Schuster: Noah Expects 'Pretty Severe Consequences' For Gay Slur
Updated on May 23, 2011 at 4:27 p.m.
By David Schuster--
MIAMI (WSCR) For the second time in less then 12 hours, Joakim Noah apologized for his actions from Sunday night. TV cameras and microphones picked up Noah hurling a gay slur towards a fan in the first quarter.
"He said something disrespectful towards me and I lost my cool and I apologize for that," Noah said. "People who know me know that I'm an open minded guy and I'm not here to hurt anybody's feelings. Sometimes fans say things that are a little bit overboard but it's on us not to react. If you react they win and I did. It was a bad decision on my part and I will face some some pretty severe consequences."
On Monday, the league fined Noah $50,000 for the use of the anti-gay slur.
Luol Deng was quick to rush to his teammates defense, "Joe should have known better but that fan should have been kicked out of the arena. Sometimes it's just human nature to react and I know Joe didn't mean anything. There are times when a fan acts like that and I feel like jumping in the crowd and hitting him. We're only human and the camera isn't on that fan at all. Everyone says things they don't mean and Joe let the emotion get the better of him. Unfortunately Joe will have to pay the price."
So not only do the Bulls have to contend with a Miami team that is playing suffocating defense, they now have been hit with back-to-back controversies. First, it was an article in a national magazine that quoted Derrick Rose as saying that he thinks there is a performance-enhancing drug in the NBA (he since has said he was misquoted) and now the Noah incident. Tom Thibodeau opted not to have a practice on Monday instead giving his team a day of rest following a lengthy film session.
The Bulls haven't lost three games in a row all season, but if they lose Tuesday night not only will it be a first, but it would put them on the verge of elimination. However, a win evens the series at two games apiece with the Bulls regaining home-court advantage. So needless to say that Game 4 is critical.
