and features the letters "AAA" -- which Guijosa tells TMZ Sports is an homage to Rose's wife, Alaina A. Anderson.

Ja Morant was a man of few words after learning his 2023-24 season was over ... going to social media to express his frustrations by simply saying, "Damn dawg."

The Memphis Grizzlies broke the news Monday night ... saying their superstar guard suffered a partial dislocation of his right shoulder during Saturday's training session.

The team said Morant continued to experience soreness and instability in the following days ... so he underwent an MRI, which revealed an underlying labral tear.

The ailment brings Morant's revenge tour to a screeching halt ... as he was out to make up for time lost after missing the first chunk of the season due to his gun-related suspension.

As we previously reported, Morant was quick to make sure his haters knew he heard all the talk in his first game back ... yelling he "kept receipts" after nailing the game-winning bucket against the New Orleans Pelicans last month.

Ja -- who missed Sunday's matchup against the Phoenix Suns -- was understandably bummed about his season being over ... also sending out a blue heart and posting "just waiting for the sun to come out..." later Monday night.

Ja Morant's barely been back on the NBA hardwood for a week, but he's already found himself mired in a bit of controversy again -- this time after he hit a celebration that appeared to feature imaginary guns.

The Grizzlies point guard pulled out the celly Tuesday night after he helped give Memphis an insurmountable lead over the Pelicans in overtime of their game in New Orleans.

The 24-year-old -- who just came back from a 25-game ban for a string of incidents involving gun-related social media videos last week -- seemed to turn his hands into the shape of pistols after throwing down a thunderous alley-oop dunk, before he appeared to spray the road crowd with fake bullets.

The gestures only lasted a few seconds, before Morant returned to defense to finish off the game -- but basketball fans were still critical of the moves nonetheless.

Several roasted him as "tone deaf" -- particularly after he had just returned from his suspension on Dec. 19.

Of course, it's entirely possible Morant was not mimicking firing guns and was instead just simply hitting a dance -- but the hooper has yet to publicly address it all.

After 235 days away from the NBA hardwood, Ja Morant apparently still knows his way around the hoop -- scoring the winning shot in his first game back!!

The Grizzlies superstar had been barred from the court to start this season while serving a 25-game suspension for a string of incidents involving gun-related social media videos ... but in his return against the Pelicans on Tuesday night, his presence was felt right away.

He logged 34 points and 8 assists on the road game in New Orleans -- but, most importantly, he nailed a floater in the lane with no time left in regulation to win the game for Memphis, 115-113.

And, afterward, he had a big-time message for his haters ... saying simply as he ran into the locker room, "I kept receipts!"

Morant, of course, had developed a bevy of critics after he was seen on social media waving around a gun not once, but twice. He had also been accused last year of attacking a teenager during a pickup game at his home. It all eventually led to NBA commish Adam Silver sidelining him.

But, Morant took all the steps the NBA and the Grizzlies required for him to rejoin the team ... and after his big night against the Pels, he said there were certainly some low points while he was away from his teammates.

"I haven't played a game in eight months," he said. "I had a lot of time to learn myself, a lot of hard days where I went through it. But, you know, basketball is my life, what I love. It’s therapeutic for me and I'm just excited to be back."

Ja Morant had a busy day in court Monday ... testifying that he punched a teen during an altercation at his home last year in self-defense -- while also demonstrating to an attorney how to check a ball in a pickup basketball game.

The Memphis Grizzlies superstar did it all before a judge in Tennessee ... as part of Joshua Holloway's civil case against him.

Holloway claims in the lawsuit that Morant assaulted him while the two were hoopin' at the NBA player's Shelby County residence in July 2022 ... though Morant and his attorneys say the suit should be dismissed, claiming Ja was simply attempting to protect himself during the incident.

At one point during Monday's proceedings, Morant told Holloway's attorney he was physically "hurt" when the teenager threw a ball at his face during a check situation.

Morant said in the courtroom that he asked Holloway, "What you on?" after the teen heaved the ball -- and then he claimed Holloway pulled up his shorts.

"Him pulling up his shorts," Morant testified, "where I'm from, that's a fighting stance."

Morant claimed Holloway then took a step at him -- and that's when the NBA player fired off a punch.

"I hit him first," Morant said, "to protect myself."

Morant was also seen in the courtroom showing a lawyer how a normal check-ball situation is supposed to go down.

Morant's dad, Tee, spoke as well from the stand during the hearing -- and it's anticipated he'll continue testimony Tuesday.

The proceedings, meanwhile, are slated to go through at least Wednesday -- and if it's ultimately deemed Morant was, indeed, acting in self-defense, the case could be dismissed. However, if it's not, a trial could be slated to begin in April.

With the 1st pick in the 2040 WNBA Draft, [team name here] selects Kaari Morant! 😊

Ja Morant's 4-year-old daughter showed the apple doesn't fall far from the tree ... the NBA superstar's baby, Kaari, showed off her hoops skills in a 1-on-1 matchup against her mom, Kadre -- and it's adorable!

Kadre shared the video on social media, despite being scored on (sometimes the offense is just that good!), showing Kaari driving to the left, with handles that'd make dad proud, before knocking down the lefty layup, as mom could just stand there and watch.

Kaari was clearly impressed with her work on the court ... and she let everyone know about it, yelling, "You see the guns?! You see the guns?!" as she flexed.

Kadre -- who gave birth to Kaari in 2019 -- captioned the video with a question ... how does her daughter already have A+ trash talk?!

Ja's sister, high school hooper Niya, took the credit, saying her niece got it from her.

"Deflee got it from her tt," Niya said, "but whateva 🙄😂😂😂😂."

It seems hooping runs in the family (and some trash-talking, too) ... and thankfully for NBA fans, Morant is gearing up to return later this month when his 25-game suspension ends.

Ja will be eligible on Dec. 19, and the 5-14 Grizzlies desperately need him.