As basketball players, there is oftentimes an expectation of you to interact with fans. After all, fans are the lifeblood of any sport and a huge factor in the success and failure of athletes and teams. But sometimes, players may not be in the best mood, and will willfully ignore the fans in order to focus elsewhere. Usually, fans feel slighted when this happens, but the players usually make up for it in one way or another.
This is what happened in 2018 when a fan tried approaching then-Cleveland Cavaliers player Larry Nance Jr. While the Cleveland Cavaliers were in Los Angeles for a road trip, they were practicing at the UCLA basketball facility. After the session, a young fan tried approaching Larry Nance Jr. for an autograph. However, Nance appeared to not be in the mood for any fan interaction, as he swiftly made his way back to the facility while ignoring the young fan. The fan clearly looked dismayed, but his luck would turn around later.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EJkuF89AtKc
Cavs All-Star Kevin Love saw the fan and chose to interact with him, even going as far as giving him an autograph and praised his hair. Love clearly made the fan’s day. And as time went on, Nance Jr. would regret his decision to engage with the fan. Sometime after the incident passed, Nance Jr. would use social media to apologize to the young fan’s mother for not interacting with him on the day.
Many times, fans take athletes and players for granted and act as though they have an obligation to do what they want for them. But in this case, Nance Jr. could have easily helped make a young fan’s day by giving him an autograph. And by refusing to do so, he caused hurt to the fan, and also put his own reputation off the court in jeopardy.
