Golden State Warriors investor Mark Stevens officially issued a statement regarding his Game 3 altercation with Toronto Raptors point guard Kyle Lowry.
Stevens took full responsibility for his actions, apologized to Lowry and both organizations, and accepted the punishments that were handed down.
Here’s a statement from Mark Stevens on his actions last night: pic.twitter.com/p1msH4Pj8y
— Tim Bontemps (@TimBontemps) June 6, 2019
The billionaire investor shoved Lowry during the fourth quarter of Wednesday night's thrilling battle after the Raptors guard ended up in the front row while trying to pursue a loose ball. Lowry objected to the push and confronted Stevens who responded with expletives and was later escorted out.
Stevens' actions created plenty of buzz around the league that nearly eclipsed the huge win by the Raptors with some clamoring for a lifetime ban. Warriors owners immediately responded by declaring his actions as not reflective of them or the organization and declared his ban for the rest of the NBA Finals. This mild punishment provoked a reaction from several fans and players, particularly the Los Angeles Lakers' LeBron James who has been very vocal about it and even got in touch with Lowry himself.
Ok cool but still ain’t enough! They did exactly what they had to do. Get in front of it before anyone else and plus there’s only 4 games left(2 max in GS).
— LeBron James (@KingJames) June 6, 2019
The NBA then issued out their own verdict by fining the minority owner $500,000 and a year suspension – with the latter still being seen as light and would have been different had he been an ordinary fan. There are, however, some rumors that Stevens might lose his stake on the Warriors.
Either way, expect this incident and the penalties meted out to spark more discussions in the next few days.
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