A fan was thrown out of the Warriors-Bucks game on Tuesday after exchanging words with Golden State forward Draymond Green.
During the third quarter with Giannis Antetokounmpo at the free throw line, a fan sitting courtside heckled Green, who then responded before running to the other end of the floor. Just over a minute later, at the next stoppage, Green pointed out the fan to a referee who notified security. The fan was then ejected and escorted out.
According to Green, the fan said "some threatening things to my life." The Bucks released a statement after the game saying the ejection falls under the discretion of the referee and that the organization was investigating the incident along with the league.
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Afterwards, Green spoke at length about a recurring issue of fan behavior at games.
Draymond Green on the situation that led to a fan ejection in Milwaukee tonight pic.twitter.com/YMG4X0OFNK
— Anthony Slater (@anthonyVslater) December 14, 2022
"Some people look at NBA players like they're superhuman. That they're this larger-than-life figure. So you come and you get someone to say something back and they get fined. They go home and laugh with their buddies."
"I think it's just one of those things when you can hold it in and get to the ref and get them out, it's great."
This is not the first time this season Green has been on the receiving end of some heckling fans that perhaps crossed the line. In a Nov. 29 game in Dallas, Green exchanged words with a fan and was later fined $25,000 by the NBA.
While Green acknowledged that the NBA is taking this matter seriously, he did take issue on the league's reflex to fine players. "They jump and fine guys for saying something back... I think when you see guys get fined, it's more often a license for more people to do it."
Green said he feels it would take something, or someone, outside of the NBA to make real change regarding fan decorum.
"There are no real consequences. Yeah, you can't come back to the game, or even if you get arrested, nothing really happens ... you just hope it gets to a point where these leagues can work with legislators to implement laws, because that's the only thing that's really going to correct the issue."
The complicated dynamic between fans and NBA players has been an ongoing and growing source of friction over the last few seasons.
Earlier this season in Portland, a fan was removed from a game for yelling racial insults at Jazz guard Jordan Clarkson.
Last May, a fan was removed from a playoff game between the Suns and Mavericks for apparently "putting hands on" Chris Paul's mom and getting into a verbal altercation with his family.
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Russell Westbrook, Trae Young, Ja Morant and Kyrie Irving have all been involved with fan incidents over the last two seasons, ranging from racial statements to thrown objects.
For their part, the NBA and teams have started working more closely with security and law enforcement to impose harsher penalties on fan misconduct in an effort to curb what are no longer simply isolated incidents. In 2021, a fan who threw a water bottle at Kyrie Irving was no only banned for life from Boston's TD Garden but also charged with felony assault and battery.
While Tuesday's incident involving Green and a Bucks fan certainly did not rise to that level, this remains a serious, ongoing issue that the NBA is surely keen on resolving.
