Russell Westbrook confronted a fan and his wife Monday night during the Oklahoma City Thunder‘s win at Utah, telling the man he would “f—” him up and would do the same to his wife.
The exchange was caught on video and posted to Twitter by a reporter for Utah’s Deseret Sun. It was unclear what prompted the exchange.
Westbrook did not draw any discipline from the game officials for the interaction with the fan during the Thunder’s 98-89 win.
According to the Deseret Sun, five fans received “warning cards” related to the Westbrook incident. The cards cited comments, gestures and/or behaviors directed at players in violation of the NBA’s code of conduct for fans. Each of the fans were able to return to their seats, the Deseret Sun reported.
— Ute Believer (@UteBeliever) March 12, 2019
The incident was reminiscent of the finale of last year’s first-round playoff series between them, when the Jazz ousted the Thunder in six games, when Westbrook became involved with a fan as he exited the court.
“I didn’t confront fans; fans confronted me,” Westbrook said after the April game. “Here in Utah, man, a lot of disrespectful, vulgar things are said to the players here with these fans. It’s truly disrespectful. Talk about your families, your kids. It’s truly disrespectful to the game, man.”
That night, Westbrook slapped at a fan’s cellphone as he walked to the tunnel following the Thunder’s loss, after scoring 46 points on 43 shots. It was the second interaction of the night for Westbrook with a courtside fan, with him turning and snapping at one who said something to him as he exited the floor at halftime.
“I think it’s something that needs to be brought up,” he continued. “I’m tired of just going out and playing, then the fans saying whatever the hell they want to say. I’m not with that. If I was on the street, they wouldn’t just come up to me and say anything crazy, because I don’t play that s—. So, to disrespect me and do whatever they want to do needs to be put to a stop, especially here in Utah.”
Source : ESPN
