The situation between Oklahoma City Thunder guard Russell Westbrook and one Utah Jazz fan turned ugly on Monday night, and it’s not cooling off. After Westbrook was caught on camera going back-and-forth with a fan (whose comments were not heard), it sent the internet into a spiral.
Westbrook was shown on video telling the fan “I’ll f**k you up, you and your wife,” after something was said to him. Multiple teammates came to the defense of the Thunder star and some of the comments made by the man and reportedly his wife as well came to light, creating an even more tense situation.
Now, it seems the fan, whose name is Shane Keisel is planning to file a lawsuit against Westbrook for the incident, as Felicia Martinez of KSL TV reported.
“Keisel said there were no racial remarks made from him or anyone around him. He said he’s filing a lawsuit against Russell Westbrook, and he’s has been advised to shut down his social media accounts.”
Russell Westbrook Details Comments From Shane Keisel
Westbrook addressed the situation after the game in a video which was revealed by ESPN’s Tim MacMahon. Westbrook states that the fan told him to “get down on your knees like you’re used to.
*VIDEO MAY BE CONSIDERED NSFW
Russell Westbrook says the comment from the Jazz fan that set him off was: “Get down on your knees like you’re used to.”
Andy Larsen of The Salt Lake Tribune released the full statement from Westbrook on the interaction with the fan. Here’s a piece of what the Thunder guard had to say on the situation:
“Obviously, everybody’s talking about the same video. The realization of it is, how it started was, a young man and his wife in the stands told me “to get down on my knees like you used to.” To me, that’s just completely disrespectful, to me, I think it’s racial, and I think it’s inappropriate in the sense that there’s no protection or the players. I think there are a lot of great fans that like to come to the game and enjoy the game. And then there are people that come to the game to say disrespectful things about me, my family.” Westbrook stated.
He proceeded to say that “throughout the whole game, throughout since I’ve been here, especially in Utah, every time I come here there’s a lot of disrespectful things that’s said.”
Fan Addresses Incident After Game
As Jeremiah Jensen of KSL 5 TV revealed, Keisel stated that he did not curse at Westbrook and that he thought they were “having fun initially.” He proceeded to say Westbrook was “just a classless dude.”
Shane Keisel, the Jazz fan who was involved in a verbal altercation with Russell Westbrook during the Jazz loss to the Thunder, explains his side of what happened. @KSL5TV @kslsports #nba
On Tuesday, the Jazz issued a statement which cited that Keisel has been banned from the arena and all events, even beyond basketball games.
Statement from the Utah Jazz:
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Shane Keisel Plans to File Lawsuit Against Russell Westbrook (Report)