Australia’s top basketball coach Brian Goorjian has revealed he came close to attacking NBA fans who were sledging star Boomers guard Josh Giddey.
Giddey was being investigated at the time following an allegation in a since-deleted anonymous social media post that he had an improper relationship with an underage girl.
That led to horrific abuse from NBA fans, with Goorjian almost throwing a glass of wine over one particularly offensive supporter when he was caught up in the abuse.
The Boomers coach revealed that he almost hurled a glass of red wine at a Sacramento Kings fan who was mercilessly abusing the Oklahoma City Thunder star at an NBA game late last year.
The Boomers coach had previously sent a message to Giddey to let him know he was there to support him as he underwent the NBA investigation, and even travelled to the United States to meet him during the scandal.
Giddey had a challenging year after he was investigated over an alleged improper relationship with an underage girl, before being cleared by police and the NBA
Australian Boomers coach Brian Goorjian (pictured) travelled to the United States to support the young point guard
Earlier this year, Giddey was cleared following a police investigation into whether he had an improper relationship with an underage girl after material circulated on social media.
Newport Police found no evidence to corroborate the allegations made. The NBA also dropped its investigation in May.
Goorjian is widely regarded as Australia’s best basketball coach due to his unparalleled success in the National Basketball League (NBL), where he has won six championships and been named Coach of the Year six times.
He also led the Australian national team to an historic bronze medal at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.
He travelled to Sacramento to show support for the 21-year-old Boomers star and immediately found out what the abuse was like firsthand.
Giddey will play a crucial role for the Australian Boomers at the Paris Olympics in July
To date, Giddey has not addressed the investigations or being cleared of any wrongdoing
Goorjian knew trouble was afoot when he went to take his seat at the Golden 1 Center and found a card warning supporters about abusive behavior.
‘I’d never seen anything like it,’ Goorjian said of the abuse.
‘I’m behind the scorers’ bench and a player was inbounding the ball to Josh at half court and the whole stadium stands up and boos.
‘I’ve had guys like Chris Anstey go over there as young men and really struggle in the NBA environment, but here’s a kid, 20 years old [at the time], and the whole stadium is going nuts. Security guards were grabbing guys – it was intense.
‘What the guy was saying behind me was out of line … I turned around and was going to throw my red wine in his face. It was getting really, really uncomfortable.’
Goorjian saw Giddey after the match and was told: ‘You should see what it’s like in Chicago. You should see New York.’
Giddey was traded by his NBA side Oklahoma to the Chicago Bulls on Friday after the Thunder bowed out of the NBA playoffs
Giddey was snapped back in Melbourne and partying with model Maki Lesko (pictured) ahead of the Olympics
Giddey has never specifically addressed or clarified the allegations publicly.
While the matter heavily weighed on him last season, Goorjian believes the Paris Olympics will be the 21-year-old’s time to shine.
‘He’s coming out the other side of this,’ Goorjian said. ‘He’s gone through a lot and he’s come out the other end. He’s got a toughness to him. He’s stronger than when he left Australia.’
Giddey has returned to Melbourne for a pre-Games camp late next week ahead of warm-up games against China. He popped up on the Instagram account of model Maki Lesko as the pair partied.
On Friday morning, it emerged that the Thunder had traded Giddey to the Chicago Bulls in exchange for defensive guard Alex Caruso.
