Tee Morant takes the blame for Ja Morant's predicament - "When I say I will die for my kids, I will die for my kids"

Ja Morant made his return to the court on Wednesday following an eight-game suspension for conduct detrimental to the NBA (and missing nine total games). His father, Tee Morant, took the blame for the actions of the Memphis Grizzlies star.

The elder Morant described the last few weeks to The Athletic's Kelly Iko:

"They were rough. Rough. Reading bad things about my son and (people) judging him off of things that he really doesn't believe in. It's so crazy that people love to throw the stone but wouldn't want the stone thrown at their kid. I felt totally responsible. Ja's going to show the world who he is and I'm excited about that.

"I blame myself. I blame myself, because that's my son. When I say I will die for my kids, I will die for my kids. Now, has the world thought about that or thought like that? Anything my kid does, I'm going to blame myself."

Morant has been involved in several off-the-court incidents that have led critics to question his maturity. The two-time All-Star shared that he sought out help before his return Wednesday night. He finished with 17 points, four rebounds, five assists, two steals and one block in a 130-125 victory over the Houston Rockets.

Check out Ja Morant's highlights below:

How has Ja Morant fared this season?

Ja Morant is once again having a strong season. The Memphis Grizzlies star is averaging 26.9 points, 5.9 rebounds, 8.1 assists, 1.1 steals and 0.3 blocks per game. He's shooting 46.3% from the field, 31.4% from 3-point range and 74.5% from the free-throw line in 54 games.

The Grizzlies (45-27) clinched the Southwest Division on Wednesday night and are three-and-a-half games behind the Denver Nuggets (49-25) for the first seed in the Western Conference. Memphis is just two games ahead of the Sacramento Kings (43-29) for the second seed.

Morant's performance this season has not matched his performance from last season. However, he should earn his second consecutive All-NBA honors. The two-time All-Star has career averages of 22.5 ppg, 4.8 rpg, 7.4 apg, 1.0 spg and 0.3 bpg while shooting 47.2% from the field, 32.3% from 3-point range and 75.2% from the free-throw line.

Watch more of Ja Morant's highlights below: