The fan accused of verbally harassing Jalen Brunson has been banned from sitting courtside for the remainder of the Finals, an NBA spokesperson told The Post.
The league investigated the male fan after he allegedly heckled Brunson with profanities during Game 1 of the NBA Final. Brunson was so upset following the Knicks victory he was held back from approaching the fan by teammate Jose Alvarado and referee Scott Foster.
Now, he doesn’t have to worry about that fan getting too close.
A fan accused of verbally harassing Knicks guard Jalen Brunson on Wednesday has been banned from sitting courtside for the rest of the NBA Finals. Charles Wenzelberg / New York Post
Though the fan could still sit elsewhere in the arena, a league source said he wasn’t expected to attend Friday’s Game 2 in San Antonio.
“The fan was not a season ticket holder, and if he were to attend another game in this series, he would not be permitted to sit in courtside seats,” the league spokesman said.
After carrying the Knicks to victory with a clutch performance in Game 1, Brunson approached Foster to point out the heckling fan. The exchange went viral because Brunson appeared to get further angered by something said by the fan, and social media sleuths tried to implicate a courtside woman as the offending fan.
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As The Post reported Thursday, the league was not investigating the woman. It identified the man as the heckler, investigated, and kicked him out of the front row until next season.
“I didn’t even see what happened,” Josh Hart said Thursday. “I heard something about it. I didn’t really see it. I don’t know. He’s always pretty calm, pretty composed. I’m sure the fans probably said something crazy to kind of get him going. I wish I could answer that a little bit better, but I didn’t see the interaction.”
Brunson wasn’t interested in discussing the exchange.
“I’m all good about talking about that,” Brunson said Thursday when asked if something was said that crossed the line. “All good.”
