Chicago Bulls forward Joakim Noah has been fined $50,000 for using a derogatory and offensive term from the bench during the first quarter of the Bulls’ 96-85 loss to the Miami Heat last night in Game 3 of the Eastern Conference Finals.
Earlier in the day, Noah apologized again as teammates rallied to his defense.
"I just want to apologize," Noah said after a team film session at their local hotel. "I had just picked up my second foul. I was frustrated. He said something that was disrespectful toward me and I lost my cool.
"People who know me know I'm an open-minded guy. I'm not here to hurt anybody's feelings. I'm just here to help win a basketball game."
Noah spoke with league officials early Monday morning.
"Sometimes fans say things that are overboard," Noah said. "But it's on us not to react. If you react, they win. And I did. It was a bad decision on my part. And I'm going to face some pretty severe consequences."
Several teammates came to Noah's defense and said the fan directed a slur regarding Noah's mother.
"What Jo said is something out of frustration -- he has to do a better job of controlling his emotion," Bulls forward Luol Deng said. "But that fan should have been out of the game. He should have been thrown out way before. He just kept going at him, and in an emotional game like that, and things not going Jo's way, it's just human nature to react. I know Jo and I know he didn't mean what he said at all.
"At the same time, there are times when a fan like that -- honestly, I feel like jumping in the crowd and hitting him. We're humans. And the camera is not on that fan at all. I know Jo apologized and everything, but people have to see it the other way, too. Everyone says things they don't mean. He let the emotion get the better of him. But honestly, with a game like that, hearing that fan -- I wanted to do something about it, too. Unfortunately for Jo, he has to pay the price."
Bulls big man Taj Gibson said the abusive fan targeted Noah relentlessly.
"I was able to hear it, but I can't basically say what they were saying," Gibson said. "It was really over the line. It was going on for the entire time Joakim walked back to our bench until he sat down, and they kept getting on him the whole time. At first, he looked, Joakim looked to see who was saying it, and the guy just kept going. I know the crowd -- the crowd looked at the guy, too, like come on, leave him alone, it's over.
"He was really loud. He was a big guy, too. He was intoxicated. When I saw him, I was just surprised, because he kept going and going. Normally a fan may say a couple things and sit down, but he just kept going at Joakim. And it was Joakim the entire time. Even when I was sitting on the bench with Joakim, even when the plays were off, he was still going. Basically the whole game."
Noah knows he didn't handle it well.
"It's a big game," Noah said. "I got frustrated and let my emotions get the best of me."
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1 comment:
Wow! Some sensitivity training would have been cheaper and much more beneficial.
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