Suns’ Josh Jackson fined after appearing to make a gun gesture at fan

In addition to bouncing a ball, one thing that makes basketball different from other sports is the proximity of the fans. Is there a sport in which fans can be seen and heard by players as easily as basketball?

Of course, this allows players to give it back to the fans, but the NBA ruled Tuesday that Phoenix Suns rookie Josh Jackson, the former KU star, went a bit too far when he appeared to mime shooting a gun at a fan and then cursed at him.

The NBA announced that Jackson was fined $35,000 for “making a menacing gesture on the playing court and directing inappropriate language toward a fan.”

Here is the play in question, which happened Saturday against the Clippers in Los Angeles:

That seems pretty straight forward, no? Well, Jackson said it was misconstrued.

“That’s what most people thought I was going but I actually wasn’t making a gun,” Jackson told the Arizona Republic. “I kind of wanted to put up the middle finger to him but I didn’t do that because I felt like I was really being watched so I kind of halfway did it.”

Jackson told the Republic that one particular fan had been hounding him all game and called Jackson “some names.”

This story was originally published October 24, 2017 at 2:44 PM with the headline "Suns’ Josh Jackson fined after appearing to make a gun gesture at fan."