Beating the Warriors is one thing. Kicking E-40 out of a playoff game means the Kings are beefing with the whole Bay Area.
Golden 1 Center security guards kicked out the rapper after they alleged he “stood excessively” and refused to comply with warnings. Kings and Warriors security escorted E-40 out during the fourth quarter.
A source close to E-40 says those warnings never happened, and he was kicked out because “security saw a disagreement between a Black man and a white woman and immediately assumed that [E-40] was at fault.”
E-40 explained his side of the story in a statement.
The Vallejo rapper says he simply “addressed one heckler in an assertive but polite manner” before security removed him from the arena. E-40 said he was “absolutely humiliated” by Kings security and asked the team to investigate the “appalling conduct.”
Besides his prolific hip-hop career, E-40 is an investor and entrepreneur, producing his own line of wines and malt liquor. Under his “Goon With the Spoon” label, E-40 sells ice cream, sausages and burritos.
He’s also a high-profile Bay Area sports fan. E-40 was a fixture sitting behind home plate during the San Francisco Giants’ World Series runs and a frequent face courtside at Warriors games. At no point were there incidents with opposing fans until Saturday’s games.
ESPN’s Jalen Rose took to social media to break down the video and concluded that the Kings would likely apologize to E-40 for “mishandling” the situation.
E-40 received support from the Warriors afterward. Injured forward Andre Iguodala followed the rapper out of the stands, Gary Payton II told reporters E-40 was “like an uncle” to him, and Klay Thompson said he’d “always been respectful and considerate of those around him.”
Ultimately it was an ugly look for the Kings in their first home playoff game in 17 years. It was still a great victory for the team but a truly unfortunate decision by Kings security.
The Kings will have to deliver any apology back in San Francisco. E-40 announced he won’t be attending Game 2 on Monday night.
