The Philadelphia 76ers fan who was ejected on Wednesday night for dumping popcorn on Washington Wizards star Russell Westbrook won't be returning to the Wells Fargo Center anytime soon.
The team announced an indefinite ban for the unidentified fan in a statement on Thursday, saying "there is no place" for that kind of disrespectful behavior "in our sport or arena." Philadelphia also revoked the unruly fan's season ticket membership.
"I didn't like [the incident]. I didn't like it all," Sixers forward Tobias Harris told the Tiki and Tierney show on Thursday. "I think myself and the whole team, we all just said there's no place for that. As a player, boos are fine. Boos and cheers and screams, those are all fine, those are part of it. We understand that. We know as players, when we come into an arena and are playing, those are that team's fans. They want their team to win. If their team's not winning, they're going to be upset. But, to take it to that level, it's disrespectful and there's no place in our sport for that.
"With that being said, obviously the Sixers organization came out today and got on top of it, which is important. We don't want something like that, going forward, to ever happen again. We understand that fans are back in the arena, and there's excitement. But there's a boundary line that shouldn't be crossed. And that was this moment yesterday, that was the moment at the Garden with [Atlanta Hawks star] Trae Young as well. Players, we come into the arena and play this game. We love this game. We show respect... Don't cross that boundary line."
The incident occurred during the fourth quarter of Washington's Game 2 loss to Philadelphia, while an injured Westbrook was limping toward the tunnel to receive medical attention. When the fan's popcorn landed on Westbrook, the nine-time All-Star became enraged, and Wizards staff members and arena security guards were forced to hold him back.
Westbrook isn't exactly a beloved player across the country. Although he's a triple-double machine -- he became the NBA's all-time leader this season -- his style of play tends to rub some fans the wrong way, and he's developed a reputation as a stat-padder.
Fair or foul, Harris knows the old adage: fans don't boo nobodies.
"[He gets disrespected] because he's good. He's a good player," Harris said. "And I think he understands that as well, and he knows that he riles up the crowd. He's one of those players who's aggressive, just in his approach as a player, but his personality as well. And I think that fuels him as who he is. And I think a lot of people don't like to see that, as somebody who's cheering for the other team..."
The top-seeded Sixers, which own a 2-0 series lead over the Wizards, will play Game 3 on Saturday night in Washington, D.C., with tipoff scheduled for 7:00 p.m. ET.
The entire conversation between Harris and Tiki and Tierney can be accessed in the audio player above.
You can follow the Tiki and Tierney Show on Twitter @TikiAndTierney and Tom Hanslin @TomHanslin.