Charles Barkley Shares His Thoughts On Ja Morant; 'This Kid Is Crying Out For Help'

During a recent appearance on "The Pat McAfee Show," former NBA star and current television analyst Charles Barkley opened up about how he feels about Memphis Grizzlies star Ja Morant's current situation.

After Morant shared some cryptic Instagram Stories last week and then promptly deleted them, but not before they began circulating around the internet, many spoke out about their thoughts. Barkley feels the 23-year-old basketball player is "crying out for help."

While appearing on "The Pat McAfee Show," the conversation turned to Morant. Barkley opened up and said when he saw Morant saying goodbye to his family on his Instagram Stories, he "almost started crying."

"This kid is crying out for help, man. I want to know, were the adults in the room?" he passionately said. "Like his dad, too busy walking around in shades, you don't wear shades indoors. Take your damn shades off and check on your son. I don't know the kid, but he's crying out for help."

The former NBA star continued to talk about how the police were called to do a wellness check out of fear that Morant might hurt himself after seeing the concerning Instagram Stories.

"I really am hoping the best for the kid. I hope somebody goes, 'Yo, man, let's get you some help,'" he continued. "Whatever it takes. Whatever it takes."

Barkley then answered the question that was posed before he shared his thoughts on what Morant is going through, regarding what the possible league suspension could be for the troubled Grizzlies player this time around.

"We got eight games the first time. I think it's gonna be 20 to 25," he said. "I don't know, honestly, but I think, I mean we can all just guess, but I think it will be 20 to 25."

Barkley then moved into a rant about the people who are telling Morant to fight the NBA, calling them a few choice words.

"I'm pretty sure, every person watching you guys right now saying, 'I'll take a job playing basketball making $100 million a year and the only thing I can't do is act like a damn idiot,'" he continued. "And these dudes talking about he should fight it. I'm like, 'Nah, he should stop acting like a damn idiot.'"

Barkley summed up his chat saying that Morant is a great player, and he hopes he gets the help he needs.

The Grizzlies star is currently suspended from all team activities while the league investigates his latest Instagram Live video where he's seen flashing a firearm the weekend of May 13.

This was the second Instagram Live incident where the NBA player is seen brandishing a gun. The first time it happened, earlier this year, he was suspended for eight games and attended a counseling center in Florida for two weeks to get help with managing stress. He apologized after the incident and promised to make better choices from now on.

After the May incident, he issued a short apology taking accountability for his actions once again.

"I know I've disappointed a lot of people who have supported me. This is a journey and I recognize there is more work to do," his statement reads.

"My words may not mean much right now, but I take full accountability for my actions. I'm committed to continuing to work on myself."

NBA Commissioner Adam Silver recently addressed Morant's situation and said while it's currently under investigation, he's "assuming the worst."

Silver revealed what he spoke to Morant about after the last incident.

"Well, we talked directly about the consequences first before we got to a subsequent potential to have done something wrong. We were very focused on the misconduct that was in front of us at the time and frankly, most of our conversation was about how incredibly serious the first incident was of waving a firearm on social media," he explained.

"And again, the consequences there, an eight-game suspension, was pretty serious and something that he at least to me seemed to take incredibly seriously at that time."