On Wednesday, a potentially dangerous situation involving LeBron James developed during the Los Angeles Lakers‘ 127-110 win against the Dallas Mavericks. A fan sprinted towards the Lakers’ bench without any hindrance and got too close to the superstar. James shoved the fan away before security intervened and escorted him out of the arena. The whole interaction left Gilbert Arenas and co-host Brandon Jennings confused on the latest episode of the Gil’s Arena podcast.
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Surprised by the whole incident, Jennings asked “How do you even get close to LeBron like that?”
Gilbert Arenas attempted to dismiss the fan’s action as a one-off incident. He claimed that fans usually don’t attack players because if they did, there would have been more instances like this. Jennings snapped back at his co-host, saying, “You never know, though? Everybody’s trying to go viral. People are just doing stuff to try to do something. So somebody could walk up to LeBron [and do something] just to go viral. People are weird, bro.”
Arenas pointed out that when a fan had attacked comedian Dave Chappelle on stage during a show a while ago, his security detail had absconded the person before breaking their arm. Jennings responded:
“That’s what I am saying. So y’all not going to break this man’s arm? Y’all should be beating his a*s. You touched a billionaire? You crazy.”
The call for violence may be a bit much but Jennings’ overall view is on point. A fan shouldn’t be able to walk up to James without any intervention during a game. All it would take is one disturbed person to do something sinister to a player. They need to be protected more efficiently so that they can focus on giving their best on the court.
The NBA creates the best fan experience in all of major sports by providing court side seats to fans within touching distance of the players. However, they should be more vigilant about people misusing that opportunity for the wrong reasons.
When LeBron James got fans kicked out of games
LeBron James is usually very gracious with fans. After games, he often gives away his game-worn shoes, wristbands, headbands, and jerseys and even shares high-fives and hugs with supporters. However, if a fan oversteps their boundaries by talking trash and getting personal, he also doesn’t hesitate to have them kicked out of the game. During an intense overtime game against the Indiana Pacers in 2021, a fan sitting courtside allegedly said, “I hope Bronny gets into a car accident tomorrow and dies.”
In the middle of the game, James dragged a referee toward the fans and demanded they be ejected from the arena. The security guards subsequently escorted two fans off their courtside seats.
During the post-game press conference, James did not reveal what the fans said but was upset about it. He said:
“There’s a difference between supporting your team and crossing a line with gestures and words, things that I wouldn’t say to a fan and they shouldn’t say to a player.”
Players usually ignore what fans say, and sometimes people take advantage of it. James handled the situation perfectly in this instance by clarifying his boundaries.
