Charlotte Hornets star LaMelo Ball is in his fourth season in the NBA, which means he should know how to properly conduct himself with the media. On Saturday, after his team defeated the Milwaukee Bucks 115-114, the young star forgot his media training and used an anti-gay slur during his post-game interview.
According to ESPN, as reporter Shannon Spake asked him about the Hornets’ defense of Bucks superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo in the game’s final minutes, Ball replied, “We loaded up,” followed by a term the league called “offensive and derogatory.” He received a quick response from the NBA, as it punished him with a $100,000 fine. Just a remindeer that he has a $204 million contract with Charlotte.
Social media didn’t agree with the league’s handling of the situation, with many fans criticizing the steep fine.
One user expressed frustration with fine, but also noted how much Ball gets paid, writing on Blue Sky, “yeah 100k is too much, but he makes so much money i feel like it’s just comparable to the amount he does make.”
Another person pointed out that the young star’s immaturity seems to be a problem for him, posting, “Lamelo just need a PR team. He keeps picking the wrong option like a video game question.”
Someone else acknowledged that the fine may just teach him to keep his slurs off camera, writing, “Unfortunately 100k is nothing to these players with the amount of money they already make. He may not say it on camera but he’ll definitely repeat with his homies behind the scenes.”
Proving that the fine obviously didn’t do anything to deter him from making stupid comments, he mocked the punishment on Instagram.
This may have been the last straw for the team, as he delivered an apology on Sunday, after losing 128-114 to the Cleveland Cavaliers.
“Before we get started, I just want to address the comment yesterday,” he said. “I really didn’t mean anything [by it] and don’t want to offend anybody. I’ve got love for everybody, and I don’t discriminate.”
Wow, he really bared his soul.
It does seem like Charlotte is taking things more seriously. Hornets head coach Charles Lee spoke on behalf of the organization, saying Ball’s original comments were “not something that we condone.”
“He and I talked about the seriousness of the situation and how he needs to conduct himself going forward, he understands what’s going to be expected of him,” Lee said. “I look forward to seeing him grow from this moment. We apologize for what happened.”
No matter what you think of the big fine Ball received, shouldn’t we, as fans, expect better from these athletes who—whether they like it or not—are role models? Not using offensive language in an interview is literally the bare minimum of how they should conduct themselves as professionals. And remember, your regular, non-multi-millionaire job wouldn’t allow offensive language in the workplace, so why should the NBA?