There will be no arena ban for the four fans who were ejected from Monday's Los Angeles Lakers-Atlanta Hawks game after heckling LeBron James, a source told ESPN's Dave McMenamin.
The Hawks had opened an investigation into the incident, team CEO Steve Koonin told The Athletic's Chris Kirschner and Jovan Buha.
One of the four fans involved, Juliana Carlos, posted on social media after the incident that she'd been ejected from the game. Carlos said she was verbally defending her husband, Chris, against James.
Juliana apologized via Instagram on Tuesday.
James could only be heard saying "ol' steroid ass" in a courtside video reviewed by The Athletic.
James said postgame that he disagreed with the fans getting kicked out and added that he's happy to see spectators present at some arenas.
"I miss that interaction," James said. "I need that interaction."
James is no stranger to interacting with fans. He credited comments made by a Cleveland Cavaliers executive as motivation for his big fourth-quarter performance in a Lakers win last week. James made similar remarks in 2008 after apparent heckling from the girlfriend of then-Toronto Raptors forward Chris Bosh.
