Tim Hardaway apologized for comparing a player's defense to rape
Tim Hardaway issued an apology in the same game where he made a terrible comparison on a broadcast.
After a tough defensive play in the third quarter between the Golden State Warriors and the San Antonio Spurs, Hardaway said "ya'll thought that was great D, I thought that was just raping him." After a bit of back-and-forth banter between Hardaway and his fellow broadcasters Chris Mullin and Mitch Richmond, Hardaway added that "I think he should have called the police on that."
Just an ugly phrase by Hardaway. And in the fourth quarter, Hardaway apologized for what he said. But that wasn't much better:
"Hey everybody. I used a poor choice of words earlier in the broadcast. I want to apologize for that," Hardaway said in the fourth quarter. "Let's get back to the game and finish this game off with a 30-point win and go home happy."
Ap010gy pic.twitter.com/cMULFVPoIE
— That's a highlight (@ClipIt_NBA) November 15, 2022
Hardaway played 15 years in the NBA, including his first six seasons with Golden State. He made five All-Star teams and was inducted into the Naismith Hall of Fame in 2022.
This isn't the first horrific thing Hardaway has said in public. Hardaway said on "The Dan Le Batard Show" in 2007 that he hated gay people after he was asked about the possibility of having a gay teammate.
"You know, I hate gay people, so I let it be known," Hardaway said 2007. "I don't like gay people and I don't like to be around gay people. I am homophobic. I don't like it. It shouldn't be in the world or in the United States."
Hardaway, who retired after the 2003 season, was banned from All-Star weekend by the league in 2007 and was denounced by both Miami Heat coach Pat Riley and then-NBA commissioner David Stern. Hardaway apologized for his comments but later said his remarks are why he didn't make the Hall of Fame until 2022.
"I hurt a lot of people's feelings and it came off the wrong way and it was really bad of me to say that," Hardaway said in 2019. "Since then, I've turned a wrong into a right. And that's what I did. I'm trying to do what's right, supporting gay people and transgender people. I want people to understand [what they go through] and understand them as people."
