In an odd case of mistaken identity, the brother of Houston Rockets star Chris Paul was nearly ejected from Vivint Smart Home Arena in Salt Lake City during Game 4 of the playoff series against the Utah Jazz.
C.J. Paul was sitting on the baseline closest to Houston’s bench when security guards, believing he was the source of verbal abuse, escorted him from his seat. Chris Paul, who was sitting on the bench at the time, and Rockets Coach Mike D’Antoni both attempted to stop security. After a few moments, the matter was cleared up.
“The ref was crazy,” C.J. Paul told ESPN. “He had the wrong man. It wasn’t me.”
C.J. and referee James Williams share a history that dates to Paul’s playing days at South Carolina Upstate.
“The guy next to me called [Williams] a [expletive], but they thought it was me,” C.J. Paul told USA Today. “The thing is, I know James. He reffed me in college. But [the security guard] comes up to me, and says, ‘Hey, we need to talk to you in the back.’ I said, ‘For what?’ I told them what happened. I don’t talk like that.”
The incident, which fell on Chris Paul’s 33rd birthday, occurred after Utah’s Rudy Gobert was called for offensive goaltending. C.J. Paul could be seen yelling at Williams, who did not make the call. During the dead ball, Williams notified security.
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D’Antoni was still mystified by the incident after the game. “No, not really,” D’Antoni said when asked if he’d gotten any clarity on what happened. “We were all getting a little … anxious, or whatever. The whole game was rough. It was a tough game. You’ve got to put on a helmet and shoulder pads and go out and play, and our guys did.”
Arena security said of the incident that a Rockets fan was warned for use of inappropriate language directed at an official.
When he was asked about it at his postgame news conference, Chris Paul said that no matter what happened, he wasn’t going to allow his brother to be removed from the arena.
“I saw them trying to pull my brother out,” he said. “That’s out. That’s out. There might not be many playoff games I’ve played in, but he’s been at all of them. That’s out.”
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This wasn’t the first time recently that there had been some kind of drama surrounding fan behavior at a Jazz game. Russell Westbrook got into confrontations with Jazz fans both at halftime and the conclusion of Game 6 of Oklahoma City’s season-ending loss to the Jazz here in Salt Lake City, and then had a lot to say about it afterward.
“I don’t confront fans — fans confront me,” Westbrook said after that game. “Here in Utah, man, a lot of disrespectful, vulgar things are said to the players. I think these fans, man, it’s truly disrespectful. Talk about your families, your kids, and it’s just a disrespect to the game. And I think it’s something that needs to be brought up.
“I’m tired of going out and playing and letting fans say what the hell they want to say, I’m not with that. If I was on the street, they wouldn’t just come up to me and say anything crazy, because I don’t play that [expletive]. So I just think it’s disrespectful when they get the chance to do whatever they want to do. Needs to be put to a stop, especially here in Utah.”
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