Joakim Noah seems to have been caught saying, “Fuck you, faggot,” on camera during a game Sunday night against the Miami Heat. The 26 year-old award-winning Chicago Bulls basketball player during Game 3 of the Eastern Conference Finals seemed to have shouted the anti-gay epithet at an unidentified person seated behind him. Last month, Kobe Bryant called a referee a “fucking fag,” and was fined $100,000. Bryant apologized and contributed to a video advocating against the use of anti-gay language.
WATCH: Kobe Bryant Calls Ref A “Fucking Fag” On Camera (Video)
“The exchange occurred after Noah was whistled for his second foul with more than six minutes remaining in the first quarter,” writes CBS Sports, which called the utterance “possibly a gay slur.”
“After briefly arguing the call, Noah headed straight for the Bulls bench and began barking at someone seated behind him and to his right.”
READ: Kobe Bryant: The Real Outrage Isn’t That He Said “Fag”
“Noah then appeared to yell a string of profanities and finished with what appears to be the exact phrase that Bryant was fined for using. The only difference: Noah was not addressing one of the officials,” wrote Ben Golliver of CBS Sports.
Last week, ESPN Sports Radio host Jared Max announced he is gay, adding his name to more than 25 other sports figures to come out this year.