Hawks-Kings game delayed due to protest, large group of fans not let in

The start of Thursday's Sacramento Kings home game against the Atlanta Hawks was delayed due to a protest outside the Golden 1 Center. Prior to the scheduled tipoff, most of the arena remained empty due to fans being unable to bypass the protesters and enter the building.

The arena was locked down, according to the Sacramento Bee's Nashelly Chavez and Jose Luis Villegas.

The protests began earlier in the day after a Sacramento Police officer-involved shooting Sunday night left an unarmed black man dead.

The game eventually tipped at approximately 7:25 p.m. local time, after fans who were already inside the arena were allowed to sit in the lower bowl, regardless of ticketing. The team released a statement shortly after, according to the Bee's Jason Jones, saying that those outside would not be let in as police could not "ensure ticketed fans could safely enter the arena."