Startribune Kevin Garnett: Timberwolves star was ejected in the third quarter Sunday and fined $5,000 Monday.
Kevin Garnett's decision to throw the basketball into the stands Sunday cost him $5,000. But what was the price paid by the man hit by the ball?
Kelly Tempesta is the season ticket holder for the two seats that were occupied Sunday by the man who was struck in the face by the ball and the man's 7-year-old daughter. Tempesta gave his friend tickets to the game, as he had on several past occasions.
According to Tempesta, the man might have been hurt more by the reaction to the incident than by the ball itself.
Garnett was fined but not suspended and will be available to play tonight against the Bulls in Chicago.
The fan? He had another difficult day.
"He didn't go to work today," said Tempesta, who was in contact with his friend moments after the incident. "He wants it to be over. He is a victim, not a villain."
The incident occurred moments after Garnett was called for a charge in the third quarter of the Wolves' victory over Memphis. Admittedly frustrated, Garnett lobbed the ball overhand into the crowd, where it hit the fan on the right side of his face.
What happened next has been replayed and the subject of much discussion.
Garnett was ejected, then went to the fan to apologize before leaving the court. It appeared the man might have been upset, but Tempesta said his friend told him he was simply dazed and momentarily confused.
The man was wheeled out of the Target Center bowl on a gurney at the insistence of the Timberwolves and not at his request, Tempesta said. Boos followed him into the tunnel, and Tempesta said his friend said that might have been the hardest thing to take.
According to Tempesta, the man bears no grudge toward Garnett or the organization, plans no legal action and simply wants to put the incident behind him. Thus, Tempesta said, his friend was not interested in talking about the situation himself.
"He was not mad for a second at [Garnett]," Tempesta said. "He's mad at anybody who portrayed it that way. ... He's embarrassed about the whole thing. The only thing he's angry with is how the crowd reacted to him."
Stu Jackson, the NBA's senior vice president/basketball operations, announced the fine Monday. Garnett, as usual, did not talk to reporters after practice, but the Timberwolves released this statement from him:
"I'd like to apologize once again to the fan and his family involved in [Sunday's] incident at Target Center. It was never my intention to injure anyone. I have the deepest respect for the fans of the NBA and the Minnesota Timberwolves."
