Bulls Center Joakim Noah to Fan: "F*ck you, Faggot!" (Video)

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Homophobic douchebag, Joakim Noah

I don't pretend to know much about sports, but having grown up sharing a room with two jock brothers, I do know how deeply ingrained homophobia is in the sports world. The most recent example of this was when Kobe Bryant called a referee a faggot during a Lakers game last month, earning him a $100,000 fine.

In the weeks since, Phoenix Suns president and CEO Rick Welts came out with the full support of NBA Commissioner David Stern, former NBA star Charles Barkley has continued to speak out for tolerance in professional sports and several pro athletes have appeared in videos for the It Gets Better Campaign. That's why what happened last night at a Chicago Bulls game is such a wake up call.

CBS Sports reports:

The exchange occurred after Noah was whistled for his second foul with more than six minutes remaining in the first quarter. Noah was whistled for an over the back call after attempting to tap in a Carlos Boozer miss. Noah came from behind Heat forward LeBron James to tap the ball near the cylinder and made contact with his body. After briefly arguing the call, Noah headed straight for the Bulls bench and began barking at someone seated behind him and to his right.

Noah then appeared to yell a string of profanities and finished with what appears to be the exact phrase that Bryant was fined for using. The only difference: Noah was not addressing one of the officials.

The Associated Press reported after Game 3 that Noah "is acknowledging saying 'something' toward a fan" and that the NBA "declined immediate comment" on the incident.  "I got caught up," Noah said. "I don't mean no disrespect to anybody."

Immediately after the incident, NBA analysts and media members took to Twitter to predict that Noah would be fined by the NBA league office. "Because the NBA fined Kobe, you think they'll have to fine Noah," CNBC's Darren Rovell tweeted. "But it's really the luck of the draw whether you're caught on TV."

"No question he said exactly what Kobe said," SI.com's Zach Lowe added. "Get that $100k ready, Joakim."

Well, it's a good thing he "didn't mean no disrespect to nobody" or I'd be really offended. What an asshole. Watch the video below and judge for yourself.

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Kobe Bryant Fined $100K for Calling Ref a F***ing Faggot. (Audio)

Image via WikipediaNBA star Kobe Bryant has been fined $100,000 for calling a referee a fucking faggot after being called on a technical foul. ESPN reports.

Los Angeles Lakers star Kobe Bryant was fined $100,000 by the NBA on Wednesday for a homophobic slur that commissioner David Stern called "offensive and inexcusable."

After receiving a technical foul during Tuesday's game against the San Antonio Spurs, Bryant stormed to the bench, hit his seat before sitting down, threw a towel and then yelled "Bennie!" toward referee Bernie Adams. Bryant then leaned back and muttered a gay slur.

The episode was caught on camera on TNT's national telecast, prompting announcer Steve Kerr to say: "You might wanna take the cameras off of him right now, for the children watching from home."

Bryant issued a statement Wednesday afternoon.
"What I said last night should not be taken literally," he said. "My actions were out of frustration during the heat of the game, period. The words expressed do NOT reflect my feelings towards the gay and lesbian communities and were NOT meant to offend anyone."

As evidenced by the following audio clip, Kobe's only sorry he got caught. He chalks up his outburst to the culture of homophobia in pro sports and the heat of the moment. What an asshole.

On the other hand, the fact that the NBA is taking a stand against homophobia is encouraging.

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