On Sunday, DeMarcus Cousins sent out a tweet asking long-time Kings announcer, Grant Napear, to share his feelings on the Black Lives Matter movement. His response was less than ideal.
"Hey!!!! How are you? Thought you forgot about me," Napear responded to the former Kings star. "Haven't heard from you in years. ALL LIVES MATTER...EVERY SINGLE ONE!!!"
Napear received backlash for his response, which might've been the point. Despite Cousins being the Kings' lone bright spot for nearly seven years, Napear ridiculed him during his time with the team. The announcer criticized Boogie's then All-Star level production and went as far as to describe him as a "dark cloud" that hung over the organization. So to assume that Boogie was baiting Napear into that response wouldn't be much of a stretch.
After Napear's "All Lives Matter" comment, Kings great, Chris Webber, weighed in on the situation, while Matt Barnes called the announcer a "closet racist."
The next day, the broadcaster issued an apology for his remarks.
"If it came across as dumb I apologize. That was not my intent. That's how I was raised. It has been engrained in me since I can remember," Napear tweeted. "I've been doing more listening than talking the past few days. I believe the past few days will change this country for the better!"
But it was too late for Napear. According to ESPN, the Kings asked Napear to resign as the team's play-by-play announcer. Also, local radio station, Sports 1140 KHTK,—where he hosts a show with Kings player Doug Christie—fired Napear on Tuesday for his remarks.
"The timing of Grant's tweet was particularly insensitive," the company that owns the radio station, Bonneville International, said in a statement per ESPN. "After reviewing the matter carefully, we have made the difficult decision to part ways with Grant."
