Video: Marcus Smart shoved a Texas Tech fan

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We still got a long way to go as a country...

I have to say that there needs to be something done about the atmosphere at sporting events in general. Maybe add more security especially at the venues where the fans are so close to the court. I mean even our fans and I've been guilty of doing the "**** (insert coach's name here)" chant in the student section. I don't know why as fans we think that we can say or do whatever we want like these players aren't wired the same way we are and if the wrong thing is said they wouldn't go off just like we would. I mean you don't want to take away the passion the fans show because that's what makes college sports great but we need to change things so stuff like this doesn't happen.
 

Blizzard said:
Seth Greenburg was on sportscenter and said the things players and coaches are called is completely reprehensible. It doesn't make a bit of difference what set him off that kind of reaction is inexcusable. I would think he'll be suspended for several games, at least, or dismissed from the team.
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No he'll get one game max
 

An insult will never justify a physical response. Maybe this fan made a threat, we still don't know what was said.
 

I think the punishment for this will be exceedingly harsh as it seems from all of the commentary this incident is completely unprecedented in college basketball.
 

GuyFawkes said:
not vulgar or the N word, yeah right, he just got mad at him out of everyone right, all for saying good game, and I'm sure he wasn't flipping off the a&m player, just stretching..
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Smart's brother passed away at one point and his mother was very sick. Easily could have said something offensive without it being the N word. Although the N word is what all the reports seem to be suggesting
 


Myke said:
We still got a long way to go as a country...

I have to say that there needs to be something done about the atmosphere at sporting events in general. Maybe add more security especially at the venues where the fans are so close to the court. I mean even our fans and I've been guilty of doing the "**** (insert coach's name here)" chant in the student section. I don't know why as fans we think that we can say or do whatever we want like these players aren't wired the same way we are and if the wrong thing is said they wouldn't go off just like we would. I mean you don't want to take away the passion the fans show because that's what makes college sports great but we need to change things so stuff like this doesn't happen.
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Trash talk happens all over in sports. If all the guy used were words (no matter how inappropriate), I expect the player to show restraint. Doesn't mean I approve of whatever the guy said, but the athletes do need to be able to take it (or certainly at least not respond physically). If I am somewhere outside of sports, and somebody says something horrifically offensive, and I push, shove, or punch them, I'm the only one who has committed a crime.
 

You CANNOT have players physically mixing it up with fans. A clear message must be sent.

You also cannot have your fans (i.e., boosters/representatives of your university) acting like this Orr guy does (an air traffic controller? Good grief).

Smart's punishment should be significant. Depending on what exactly was said and this guy's history of pathetic behavior, Texas Tech should consider something like banning him from games for the rest of the season and then next year letting him come back with a zero-tolerance policy.

Two wrongs don't make a right. It may be appropriate to lay blame on both men.
 

Gopher Warrior said:
You CANNOT have players physically mixing it up with fans. A clear message must be sent.

You also cannot have your fans (i.e., boosters/representatives of your university) acting like this Orr guy does (an air traffic controller? Good grief).

Smart's punishment should be significant. Depending on what exactly was said and this guy's history of pathetic behavior, Texas Tech should consider something like banning him from games for the rest of the season and then next year letting him come back with a zero-tolerance policy.

Two wrongs don't make a right. It may be appropriate to lay blame on both men.
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+1 Two wrongs don't make a right. No matter what the fan said, you can't mix it up with a fan. Sucks to be put in that position, but he was and he needs to make a good choice.
 

I'm not diminishing what -could- have been said to Smart because no one knows but I'm just surprised that folks think that would excuse his behavior. The only incident anyone is saying is similar is when Artest went into the stands. They're going to lay the hammer down hard on this.
 



Pretty clear from Smart's reaction that the fan said something pretty nasty. Still, Smart should be punished. Hopefully, the fan gets something too.

Let's assume for a moment that the fan "went there" and used "the word'. How twisted is this guy, when he uses a word like that against the opposing team's player when the makeup of his own team is almost identical. That's the part I don't get. Isolated, tunnel-vision racism like that which is almost harder to understand. "Hey, as long as he's scoring touchdowns or shooting threes for my team..." It's almost easier to understand complete bigotry than this type of guy.
 

Didn't a UAB player do this once and got a slap on the wrist?
 

BarnBoy said:
Pretty clear from Smart's reaction that the fan said something pretty nasty. Still, Smart should be punished. Hopefully, the fan gets something too.

Let's assume for a moment that the fan "went there" and used "the word'. How twisted is this guy, when he uses a word like that against the opposing team's player when the makeup of his own team is almost identical. That's the part I don't get. Isolated, tunnel-vision racism like that which is almost harder to understand. "Hey, as long as he's scoring touchdowns or shooting threes for my team..." It's almost easier to understand complete bigotry than this type of guy.
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I would say in these types of heated situations, many times people just use words that they know will get the other one upset. It's almost like the word coming from the person saying it has no meaning for them. Kinda like when someone says "you're so gay". People say it because they know the other person probably won't like it, not because they believe that person is homosexual.

I'm not saying any of this is okay by any means, no matter what this idiot's intent was.
 

Blizzard said:
Seth Greenburg was on sportscenter and said the things players and coaches are called is completely reprehensible. It doesn't make a bit of difference what set him off that kind of reaction is inexcusable. I would think he'll be suspended for several games, at least, or dismissed from the team.
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That's right. Fans act like asses all the time, I don't doubt that the TT fan was irritating to Smart but there's NO EXCUSE for shoving a fan who didn't touch you or another player. Your job is to entertain the fans, and assaulting a fan is completely inappropriate regardless of what the fan said. You also have to keep in mind that in recent weeks Smart has grown increasingly emotional and not in a good way as Okie State's losses have started to mount, and TT superfan wasn't there in other games where Smart lost his cool in different ways.
 



Racial slurs from fans has been a problem in European soccer matches.
They have gone to the "empty stadium" punishment. Offending team has to play a home game with zero fans.
That would put an end to it, really quick.
 

Honestly at this point I don't believe what the fan said was beyond the point of normal fan antics. I suspect it was something that Smart hears a lot of places and a lot of times, but not when he's frustrated with how a game is going on the court, he is in the stands, and has the fan right in front of him shouting at him.
 

afurry91 said:
He won't make a racist comment, but he'll flip off an A&M player who makes a nice play. Sure. :rolleyes:

I'm guessing that wasn't the first or last time.
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You're totally right. After watching the "#1 fan video" it's very clear that this Orr guy also is the guy who flipped off A&M in the prior video -- and he looks literally psycho in that one. Smart's not going to get let off the hook for this, but this fan clearly needs a long time out as well. He reminds me of the Alabama tree poisoner (who also happens to live in Texas, IIRC).
 

So the fan said a slur because he flipped off the opposing team? I don't see the connection. Yeah, he's a guy who taunts the opponents and tries to get under their skin - that's what fans are allowed to do. I'm not saying I would do that sort of thing or want people to do that but it's completely within reason for a player to get flipped off and taunted by opposing fans. Players can shout back but starting a physical altercation is unacceptable.
 

GophersInIowa said:
I would say in these types of heated situations, many times people just use words that they know will get the other one upset. It's almost like the word coming from the person saying it has no meaning for them. Kinda like when someone says "you're so gay". People say it because they know the other person probably won't like it, not because they believe that person is homosexual.

I'm not saying any of this is okay by any means, no matter what this idiot's intent was.
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I know what you mean. It's a "game" at that point. The fan (right, wrong or indifferent) thinks it's his job to stoke the fire. Like you say, doesn't mean it's right.
 

WanderingGopher said:
You're totally right. After watching the "#1 fan video" it's very clear that this Orr guy also is the guy who flipped off A&M in the prior video -- and he looks literally psycho in that one. Smart's not going to get let off the hook for this, but this fan clearly needs a long time out as well. He reminds me of the Alabama tree poisoner (who also happens to live in Texas, IIRC).
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Doesn't remind me of the Auburn tree poisoner at all. It was illegal to do that and far beyond just shouting at a guy in the stands. Orr wasn't doing anything illegal and if you're expecting the home crowd to be nice to the visiting team, you've got some odd expectations.
 

Trying to decide if I'm more bothered by the middle aged guy saying something during the game to Smart or the fan who said something while storming the court. Imagine being a black guy from the opposing with thousands of Texans storming the court after you lose. It is a threatening situation that could get ugly in a hurry especially since there was already some anger brewing on both the sides of Smart and TTech fans.

No need to be an ass after the game is over. Both teams are playing hard for the same reason (to win), so don't carry it over after the game and the winner is already decided.
 

GophersInIowa said:
Kinda like when someone says "you're so gay". People say it because they know the other person probably won't like it, not because they believe that person is homosexual.
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Yes, you should say "That's so Emma and Julia" instead.

Knock it off.
 

OSUfan said:
Doesn't remind me of the Auburn tree poisoner at all. It was illegal to do that and far beyond just shouting at a guy in the stands.
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Not saying their actions are identical. Watch the ESPN documentary. They have that same psycho look about them, and also no coincidence that this kind of thing always seems to happen in the south.
 

Pretty interesting reading through some various twitter feeds about this. I think what strikes me is what someone pointed out and that was Smart had his back to this guy when he jumped up. I'm not doubting that the guy said something but that was the play that sealed the game for TT. I don't know what their area sits but it must've been really, really, loud in there. If someone hurled the N word how could Smart have known it was that guy? Usually you can hardly hear the person next to you in a moment like that.
 

OSUfan said:
Honestly at this point I don't believe what the fan said was beyond the point of normal fan antics. I suspect it was something that Smart hears a lot of places and a lot of times, but not when he's frustrated with how a game is going on the court, he is in the stands, and has the fan right in front of him shouting at him.
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This is true. On the previous play, he was fouled and refs didn't call it. That's when it started. TT was up by 2 at that point.
 

It is, quite simply, patently absurd to think this guy used the "N" word. There are white and black fans all around him. It just isn't commonsensical. No...this is another instance of someone carting out race to cover one's own inexcusable behavior. This fan may be a jerk. Who knows? But he probably yelled "you suck" or something along those lines. And Smart, who has had sycophants blowing smoke up his skirt his entire college career, simply had a tantrum.

On another thread, gopherholers are defending the right to chant "bull$h*t" after bad calls. Fans can be uncouth...especially in an emotional and close game. But there's no way this fan said anything that would garner sympathy from me for Marcus Smart's actions. He's a punk.
 

ProfessorBum said:
It is, quite simply, patently absurd to think this guy used the "N" word. There are white and black fans all around him. It just isn't commonsensical. No...this is another instance of someone carting out race to cover one's own inexcusable behavior. This fan may be a jerk. Who knows? But he probably yelled "you suck" or something along those lines. And Smart, who has had sycophants blowing smoke up his skirt his entire college career, simply had a tantrum.

On another thread, gopherholers are defending the right to chant "bull$h*t" after bad calls. Fans can be uncouth...especially in an emotional and close game. But there's no way this fan said anything that would garner sympathy from me for Marcus Smart's actions. He's a punk.
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Not only that, but everyone around him seemed to be astonished by the actions of Smart. If the fan had used the "N" word, some of that attention would have been on him. I could be wrong, but it just seems implausible.
 

PitinoFan said:
Not only that, but everyone around him seemed to be astonished by the actions of Smart. If the fan had used the "N" word, some of that attention would have been on him. I could be wrong, but it just seems implausible.
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I disagree completely. This happened extremely fast. I think in those split seconds other fans would probably point fingers at the opposing player in most situations. After things settled down they may rethink it. But I don't think it is at all unbelievable for people to side on "one of their own". People see and hear what they want to.
 

WanderingGopher said:
Not saying their actions are identical. Watch the ESPN documentary. They have that same psycho look about them, and also no coincidence that this kind of thing always seems to happen in the south.
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I was at the MSU/Gopher game on Halloween in 2009 and Troy Stoudermire dropped a sure TD pass and a Gopher fan behind me yelled, "You dumb N*****!"

My point is that racist people live everywhere.

http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-jBeieVub6yw/UJu3XhiV_kI/AAAAAAAABRI/JnEryNNyb7o/s1600/Capture.PNG
 

GophersInIowa said:
I disagree completely. This happened extremely fast. I think in those split seconds other fans would probably point fingers at the opposing player in most situations. After things settled down they may rethink it. But I don't think it is at all unbelievable for people to side on "one of their own". People see and hear what they want to.
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Meanwhile, the only one in a position to have heard the exchange who has made the accusation is Smart.
 

Suspension should be 3 or 4 games, and the Big 12 should not have to impose it. It should come from the school, but I'm guessing the Oklahoma State administration will wuss out. Anything less than 3 games is a joke.
 

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