KOREAN Basketball League (KBL) fans were left dismayed by the league's response to an in-game incident involving Anyang KGC's Rhenz Abando and Goyang Sono's Chinanu Onuaku.
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Fans staged a protest in front of the league's headquarters on Tuesday morning in Seoul due to how Onuaku's mid-air collision with Abando led to a mere 3 million won fine for Onuaku and stern warnings for the match officials.
The Gilas Pilipinas high-flyer suffered multiple spinal fractures and a concussion due to the horror fall.
READ: KBL import fined 3 million won for 'dangerous collision' with Abando
Korean sports outlet Jumpball Korea's report bared that the reason behind the protest was to "condemn [the] KBL's discipline and strengthen player protection measures against unexpected situations that may occur during the game."
Roughly 70 KBL fans participated in the demonstration which featured a truck bearing an LED screen with multiple messages directed at the league.
Such sentiments, all written in Korean, lamented the lack of an apology from Onuaku and his squad Goyang Sono, an alleged 'bias' in the league's disciplinary judgments, inexperience on the part of match officials, and 'half-baked' game management.
Moreover, the unnamed leader of the protest aired their grievances in a phone interview with Jumpball Korea.
“It was clearly a deliberate play, but Onuaku is not even apologizing to (Rhenz Abando). KBL gave a weak discipline [and] shame to say that it was soft. As a result, fans gathered and held a truck demonstration.
"In fact, I don't think the league operation is neat overall this season [...] It's also the reason why not only (Abando's team Anyang KGC) but also other team fans participated," the lead protester said.
Abando, who reportedly continues to struggle moving on his own days after the bad fall, is set to miss roughly four to five weeks of action as he recovers from a series of head, wrist, and spine injuries.
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