Referee Courtney Kirkland left French rookie Victor Wembanyama swinging following a high-five during a recent match at the NBA Summer League. The mishap rapidly gained notoriety, and on social networks, fans compared Kirkland to Britney Spears, who is infamous for brushing off a fan’s high-five while performing in 2004.
During the second quarter of an NBA game involving the Portland Trail Blazers and the San Antonio Spurs, an altercation took place. After a penalty violation and with the Blazers up by ten points, Wembanyama approached Kirkland to deliver a high-five. Wembanyama was left dangling by Kirkland, who merely nodded in agreement and proceeded ahead.
The referee who left Victor Wembanyama hanging must be a Britney Spears fan 😭 pic.twitter.com/noPNCczavU
— NBA Memes (@NBAMemes) July 10, 2023
As soon as the footage from the incident became sensational Kirkland’s admirers on social networks began to be contrasted with Britney Spears. Spears drew headlines in 2004 for allegedly shunning a fan’s high-five while on stage in Sydney, Australia. Following the event, an upsurge of quips and memes surfaced, with numerous individuals analogizing Spears to a callous diva. One of the netizens tweeted, “The referee who left Victor Wembanyama hanging must be a Britney Spears fan“, referring to the uncanny similarity to that incident.
LMFAO why that ref just ignore him https://t.co/pe4SEZtPUq
— too laid back chrs (@cowboychrs) July 10, 2023
That brother was in his zone lol https://t.co/V3yoK4O2FN
— Tunna (@TeeMoney_Mills) July 10, 2023
Nah, I know illegal paraphernalia when I see it. https://t.co/A3mUHdKlj0
— TJ Stokes (@Torrence_TJ) July 10, 2023
It’s unresolved why Kirkland opted to reject Wembanyama’s high-five in this particular scenario. While certain fans have contended that Kirkland may have simply centered himself on the game, others assume he may have been striving to circumvent receiving a technical penalty. Despite this reason, the event has undoubtedly stirred up a lot of symposiums on social media.
Victor Wembanyama was trolled by fans for disrespecting Britney Spears
Wembanyama participated in his first NBA Summer League match on Friday night against the Charlotte Hornets after being selected by the Spurs as the top overall choice in the NBA Draft this past month. In the game, Wembanyama had a 2-for-13 field goal percentage, and Kai Jones’ dunk put him on the scoreboard. Pop diva Britney Spears’ fans flocked to Wembanyama for a trolling quip. A Twitter user modified the Wembanyama dunk footage to add Spears’ “Baby One More Time” soundtrack to the backdrop.
Yet another account uploaded footage juxtaposed with footage of Spears’ “Baby One More Time” music video, which catapulted her to prominence and ubiquity; alongside Wembanyan’s debut, which went horribly. A third shared multiple lowlight video clips in conjunction with the statement, “Britney’s voodoo working its magic as always.” (h/t via NY Post)
Wemby debut | Britney debut pic.twitter.com/pb4QphXKt8
— britney jean (@princessofpop_) July 8, 2023
Wembanyama was headed towards the CATCH restaurant at the ARIA on Wednesday while being accosted by security personnel. In a video that surfaced, Spears can be spotted coming up to Wembanyama standing behind and giving him a shoulder tap. Damian Smith, a security guard for the Spurs, smacked Spears at this juncture, causing his palm to seemingly slam her face.
People who adored Britney Spears contemplated that Victor Wembanyama was partly quite at fault and was culpable. Neither he bashed his security personnel for the mishap, nor did he convey a heartfelt apology to Spears who was deeply traumatized because of the incident. It made the fans agitated and enraged, which led to these contretemps.