Ja Morant, star guard for the Memphis Grizzlies, was ruled Monday by a Tennessee judge as acting in self-defense after punching a teenage boy during the summer of 2022.
The boy who was punched, Joshua Holloway, then 17, filed a lawsuit in September 2022 that accused Morant of assault.
The story presented to the media by Morant stated he protected himself after Holloway threw a ball at his face during a pick-up basketball game and provoking him to fight by getting in his face. He claimed he was trying to protect himself since he felt threatened and threw the first punch.
Also in the altercation was Davonte Pack, a friend of Morant’s, who attacked Holloway. As a result he was arrested and charged with assault, a charge that was later dropped.
Shelby County Circuit Judge, Carol Chumney, was the judge who ruled that the burden of proof is on Holloway and his attorneys to prove that Morant wasn’t defending himself.
Morant’s attorney’s have not yet provided a statement on the ruling.
