Jersey Ceremony Gone Ugly at Warriors Game
What was meant to be a special night for former Golden State Warriors great Chris Mullin, having his number 17 jersey retired, turned into one of the uglier moments in recent franchise history as owner Joe Lacob was nearly booed off the court during the ceremony.
Mullin had his jersey retired at halftime. That’s when Lacob took to the mic, set to address the crowd and Mullin. He was met by at first a smattering of boos which grew with each second and word. Mullin and former Warrior Rick Barry both tried to calm the crowd to no avail as you can see in the video below.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zLCuJzI_jEc
The booing marred what was supposed to be a very special night for Mullin, who was a part of some great Warriors teams (the Run TMC era featuring Mullin, Tim Hardaway and Mitch Richmond was one of the most exciting teams to watch). But fans voiced their displeasure in a way that many will view as classless and uneducated. Was most of the vitriol a result of the Monta Ellis trade? Of course, he was a fan favorite and the team traded him for an injury-plagued center that won’t suit up this season. I understand the trade and still do but that shouldn’t be the real reason fans should be upset. It just proves that this is going to be a tough, long haul for Lacob to gain back support from the fans.
