An incident in the fourth quarter marred the game between the Sacramento Kings and the Phoenix Suns in the NBA Cup on Wednesday, as a fan was seen arguing with Zach LaVine before being escorted out of the court at Golden 1 Center.
The fan was later identified as Devlin Carter. Many immediately assumed that he got mad because he lost a bet. The Kings lost to the Suns, 112-100.
Carter has explained his side of the story in a video posted on Instagram. He claimed that he was only disgusted by LaVine's performance.
After not one, not two, not three, not four, but after the sixth time Zach LaVine leaves his man wide open for a three, Doug Christie calls a timeout and they come over to the bench. I say, ‘Yo, we don't pay to watch you not play defense.' Then Zach LaVine looks at me and says, ‘Then go home, n****.'”
From there, Carter said he refused to back down.
“I started letting him have it. I was like, ‘No, I pay to be here! You go home! You're getting paid over $40 million, you only got eight points, and we're in the fourth quarter. You didn't show up! Once again, you didn't show up!'”
“All these fans in Sacramento, they deserve better than that. This is one of the dopest and best fanbases, and I'm not even from Sacramento, I'm from Brooklyn.”
LaVine finished with 13 points on 5-of-14 shooting. He also had a game-high six turnovers. He has yet to respond to Carter's video.
The altercation summed up what has been a nightmarish campaign for the Kings, who currently have a 5-14 record, including 3-6 at home.
