On leaving the pitch after injuring his ankle, Russell Westbrook was hit by a packet of popcorn thrown by a Philadelphia fan from above. A gesture that infuriated the Washington All-Star, barely held back by security. “You would never do that if you met me on the street. In these arenas you have to protect the players, I want to see what the NBA will do.” LeBron James also hard on social media: “There are no excuses”
The NBA has been waiting for more than a year to be able to welcome his fans back to the stands, and with the start of the playoffs the arenas began to look more and more like the ones we knew before the pandemic. Unfortunately, however, even the episodes to be condemned are back, like the one that involved Russell Westbrook is a Philadelphia 76ers fan. Leaving the pitch and returning to the locker room after injuring his ankle, the Washington Wizards All-Star was hit by a packet of popcorn thrown from above his head as he took the tunnel to the guest changing rooms. Westbrook tried to get back out of the tunnel by coming barely held back by the security of the Wells Fargo Center and members of the Wizards staff who were accompanying him. The fan, immediately identified, was expelled from the arena.
Westbrook very tough: “Situation out of control, I’m tired”
“To be completely honest, this m … is getting out of hand, especially for meSaid Westbrook, who for years has had a decidedly conflicting relationship with the (notoriously hot) Philly audience. “The disrespect and the fact that the fans can do whatever they want is out of control. There are certain things that cross the mark. In any other situation … if someone came to me on the street and threw popcorn at my head, you know what would happen. In these arenas you have to start protecting the players. We’ll see what the NBA will do“. Westbrook, who has had incidents in the past in Philadelphia and Salt Lake City, added, “There have been so many episodes in the past with fans who are allowed to say what they want feel untouchable. Getting to throw food at me is a str … Obviously I have learned to look the other way, but only up to a certain point. It can’t be done forever. There must be penalties or something to keep the fans from coming to games to do and say what they want. I take it very personally: I’m tired of always facing the same thing. And I don’t see any change: on the contrary, it just gets worse ”.
LeBron’s tweet: “If it happened to parts reversed …”
His teammate Bradley Beal also called the episode “disgusting”, while coach Scott Brooks said it “was downright disrespectful: Philadelphia is better than that”. Through Twitter, LeBron James also made himself heard: “WE AS PLAYERS want to see who threw those popcorn at Russ while he was leaving the field injured !! There are cameras all over the arena, so there is no excuse! Because if the parts were reversed … #ProtectOurPlayers”.
The Arena Apology: “Unacceptable Behavior”
The president of arena operations, Valerie Camillo, published this statement: “It was classless and unacceptable behavior, and we won’t tolerate it at the Wells Fargo Center. We are proud to have the most passionate fans in the country and the best home factor around, but this kind of behavior has no place in our arena”.
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