A rabbi claims that the Utah Jazz told him to put down his sign after Dallas Mavericks star Kyrie Irving complained about it to stadium staff.
Rabbi Avremi Zippel, a lifelong Jazz fan, brought a sign saying, “I’m a Jew, and I’m Proud” to Monday night’s game between the Jazz and the visiting Dallas Mavericks. Zippel brought the sign, it is believed because Mavericks star Kyrie Irving promoted an antisemitic film on his then-Twitter feed in November of 2022 when he was a member of the Brooklyn Nets.
Update:
Kyrie saw the signs. At the 9:40 mark of the first quarter, he commented “no need to bring that to a game.”
At the next timeout he went to Mavs security.
Jazz officials came over and CHECKED OUR TICKETS.
We were told to put the signs away.
Weak sauce from so many… https://t.co/AzoDVczF8k
— Avremi Zippel (@UtahRabbi) January 2, 2024
“Alarming, offensive, and hurt on a very profound level,” Rabbi Avremi Zippel said of Irving’s past comments about Judaism.
Zippel claims Irving noticed the sign early in the game and said, “No need to bring that to a game.” The rabbi claims that shortly after Irving said this, Jazz security approached him and demanded he put the sign down and show his tickets.
“Others eluded to the fact that Irving had gone to the bench, talked to Dallas security who had brought the matter to Jazz security, and that’s why the signs were coming down,” Zippel said.
Kyrie Irving #2 of the Dallas Mavericks looks on during the second half against the Memphis Grizzlies at FedExForum on March 20, 2023, in Memphis, Tennessee. (Justin Ford/Getty Images)
The rabbi claims that he received conflicting reports about the reasoning for why the signs were taken down. The Jazz issued a statement after the game, claiming that the sign was not disallowed because of its content but because it had caused a “disruption.”
“The Utah Jazz Code of Conduct is in place so that games can be played without distraction and disruption,” the statement read. “No matter where someone is in the arena, if a sign becomes distracting or sparks an interaction with a player, we will ask them to remove it.
“During an out-of-bounds play in the first quarter of yesterday’s Jazz game against the Dallas Mavericks, there was a group sitting courtside whose signs sparked an interaction with a player that created a distraction and interfered with play of game. As the next step in standard security protocol, the fans were asked to take down their signs. The part-time employee who told the fans it was the content of the sign that was the problem was incorrect.
“The issue was the disruptive interaction caused by usage of the signs, not the content of the signs.”
That explanation didn’t sit well with Rabbi Zippel, who blasted the Jazz on X for siding with Irving.
“Sadly, instead of just quietly chalking this up to a misunderstanding and letting this remain a small blip, the Jazz took the side of a said triggered player and doubled down. That’s just disappointing to me.”