GOLDEN State Warriors coach Steve Kerr dad-jokingly dropped rhymes at his recent session with the media, perhaps in anticipation of a likely courtside showdown between him and Toronto Raptors superfan Drake.
Referencing a line from Drake's monster smash, "Hotline Bling," from four years ago, Kerr is clearly keeping things light for now, three days ahead of the 2019 NBA Finals between the Warriors and Raptors.
Besides, he'd rather worry about how to stop the lethal do-it-all stylings of Raptors superstar Kawhi Leonard more than allow himself to get distracted by the Canadian hip-hop superstar's sideline clowning the way Bucks coach Mike Budenholzer did recently.
Which probably explains this photo of a dinner he recently had with Gregg Popovich, his and Leonard's former coach with the Spurs. Could Kerr be asking his USA Basketball boss for a few Kawhi-stopping tricks to employ in the upcoming series?
Still, it will be quite interesting to see what Drake, the walking meme, has up in his sleeve as his beloved Raptors host Game 1 on Friday. Champagne Papi, after all, has certainly been making the most out of his ringside seat to become an entertaining, albeit minor, talking point in these Playoffs.
The same can't be said, though, about these notorious basketball fans, whose wild antics put Drake's courtside trolling to shame.
John Green (2004)
We start off strong with a man who was partly responsible for arguably the “worst night in NBA history.” Green’s actions are proof that it’s never a good idea for fans to throw things on the court—in his case, a plastic cup of Diet Coke at Indiana Pacers player Ron Artest. The Malice at the Palace resulted in the suspension of nine players for a total of 146 games (and $11 M in salaries lost), lifetime bans from Detroit Pistons home games for several other fans, and most importantly, major changes in the league and sport. Years later, it was revealed that Artest became friends with Green.
Coin-throwing Ginebra fans (2015)
The biggest PBA die-hards usually don’t deserve the bad rep, except for that one time when some kabarangays allegedly harassed opposing players outside the arena after a controversial loss by their team. A number of Ginebra faithful who stayed in the premises reportedly booed and threw coins at then-GlobalPort Batang Pier player Jay Washington’s car. Gin Kings player Joe Devance shortly took to Twitter to appease the situation and defend their rivals.
Peter Aguilar (2018)
The father of PBA and national team player Japeth Aguilar should have been one of the last people to be involved in the ugly brawl in 2018 between Gilas Pilipinas and Australia that spilled into the stands. Instead, the former pro cager was seen throwing a chair at Australian player Nathan Sobey, which left a sour taste in everyone’s mouths. Japeth immediately issued an apology online, but not before Basketball Australia CEO Anthony Moore called the incident “unacceptable.”
Shane Keisel (2019)
Triple-double machine Russell Westbrook earlier this year was caught on cam losing his cool at a couple who riled him up from the stands. Unbeknownst to many, the couple he "threatened to f*ck up" had hurled racial taunts at him. Now, disturbing behavior is nothing new to a notorious segment of the Jazz's rabid fanbase. This is the same group of devotees—so-called the "Most Disgusting in the NBA" according to Bleacher Report—who once mocked Derek Fisher by chanting “cancer” (referring to his daughter's condition at the time) during the game. Jazz owner in a pre-game address banned Keisel for life from Jazz games following “excessive and derogatory verbal abuse.”
PBA Spider-Man (2019)
We all know the story: A man dressed as the friendly neighborhood superhero swung his way into the court during a PBA Finals game between the San Miguel Beermen and Magnolia Hotshots recently. The costumed nuisance, who was later identified as Paolo Felizarta, inadvertently hit June Mar Fajardo before his apprehension. PBA Spidey later claimed he only did such thing to spread love this election season.
Get more of the latest sports news & updates on SPIN.ph
NOTICE ON UNAUTHORIZED AND UNLAWFUL USE, PUBLICATION, AND/OR DISSEMINATION OF SPIN.PH CONTENT: Please be notified that any unauthorized and unlawful use, publication, and/or dissemination of Spin.ph’s content and/or materials is a direct violation of its legal and exclusive rights to the same, and shall be subject to appropriate legal action/s.
