“Owned”: Fans in Hysteria As Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson Disses NBA’s Ja Morant in Unusual Turn of Events

“You’re simply an embarrassment son, just like Ja Morant waving his gun.” These are the lyrics from Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson‘s song that he sang in a country setting on the latest edition of WWE Smack Down. The Rock rolled into Memphis this week, a city that holds a special place in his heart (and where his wrestling career came into existence at the WMC-TV Channel 5 studio). Following in his dad, Rocky Johnson’s footsteps (who also grappled in the Memphis ring), The Rock took the mic, leaving many in stitches.

But instead of just the usual smack talk aimed at his WrestleMania rivals, Cody Rhodes and Seth “Freakin” Rollins, he did something unexpected, he came up with a song. A full-blown musical diss track. However, soon after he sang out the lyrics, he jokingly said, “I love you Ja.” keeping things light and funny. The arena erupted with “boos” as soon as The Rock dropped Morant’s name.

Fans across the internet have been reacting to The Rock’s Ja Morant serenade. Comments range from “@TheRock owned that thug” to “Ja Morant catching strays instead of throwing them.“

Another fan tweeted “Owned”, throwing shade at Morant.

One fan even went ahead to call the performance, “Top 5 rock segment ever.”

However, there were reactions from both bands with a Morant fan calling Rock’s performance, “Lame as f**k.”

The stage is set for a colossal clash at WrestleMania 40 on April 6th. Undisputed WWE Champion Roman Reigns, with a historic 883-day reign, and his on-screen cousin The Rock will face a challenge from Cody Rhodes. While promoting the highly anticipated event, the WWE icon delivered a hilarious performance.

From Career-Highs to Season-Ending Lows: Ja Morant’s Rough Year

During his country-style performance, The Rock also took a moment to acknowledge the incidents surrounding the Memphis Grizzlies star Ja Morant. A rising NBA star, Morant averaged a career-high 27.1 points before his season-ending injury and then landed himself in controversy earlier this year.

Waving a gun on a live stream and being intoxicated while doing so (despite averaging 19.1 points during his first suspension) wasn’t the best strategy for staying in the good graces of the NBA. Well, after his ill-advised social media antics sidelined him for most of the season, Morant’s woes continued with a season-ending shoulder injury. During training in January 2024, Ja suffered a subluxation of his right shoulder.

Back in April 2022, things were looking up for the Memphis Grizzlies’ Ja Morant. The Rock had tweeted, “I made my bones and came up in Memphis!!! That’s my city! I wrestled every Saturday morning at the channel 5 tv station and every Monday night I wrestled at the Big Top flea market“. That tweet was reposted, finally catching Morant’s eye. When a suggestion was made that Dwayne and Ja should meet up in the FedEx Forum postseason, Morant tweeted, “yeah pull up @TheRock.” It’s safe to say this isn’t the kind of showdown Ja Morant expected when he posted that.

Maybe The Rock can give Ja some pointers on generating buzz the right way with engaging matches and legendary promos, not social media mishaps. Or perhaps, this time off has given Morant a fresh perspective. If not, The Rock’s song would likely do the job.

Read More: Ja Morant Shows Love to Retired NBA Star’s Brutally Honest Admission on Mental Health