Oklahoma City Thunder announcer Brian Davis was suspended for saying that Russell Westbrook was “out of his cotton-picking mind” during a recent broadcast.
Davis, the play-by-play man for Fox Sports Oklahoma, was suspended for one game for using the “offensive” phrase during the Thunder’s regular-season finale, TMZ reported.
The announcer said that he didn’t attach any racial meaning to his comment, but accepted the suspension.
“It is with great remorse and humility that I accept this suspension for the insensitive words I used during Wednesday’s broadcast. While unintentional, I understand and acknowledge the gravity of the situation,” he said.
“I offer my sincere apology and realize that, while I committed a lapse in judgment, such mistakes come with consequences. This is an appropriate consequence for my actions,” Davis concluded.
Thunder radio announcer Matt Pinto will fill in for Davis during his one-game suspension.
The suspension might come as somewhat of a surprise since the Thunder’s VP of broadcasting, Dan Mahoney, did not initially seem all that upset by the incident, saying it was “up to Brian” to make any public statements.
“Again, we’ve expressed to him strongly that it was offensive and inappropriate, and that’s all we can do for right now,” Mahoney said on Thursday.
However, by Friday the team had reversed course and issued a suspension.
Follow Warner Todd Huston on Twitter @warnerthuston.
COMMENTS
Please let us know if you're having issues with commenting.