The Utah Jazz announced on Thursday that they had banned three fans for improper conduct during Game 2 of the team’s playoff series with the Memphis Grizzlies on Wednesday night. Now we have more information regarding the allegations that led to the bans.
Ja Morant’s father Tee told ESPN that one fan made a sexually explicit remark to his wife. He says another fan told him “I’ll put a nickel in your back and watch you dance, boy.” A third fan was ejected for yelling “shut the f— up, b—-,” to Morant’s mother. The article does not say what, if anything, Morant’s family said. However, Tee told ESPN that they had friendly banter with many of the other fans sitting around them. He also said that those examples went well beyond heckling.
The Jazz issued the following statement.
“The Utah Jazz have zero tolerance for offensive or disruptive behavior. An incident occurred last night involving a verbal altercation during Game 2. Arena security staff intervened, and the investigation resulted in the removal and banning of three Jazz fans indefinitely,” the team said.
“We apologize to all who were impacted by this unfortunate incident and condemn unacceptable fan behavior. The Utah Jazz are committed to ensuring a safe and respectful environment.”
Morant was pleased with the ban and said on Twitter “my family should be able cheer for me & my teammates without getting inappropriate s— said to them” (edited by LBS for profanity).
Both Ja and his father seemed to feel like things went well overall with the other fans, with the exception of the three who were banned.
my family told me they felt the love from all the other jazz fans who were around them even bought each other drinks with a few.
those 3 just went too far https://t.co/1XvjXcPVOo
— Ja Morant (@JaMorant) May 28, 2021
These fans, who were banned indefinitely, join a few others who were banned in other venues. The 76ers banned a fan who dumped popcorn on Russell Westbrook. The Knicks also banned a fan who spit on Trae Young.
