A pair of Dallas Mavericks fans have gone viral after their reactions to Kevin Durant approaching them after some heckling on Thursday night.
The man in the viral video has admitted to calling the two-time NBA champion a “b—h,” but it was the woman’s reaction that has become a meme, being left hanging on a high-five.
Luke Brawner said he had called Durant the name because his since-deceased friend, Luke, referred to him as such, because he was had been upset that Durant had left the Golden State Warriors in 2019. Brawner says that he and the woman had gone to the game to honor Luke.
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Phoenix Suns forward Kevin Durant stands on the court during the first half in Game 4 of a first-round NBA basketball playoff series against the Los Angeles Clippers Saturday, April 22, 2023, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)
But Durant wasn’t happy with the jeer, and security threatened to kick them out. But Durant actually convinced security to let them be.
Brawner seemed blindsided that Durant approached them, admittedly not realizing that athletes are humans, too, despite saying it was “just a joke.”
“I don’t want to justify anything that was said,’’ Brawner told KEGL radio in Texas. “But I do want to provide some context. . . . It was just a joke to us, but we forget the humanity of the person on the other end of that joke.”
Kevin Durant, #35 of the Phoenix Suns, moves the ball during the game against the Denver Nuggets on April 6, 2023, at the Ball Arena in Denver, Colorado. (Garrett Ellwood/NBAE via Getty Images)
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“I’m used to seeing this person on highlight reels,’’ Brawner said. “I’m used to seeing this person’s face, and I can yell at the TV all day long, but you sort of forget when you remove the humanity from that person, that your words still really matter.”
Brawner, though, seemed at peace with what he had done.
“Ironically, I do think that the moment did honor my friend,” Brawner said. “Wherever people go after you die, wherever he is out in the ether, he was laughing — hard – and loving it. . . . We had an amazing night. It didn’t ruin our night in any way. But it was wild. I did not imagine so many folks would hear about it.”
Kevin Durant, #35 of the Phoenix Suns, against the Chicago Bulls at United Center on March 3, 2023, in Chicago, Illinois. (Quinn Harris/Getty Images)
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The Mavs came away with a 123-113 victory, and both teams moved to 33-23.
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