Former NBA player Stephen Jackson made headlines with his recent comments on the controversy surrounding Ja Morant counseling. The young basketball star was disciplined for displaying a firearm on social media, and during his suspension, he attended counseling to help manage his stress and emotions.
Jackson’s take on the situation, however, was that Ja didn’t need counseling at all. He argued that talking to someone who hasn’t experienced the pressure and challenges of being an NBA player wouldn’t be helpful.
Stephen Jackson shared his own experience
The former New Jersey Nets man shared his own experience of being asked to talk to a professional about his problems. However, the ex-star did not find it helpful and did not confide in the person.
“Check this out. I hate the fact that they made Ja feel like he need to go talk to somebody on how to deal with his stress and ups and downs, right.”
“When I got to the… they tried to make me talk to somebody. The lady was cool, the lady was super cool, but I didn’t talk to her about my problems,” he added.
The 44-years old suggests that one should simply deal with their problems themselves without seeking outside help.
“I damn sure didn’t confide in her. And say nothing about what I had going on. Nothing. Man, ain’t nothing wrong with you bro, you made a bad decision. You f**ked up, deal with it. But you don’t need to talk to nobody, bruh. Because whoever you talk to ain’t going to relate to whatever you got going on.”
Ja Morant needs to move on!
In Jackson’s opinion, Morant simply needed to face the consequences of his actions and move on. He believes that the people who are providing such help lack the necessary experience to understand the individual’s unique situation, and therefore their opinions are not valuable.
He advises the rookie to ignore such advice and simply focus on playing basketball.
“They just somebody that’s sitting there, that’s going to give you an opinion, about what they think you did. They ain’t got no experience. Ain’t nothing wrong with you Ja, just get back to playing basketball. F**k everybody.”
Stephen Jackson said Ja Morant didn’t need to go counseling pic.twitter.com/7hiwiAQgfc
— Shannonnn sharpes Burner (PARODY Account) (@shannonsharpeee) March 21, 2023
Is Jackson’s perspective about Ja Morant counseling justifiable?
This perspective from Jackson received pushback from many NBA fans and mental health advocates, who stressed the importance of providing players with support and resources to manage their mental well-being.
While Morant’s situation may be different from other players, it’s important to acknowledge that seeking counseling is a positive step toward managing stress and improving mental health.
Morant himself has stated that the counseling he received wasn’t related to alcohol consumption, as some had speculated, but rather about learning to cope with the pressures of his career.
