A Monday night regular-season game in February between the Los Angeles Lakers and Atlanta Hawks usually isn't national news, but things were a bit this time around. During the middle of the fourth quarter of last night's matchup, four-time NBA Champion LeBron James went toe-to-toe with a fan and his significant other. The exchange of words began earlier in the game when a man sitting courtside apparently exchanged a few words with James. Moments later, his significant other, Juliana "Courtside Karen" Carlos, jumped in. Making matters worse, Courtside Karen was not wearing a mask as she berated James during his work hours. Ultimately, security stepped in and escorted the duo out of the arena. However, things didn't end there.
After being escorted out of the arena, Courtside Karen complained to her Instagram followers about the interaction. During her rants, she called James a "b----" and claimed that he was "intimidated" by her. When asked about the incident after the game, the Akron native appeared anything but intimidated. In fact, he was open to the possibility of them not being ejected.
"At the end of the day, I'm happy fans are back in the building," James told reporters during a post-game media session.
"I miss that interaction. I need that interaction; we as players need that interaction. I don't feel like it was warranted to be kicked out."
The interaction between Courtside Karen and James prompted fans to recall other incidents in which fans had been accused of taking things going to far. While attending Oklahoma State, Boston Celtics Guard Marcus Smart got into an altercation with a fan after the spectator allegedly called him a racial slur during a game. More recently, Washington Wizards Guard Russell Westbrook had a back and forth with a fan in Utah who reportedly called him a racial slur. Fans also recalled the time free agent Isaiah Thomas confronted a fan who said something untoward to him while he was shooting free throws.
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For this fan's sake, it's probably best that Savannah James wasn't there to give her two cents.
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