Ja Morant Approved? Utah Bill Would Force NBA Arenas To Allow Concealed Carry

The Utah Jazz and the NHL’s newest franchise want roughly a billion dollars from taxpayers to remake downtown Salt Lake City into a shiny, state-of-the-art sports district.

That part isn’t new. Pro teams ask. Cities pay. Everyone pretends it’s a "partnership."

What is new is what Utah lawmakers want in return.

Instead of rubber-stamping another public subsidy, legislators are attaching a condition that could turn an NBA arena into ground zero for one of the strangest culture clashes in American sports: guns inside the building.

Imagine it.

You’re at the Delta Center for a Jazz or Mammoth game. Someone spills a beer. Someone bricks a wide-open 3. An entire section boos the refs in unison. And under Utah law, at least a few fans nearby are legally armed. Better start acting real neighborly.

SALT LAKE CITY, UTAH - MARCH 19: General view outside of the Delta Center ahead of the NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament on March 19, 2024 in Salt Lake City, Utah.  (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images)

Utah politicians are challenging the terms under which state funding will be approved.

State Rep. Candice Pierucci (R-Herriman) fired the opening salvo with HB452, a bill requiring taxpayer-funded sports venues to allow concealed firearms, according to The Salt Lake Tribune.

The legislation would apply to Smith Entertainment Group, owners of the Jazz and Utah Mammoth, if they accept public money.

The bluntly titled "Concealed Firearm Carry Access on Publicly Supported Entities" mandates that any venue receiving more than $1 million in taxpayer funding must allow law-abiding citizens with concealed-carry permits to bring firearms inside.

"This is a simple issue of fairness," Pierucci said Tuesday. 

"If a private entity wants to operate exclusively on their own dime, they can set their own rules. But when they come to taxpayers asking for a billion-dollar subsidy, they don’t get to check those taxpayers’ constitutional rights at the door."

SALT LAKE CITY, UT - JUNE 14: The opening tip-off between the Chicago Bulls and the Utah Jazz during Game Six of the 1998 NBA Finals on June 14, 1998 at the Delta Center in Salt Lake City, Utah. (Photo by Garrett Ellwood/NBAE via Getty Images)

It’s a delicious political pickle for NBA commissioner Adam Silver.

The NBA, which treats its arenas like sovereign city-states, enforces a strict no-weapons policy. Utah lawmakers are daring the league to choose between ideological purity and roughly $900 million in public financing.

If the bill passes, the Delta Center could become the most heavily armed building in the association.

And let’s be honest: there is at least one NBA player absolutely thrilled by this development. Finally, a road venue where Ja Morant can be his authentic self. The Grizzlies might never lose in Salt Lake City again.

While blue-check media figures are already hyperventilating about "safety risks," the NRA is watching with a grin. It’s a rare moment where a red state is using the same economic leverage corporations usually use to bully lawmakers.

For now, the team is playing it cool.

"We are reviewing the legislation and its potential impact on our league compliance," a Smith Entertainment Group spokesperson said, which is essentially corporate-speak for HIT THE PANIC BUTTON.

In the game of chicken between the Utah Legislature and the NBA, the lawmakers just floored the accelerator.

Your move, Adam Silver.

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