In a first-person account for TrueHoop, 13-year-old Henry Sumber describes attending a playoff game in San Antonio with his mother and experiencing what he says was antisemitic heckling directed at Portland Trail Blazers guard Deni Avdija. Sumber says he had been excited to witness “Wemby’s” first NBA playoff game and to support a Spurs team he likes as a Texas resident, while also feeling a personal connection to Avdija because of his Jewish family background and his grandmother’s immigration from Israel.
He recounts arriving at the arena with friends, stopping for In-N-Out on the way, and seeing the game atmosphere organized by different shirt colors and team sections. According to Sumber, the game itself was exciting, but the mood changed when the man seated next to him began making repeated comments about Avdija’s nationality and religion. Sumber says the remarks included references telling Avdija to “go back to Tel Aviv,” accusations that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was paying referees, and claims that Netanyahu was influencing NBA commissioner Adam Silver to help the Blazers.
Sumber writes that he understood how international tensions, including conflicts involving the United States, Israel, and Iran, can push politics into sports arenas, but says he had not previously seen how such comments could affect a player like Avdija or others with Jewish or Israeli identities. He argues that antisemitism is a broader social problem that appears not only at NBA games but across sports and in the wider world, and says harmful comments about entire groups of people should stop regardless of political views, nationality, or religion.
The piece also describes Sumber’s discomfort as a fan sitting in the crowd. He says he and his mother quietly discussed what was happening and whether they should intervene, but ultimately chose not to create a scene. Even so, he says he left the experience still excited about having attended a historic game and grateful for the chance to see the Spurs’ playoff atmosphere firsthand.
Despite the incident, Sumber notes that he and his mother later managed to get tickets for Game 2 of the Finals and says he is looking forward to attending. The story mixes a young fan’s enthusiasm for basketball with a direct reflection on antisemitism, fan behavior, and the way politics can spill into sports environments.
