Noticeably lacking were aroma-therapy candles, doves flying overhead and some muted humming of “Kumbaya.”
That’s how chummy and cheerful the atmosphere was around the Nets yesterday, one day after heavyweights Alonzo Mourning and Kenyon Martin nearly came to blows when trash-talking got personal.
At one point the media – which included an unprecedented (for the Nets) six TV camera crews – thought they had been transported to Bizarro World as Mourning maintained “nothing really happened” Thursday when he had to be restrained after Martin made a comment about his kidney. Mourning’s career – and life – have been threatened by kidney illness.
“I didn’t hear him say anything about my kidney,” Mourning said.
Martin twice said, “I’m not talking” about the incident.
Mourning, intense beyond words, became enraged when, after running drills with the second unit, he saw and heard other players laughing.
Words led to anger, which led to teammates restraining Mourning after he challenged Martin’s leadership and questioned Martin missing games with an ankle injury. Martin fired back with a tasteless remark about Mourning’s kidney.
It was not known if either player apologized. Coach Byron Scott said he did not know of any apology offered and noted, “There doesn’t need to be.”
Team president Rod Thorn said “mouthing off” is common between players, and stated Mourning and Martin seemed to get along following the incident at a team function.
Teammates declined to discuss the matter after practice yesterday. And Scott said the whole affair is typical NBA stuff.
“It’s over with,” he said.