Utah Jazz to Address Fans About Treating Opponents Respectfully

Jazz fans’ already-notorious reputation has taken a hit this postseason, and Utah’s front-office and players will address the faithful prior to Game 3 against the Houston Rockets tonight.

A jumbotron PSA will remind fans to treat opposing players with respect.

The teams says “there’s no room for inappropriate behavior that crosses the line.”

Per the Salt Lake Tribune:

“We don’t think we have great fans, we think we have world-class fans,” team president Steve Starks said Thursday. “… There’s no room for inappropriate behavior that crosses the line. We have guest-service staff, we have cameras. If we find out somebody has crossed the line, we’ll warn them and in some cases remove them from their seats. But that’s such a small percentage of our fanbase or of any fanbase.”

NBA officials have not been in touch with the Jazz regarding [Russell] Westbrook’s remarks. The Jazz, however, plan to bolster their message regarding appropriate fan behavior ahead of Friday’s game in Salt Lake. The team plays a video announcement regarding fan behavior before each game. After Westbrook’s remarks, team officials decided to update that video to include remarks from coach Quin Snyder and some of the team’s players.

“We just ask fans to respect players’ personal spaces,” Starks said. “I saw the video and it was a heated moment. He may have gotten too close. But we have a lot of security there already. You saw the moment [Westbrook] motioned toward the fan. We had multiple people on the scene. We feel like we’re properly staffed and that we can de-escalate any situation that might arise.”

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