(Reuters) The NBA said it would review the incident involving Oklahoma City Thunder star guard Russell Westbrook, who shoved a fan on the court moments after the Nuggets’ buzzer-beating victory in Denver on Thursday night.
With the Nuggets and their fans celebrating Gary Harris’ winning 3-pointer at the Pepsi Center, a man walked onto the court and screamed in Westbrook’s face.
Video showed Westbrook walking off the court of the 127-124 loss when the fan got in front of him. Westbrook then pushed the man in the shoulder with his left hand. A referee and an arena employee intervened and motioned for the fan to leave the court.
“Of course. You gotta be able to protect the players, man,” Westbrook said after the game when asked whether he felt that shoving the fan was the only way for him to protect himself. “The fans are obviously there to enjoy the game, but they can’t come onto the floor. That’s totally unacceptable.
“They’ll look at it and figure out what’s the best way to deal with it, but to me, that’s just totally unacceptable.”
Westbrook had 21 assists — one shy of his career high — to go with 20 points and nine rebounds against the Nuggets.
