UPDATE (2/2/2021 4:45pm ET): “Courtside Karen” is apologizing. The woman, 25-year-old Juliana Carlos, has issued a written apology via her Instagram. “To say things escalated quickly at yesterday’s game is an understatement, and I want to apologize for losing my cool and removing my mask in the heat of the moment. My husband is a huge sports fan and we’re passionate people, and let’s be real; sports wouldn’t be sports without a little trash-talking.”
“What should have been quick back-and-forth between two adults got out of hand and my natural instinct to stand up for the man I love kicked in. Did I get defensive when that happened? Yes. Did I use offensive language when I could have taken the higher road? yes. And for these things, I take full responsibility,” she added.
ORIGINAL: LeBron James is used to being heckled on the basketball court, but one woman took it too far during the Lakers’ Feb. 1 game against the Atlanta Hawks. The woman, who is now being dubbed “Courtside Karen,” would not stop mocking LeBron from her court side seats in Atlanta. Eventually, security intervened and kicked her out of the game.
The woman, who noticeably had her mask pulled down, and her husband got into it with LeBron during the game’s fourth quarter, which led to their ejection from the arena. The interaction actually began as a back and forth between LeBron and the husband, and eventually, the woman jumped in. After the game, LeBron poked fun at the situation on Twitter. “Courtside Karen was MAD MAD!!!!” he wrote, with a bunch of crying laughing emojis.
However, overall, he didn’t seem too bothered by the situation. “I don’t feel like it was warranted to be kicked out,” he admitted in a post-game press conference. “There was a back and forth between grown men and we said our piece — he said his piece, I said my piece. Then someone else jumped into it and said their piece. But I don’t think they should’ve been kicked out. They might’ve had a couple of drinks and they might’ve kept it going and the game wouldn’t have been about the game anymore, so the referees did what they had to do.”
Courtside Karen was MAD MAD!! 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣
— LeBron James (@KingJames) February 2, 2021
Meanwhile, the woman, who’s been identified as Juliana Carlos by ESPN, addressed the drama on her Instagram Story afterward. “[My husband] has been a Hawks fan forever,” she explained, per ESPN. “He’s been watching the games for 10 years. Whatever, he has this issue with LeBron. I don’t have an issue with LeBron. I don’t give a f*** about LeBron. All of the sudden, LeBron says something to my husband, and I see this and i stand up. And I go, ‘Don’t f***ing talk to my husband.’ And he looks at me and goes, ‘Sit the f*** down, b****.’ And I go, ‘Don’t f***ing call me a b****. You sit the f*** down. Get the f*** out of here.'” Audio of the fight has not been released to confirm whether or not this is what happened.
LeBron, any truth to Courtside Karen's claims?pic.twitter.com/Z8dcbequnl
— WG (@GuoBlue) February 2, 2021
In addition to tweeting about “Courtside Karen,” LeBron also commented laughing emojis on SportsCenter’s video of the situation. Drake also weighed in, commenting, “She off that season ticket holders Mojito.” The Lakers wound up winning the game, beating the Hawks 107-99.