INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Las Vegas Aces star A'ja Wilson had heard and seen enough from one Indiana Fever fan Tuesday night. So midway through the fourth quarter, the four-time league MVP tried to express her thoughts.
Wilson stepped toward the fan, pointing and shouting at him after she said he had done the same to her. She was called for a technical foul, the fan was escorted out of the arena and after Indiana's 99-89 season-saving victory, Wilson explained
what happened with 4:10 to play.
“If I'm just walking because I got the foul and I'm just chilling, and if I see a man coming at me, taking steps toward me, pointing at me, I don't give a damn what you said. I don't give a damn how you said it, the tone, that is unacceptable," Wilson explained. “You don't step towards me, you never point at me, that's unacceptable. I'm not going to put up with that (expletive) at all, excuse my French and God bless. But that is unacceptable.”
The fracas began when Fever guard Sophie Cunningham was called for a foul on Wilson. As Cunningham started to get up, replays showed one man seated behind the basket pointing in Wilson's direction while taking a step toward the court.
Wilson then walked toward the man, pointing at him. Two teammates, an assistant coach and security personnel then separated everyone involved. Aces coach Becky Hammon said she was told Wilson was given the technical for stepping off the court.
While Wilson said she apologized to her team for getting the technical, Hammon defended her star player.
"I didn’t exactly see what happened, I kind of saw the aftermath,” Hammon said. “I’ve never seen A’ja Wilson go like that so whatever was done I can tell you she felt very disrespected in that moment. I’ve never seen her really react like that ever, so whatever it was, it doesn’t have any place, I don’t think in an arena.”
It's also not the first time the Aces have had with an issue with Fever fans this season. The last time Las Vegas visited Gainbridge Fieldhouse, Aces guard Jackie Young, an Indiana prep star, said another man on the sideline was chirping at her all night and finally said something that stepped over the line.
The decisive Game 3 will be played Thursday in Las Vegas, just like last season’s WNBA semifinals. The Aces defeated the Fever 3-2 en route to winning their third league title in four years.
Both men were escorted out and later returned to their seats. In both cases, Fever officials issued a statement saying they did not violate the fan code of conduct policy. The team declined any additional comment. But that explanation didn't sit well with Wilson.
“How did he get back in the game? Because they said he didn't do anything. Of course he didn't, and that's fine,” Wilson said. "You don't know me, at all, so to come and step towards me and point at me and say anything, I'll turn around and tell you. So, yeah, I apologized to the team for that (technical). You don't have to like me, love me, you can hate me with all of your heart, but you don't know me. But I guarantee you, you will respect me.”
Hammon put it another way.
“There's rules and procedures, I think there's a certain etiquette both players and fans need to abide by, but clearly there's some things that get the lines crossed and it seems to happen here,” Hammon said. “Like I said, I don't, I can't speak to specifically what was said or what was done, but I can speak to the character of our players and the stuff they deal with and the disrespect whether it's a word or an action, a gesture, it should be addressed appropriately. It's not my job, it's the job of this arena so I assume they're following protocol.”
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