Warriors investor banned after incident LeBron James described ‘so uncalled for’

The NBA has banned an investor from attending games and Golden State Warriors team activities for one year for “pushing and directing obscene language toward the Toronto Raptors’ Kyle Lowry”.

Warriors investor Mark Stevens also received a $500,000 fine for his actions during game three of the NBA Finals between the Raptors and the Warriors.

Toronto guard Lowry had fallen into the crowd attempting to retrieve a ball during the Raptors’ 123-109 win at Oracle Arena, at which point the player was pushed before getting back to his feet.

Before the NBA announced the ban and fine, Los Angeles Lakers player LeBron James said on Instagram: “There’s absolutely no place in our BEAUTIFUL game for that AT ALL.

“When you sit courtside you absolutely know what comes with being on the floor and if you don’t know it’s on the back on the ticket itself that states the guidelines.

“But he himself being a fan but more importantly PART-OWNER of the Warriors knew exactly what he was doing which was so uncalled for. He knew the rules more than just the average person sitting watching the game courtside so for that Something needs to be done ASAP!”

James also encouraged fans to imagine the reaction had Lowry responded physically, writing: “Just think to yourself, what if @kyle_lowry7 would have reacted and put his hands back on him. You guys would be going CRAZY!!”

One Twitter user meanwhile suggested that if Lowry walked into Stevens’ place of work and shoved him “he would be arrested” to which James responded: “FACTS!!!”

“Mr Stevens’ behaviour last night did not reflect the high standard that we hope to exemplify as an organisation,” the Warriors said in a release.

“We’re extremely disappointed in his actions and, along with Mr Stevens, offer our sincere apology to Kyle Lowry and the Toronto Raptors organisation for this unfortunate misconduct.”

The Raptors lead the series 2-1 going into game four.