The Philadelphia 76ers fans who sparked a viral moment by heckling Washington Wizards guard Isaiah Thomas and prompted him to enter the stands on Saturday night have been banned from the Wells Fargo Center for 12 months, according to Keith Pompey of the Philadelphia Inquirer:
The 2 fans who yelled obscenities at and made obscene gestures to #Wizards PG Isaiah Thomas in Sunday’s game have been banned from the Wells Fargo Center for 12 months. The season-ticket holder who gave them the seats for game had the tickets revoked, according #Sixers spokesman.
— Keith Pompey (@PompeyOnSixers) December 22, 2019
Thomas was ejected from the game after confronting the fans in the stands. A video obtained by The Athletic surfaced on Sunday, in which Thomas can clearly be heard asking the fans not to curse at him:
“Where’s the Wendy’s Frosty?”
“Don’t do that, bro. You’re a fan.”@TheAthleticNBA has obtained fan video of Isaiah Thomas’ interaction with the two Philadelphia fans.
On Thomas & the incident with commentary from surrounding fans, as well as the video: https://t.co/XG78Dkfz54 pic.twitter.com/osEOWsWvv2
— Fred Katz (@FredKatz) December 22, 2019
The veteran point guard stated that the NBA would back his case due to the video (via Katz). Warning: NSFW language ahead.
Thomas strolled toward two fans seated behind the opposing basket during a timeout with 2:53 remaining in a game the Wizards lost 125-108. He had just missed the first of two free throws, then made the second in a game the 76ers led at the time by double digits. Had he clanked both freebies, the fans in attendance would have received Wendy’s Frosty desserts. And that’s when Thomas said the issue began.
“When I missed the first free throw and made the second, I’m running back and the fan has both of his middle fingers up and said, ‘Fu*k you, bi*h!’ three times,” Thomas said. “So then the timeout goes and I go in the stands to confront him. I say, ‘Don’t be disrespectful.’ I’m a man before anything and ‘be a fan.’ And his response was, ‘I’m sorry. I just wanted a Frosty.’”
The two fans also admitted to using vulgar language and inappropriate gestures, according to Katz:
Just to add to @PompeyOnSixers’ report: A 76ers spokesperson said the two ejected fans confirmed to security they used inappropriate gestures and language toward players last night, which is a violation of arena policy. https://t.co/SoAd9QwFho
— Fred Katz (@FredKatz) December 22, 2019
Although the league has yet to make a decision regarding Thomas' ejection, the Sixers clearly are getting ahead of the matter by banning both of the fans in question.
The NBA has had a number of issues with fan-player interactions in the past, so it makes sense that the Sixers are being more proactive in resolving this particular case.
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