Fan incidents with Russell Westbrook and Trae Young mar NBA's playoff action

Unruly fan behavior has overshadowed what was otherwise a fantastic Wednesday of NBA action.

A pair of apparent separate fan incidents involving Washington Wizards guard Russell Westbrook and Atlanta Hawks guard Trae Young have left both NBA players and pundits none too pleased.

Against the Philadelphia 76ers, a fan in the stands at Wells Fargo Center literally added insult to injury for Westbrook.

As the Wizards guard was walking down the tunnel after suffering an ankle injury in Philadelphia, a fan dumped popcorn on the superstar. The act set Westbrook off, and he had to be briefly restrained by Wizards personnel and stadium security.

The fan was ejected moments later, per ESPN. 

The Sixers also announced Thursday that the fan had his season tickets revoked and would be banned from the arena indefinitely, while the team also extended an apology to Westbrook and the Wizards.

Westbrook addressed the incident in his postgame news conference Wednesday, and he didn't hold back.

"To be blatantly honest, man, this s--- is getting out of hand, especially for me," Westbrook said. "Just the amount of disrespect, the amount of just fans just doing whatever the f--- they want to do. It’s just ⁠— it's out of pocket, man. It’s out of pocket, seriously, man. Any other setting, I’m all for the fans enjoying the game and having fun. It’s part of sports. I get it. But there are certain things that cross the line. In any other setting, I know for a fact … a guy wouldn’t come up on the street and pour popcorn on my head, because he knows what would happen."

(Note: Video contains NSFW language)

Westbrook's teammate, Bradley Beal, called the act "disgusting" and revealed his own near-confrontation with a disorderly fan.

Then, at Madison Square Garden against the New York Knicks, a fan appeared to spit toward Young while he was preparing to inbound the ball.

Young didn't seem to notice at the time ⁠— perhaps it didn't hit him ⁠— but he called the act "crazy" as a video of the incident began to circulate around social media.

He also said it was "childish" on Thursday.

Both incidents shined a light on fan interactions that overstep the boundary of rooting against the opposition.

As Westbrook said, "… I have learned to look the other way. But to a certain extent, you can't just keep looking the other way. There has to be some penalties or something to put in place where fans just can't come to the games and do and say as they please."

And the overwhelming majority, including Shannon Sharpe of "Undisputed," agrees with Westbrook. 

But what can be done? Sharpe's co-host, Skip Bayless, offered his thoughts on the matter.

"The first thing that could happen is: On each of the tunnels ⁠— through which the players walk up and back ⁠— you just need to have a security guard positioned at the top, upstairs, on top of the tunnel," Bayless said regarding the Westbrook incident.

As for the Young incident, which happened courtside, Bayless struggled to find an easy solution.

"This is the one that I don't know how to fix," he said. "You're either going to sell courtside, or you're not. You going to put up plexiglass? Are we heading there?"

Charles Barkley had a tongue-in-cheek fix: Let the players and fans settle it mano a mano.

"I think you should be able to go up in the stands and beat the hell out of one person per game," Barkley said on TNT, before amending his solution to exclude players going into the stands.

"… If a fan says something really really rude or throws something on you, you should be able to say ‘Come on down,’ like Chuck Woolery used to say. Bring ‘em right down to half-court and y'all settle it like men."

Despite Barkley's half-joking solution, it isn't unheard of for players to have taken matters into their own hands in the past.

One of the most indelible instances of players going into the stands to confront fans occurred when the Indiana Pacers took on the Detroit Pistons in 2004.

Dubbed the "Malice at The Palace," a total of nine NBA players were suspended for a combined 146 games after a brawl between Pacers players and fans at The Palace of Auburn Hills broke out.

At the center of the brawl was Metta World Peace, then known as Ron Artest. He joined "Undisputed" to give his opinion on Wednesday's incidents.

The pall that fan behavior cast on Wednesday's playoff action is unfortunate.

After having to play the 2020 playoffs without fans in attendance, this year's postseason was feeling more energized with fans in the stands.

Now, rather than celebrating the electric atmosphere at places such as Madison Square Garden, a few bad apples have managed to sully the experience.

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