Last night during the Celtics/Jazz game, a fan sitting courtside assaulted Marcus Smart as he was inbounding the ball:

Kick that fan out of the Garden for life! Celtics fans are abusing their own players now? If the Sixth Man started smacking Tyrese Maxey it’d be leading ESPN. Some guy pours popcorn on Russell Westbrook and Greeny is asking for the fan to be sent to Guantanamo for a waterboarding.

This is despicable behavior. Players deserve the right to play the game they love in a safe environment. Heckling is one thing, racial slurs are what Boston fans call a Tuesday at Fenway, but physical assault? Garden security is asleep at the wheel. Worse defense than the Phillies. Whoever that kid’s father is should be locked up until, at the very least, the Celtics are eliminated from the playoffs.

Credit to Marcus Smart for putting a brave face on and laughing it off. It can’t be easy to be on the court when in the back of your mind you could be assaulted at any moment. We were so close to a Monica Seles situation.

This Deuce kid sounds like a real piece of work:

Kinkead: yes, this is satire