Clipper Darrell, a big presence in the stands at Clippers games for the past two decades, was knocked out in a fight with arena security in the concourse on Monday night.
In a video of the incident that was shared by TMZ, Darrell, wearing blue, could be seen arguing with a man wearing red, during the game against the Celtics on Monday night.
Darrell, whose real name is Darrell Bailey, appeared to attempt to walk away from the altercation, while the man in red impeded his path away. Crypto.com Arena president Lee Zeidman told TMZ the issue began with security directing Bailey and other fans to nearby exits.
It is unclear what escalated it, but Darrell then swung his right arm to push the guard away from him. The man responded by cold-cocking him, sending him to the ground and apparently out of consciousness.
The security guard was fired and arrested.
“Clipper Darrell became involved in a verbal and then physical altercation,” Zeidman said. “After receiving immediate medical attention, Darryl was transported to a nearby hospital for further evaluation and treatment.
“An investigation of the incident was launched which determined the employee’s behavior to be a direct violation of our training and approved responses resulting in the immediate termination and arrest of the employee by the LAPD.”
For his part, Clipper Darrell, who is about 55 years old, told TMZ on Wednesday morning that he is still in severe pain and suffering from headaches from the incident.
Clipper Darrell has been a season ticket holder for the Clippers for 20 years. He is often seen and heard close to the court heckling opponents.
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