Knicks indefinitely ban fan for spitting on Hawks star Trae Young
The New York Knicks issued a statement confirming a fan in attendance on Wednesday night spit on Atlanta Hawks star Trae Young. The Knicks banned the fan from Madison Square Garden indefinitely.
Need we remind you we are still in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic.
"We investigated the matter and determined that this patron, who is not a season ticket holder, did indeed spit on Trae Young, and for that reason, he is now banned from The Garden indefinitely," the statement read. "We apologize to Trae and the entire Atlanta Hawks organization for this fan's behavior. This was completely unacceptable and will not be tolerated in our venue. We have turned the information over to the appropriate authorities."
— NEW YORK KNICKS (@nyknicks) May 27, 2021
Young appeared to take the abhorrent behavior in stride following his team's 101-92 loss, tweeting along with a trio of crying laughing emojis, "Damn ... crazy," and asking entertainer 50 Cent, who was seated in the front row near the incident, if he was OK.
Damn... Crazy ! @50cent y’all good?!
😂😂😂 https://t.co/p8jSbwyozT— Trae Young (@TheTraeYoung) May 27, 2021
Keep ya mask on my boy😷😅#ThatsJustChildish
— Trae Young (@TheTraeYoung) May 27, 2021
The incident occurred on the same night a Philadelphia 76ers fan dumped popcorn on Washington Wizards star Russell Westbrook as he entered the tunnel to treat an ankle injury. That fan has also been banned.
“This s*** is out of hand," Westbrook told reporters on Wednesday night. "[...] I wouldn’t come up to me on the street and throw popcorn on my head, because you know what happens. ... In these arenas, you gotta start protecting the players. We’ll see what the NBA does."
The NBA announced "an enhanced fan code of conduct" on Thursday.
"The return of more NBA fans to our arenas has brought great excitement and energy to the start of the playoffs, but it is critical that we all show respect for players, officials and our fellow fans," the league said in a statement. "An enhanced fan code of conduct will be vigorously enforced in order to ensure a safe and respectful environment for all involved."
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Ben Rohrbach is a staff writer for Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at rohrbach_ben@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter! Follow @brohrbach
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