Two Dallas Mavericks fans have been banned from American Airlines Arena for the remainder of the season over a confrontation they had with Chris Paul’s family on Sunday. Paul’s mother has now shared some more information about what happened.
Paul was furious during Game 4 of the Western Conference semifinals series between his Phoenix Suns and the Mavericks. He sent a tweet after the game implying that some fans got physical with members of his family. A video showed Paul shouting at a young Mavs fan as the fan was being escorted from the arena.
TNT’s Kenny Smith spoke with Paul’s mother, Robin, about the incident. She told Smith that the Mavericks fan (presumably the one from the video) was intoxicated and would not leave her alone.
"Mama Paul was a little upset." @TheJetOnTNT sheds light on Chris Paul's family incident with fans at Sunday's Game 4 #Suns lost to #Mavs. Series now 2-2.
Paul's mom called Kenny Smith to explain what happened as two fans have been banned from AAC until 2023. #NBAPlayoffs2022 pic.twitter.com/C1hN82duv0
— Duane Rankin (@DuaneRankin) May 10, 2022
“She was very adamant about what happened. She was like, ‘No Kenny, the guy was inebriated and he was trying to be funny by continually tapping me and saying Happy Mother’s Day,'” Smith explained. “She said, ‘Well, thank you, but don’t touch me.’ He continued to do that and then in between would scream out obscenities about the Suns and continued to tap her. That’s when it escalated to that magnitude.”
The Mavericks offered a different explanation for the exact behavior that got the two fans banned. Either way, Paul’s family was being harassed and pestered. That is why the star point guard was so irate.
