The Washington Wizards lost their match against the Sixers on Wednesday, but it was the actions of a single fan that made headlines on social media.
After suffering an injury in the fourth quarter, Russell Westbrook hobbled back to the locker room — but not before a fan poured over him with popcorn in an act of major disrespect.
fan pours popcorn on Westbrook as he’s being assisted off floor with an injury pic.twitter.com/tGcn4kqRqq
— Rob Perez (@WorldWideWob) May 27, 2021
It took a few guys to hold Russ back, but responses from him and several other stars came after the game.
By the way WE AS THE PLAYERS wanna see who threw that popcorn on Russ while he was leaving the game tonight with a injury!! There’s cameras all over arenas so there’s no excuse! Cause if the 👟 was on the other 🦶🏾.🎥 #ProtectOurPlayers
— LeBron James (@KingJames) May 27, 2021
#Wizards Bradley Beal on a #Sixers fan dumping popcorn on Russell Westbrook
“It’s disgusting. It may be one bad apple. That’s BS. We got a lot of nasty fans. I even got some crazy language spoken to me tonight and my kids are sitting there”
— 𝑃ℎ𝑖𝑙𝑙𝑖𝑒𝑠 (@PHLSports1) May 27, 2021
Russell Westbrook had this to say after a fan in Philadelphia poured popcorn on his head while leaving the court with an ankle injury ⤵️ pic.twitter.com/MzO58QYjtR
— ESPN (@espn) May 27, 2021
Fans are an essential part of the game. Their cheers and boos are not only expected but encouraged, as it adds life and atmosphere to the court.
Since COVID-19 hit, arenas have been silent and empty, and it’s great to finally see and hear people back and cheering for their teams.
But sometimes, people take things too far, and to throw things at an injured player as he’s leaving the floor is just a really bad and disrespectful move.
The fan in question was properly thrown out, and some are calling for a permanent ban from the arena.
Whatever you consider a proper punishment, the players are making it clear that they are going to stand up for themselves in such instances as these, and they have every right.
Hopefully, though, we won’t see too much more of that behavior.
