Raptors superfan Nav Bhatia buys racist man dinner in Milwaukee
Superfan Nav Bhatia is known for his dedication to the Toronto Raptors as the fan who's never missed a Raptors home game since they first began playing in 1995.
In the last year, his love for the NBA championship team became well-known around the world, but so has his message of unity between people of all ages and backgrounds.
But during the Eastern Conference Finals, things got nasty on Twitter right as Superfan Nav Bhatia's love for the Raptors was going viral.
A Milwaukee fan tweeted something derogatory toward the Superfan. At first he ignored it, but then he noticed something changing in the conversation.
Hey @Twitter this tweet by @KJB30 is racist and should be removed. There is no place for this type of language in the @NBA or on Twitter. Also, I don’t know you @KJB30 but I welcome you to come to Toronto and meet @superfan_nav he’s one of the nicest guys in the game #Cdnpoli pic.twitter.com/MnMroEFjyY
— Raj Grewal (@RajLiberal) May 22, 2019
"I witnessed (him) being attacked on social media for what he said. When I say attacked, I mean attacked," Bhatia said in a statement. "That's when me and my manager stepped in."
The Superfan tweeted in response, and ultimately wanted the hate to stop.
Thank you to all the @Bucks fans who came up to me and apologized for words someone tweeted even though you didnt have to. I know we are in a heated series but i want everyone to know regardless of what one person has said. Milwaukee and its fans are incredible!
— Nav Bhatia Superfan (@superfan_nav) May 24, 2019
After a barrage of back and forth comments between fans from both teams calling out the tweet, the user deleted his account. He created a new one and sent Bhatia a direct message apologizing for what was said.
"I thought that was very big of him so I asked my manager to get a hold of him so we could talk," Bhatia said.
"We had a great conversation. He was very remorseful for what he had said on twitter. It was done in the heat of a playoff series and he was trying to be funny, he knows he was wrong."
Fast forward to this month, and Bhatia has met with the Milwakuee fan in his home city.
The best NBA story just happened - and nobody even knew.
— Muhammad Lila (@MuhammadLila) November 5, 2019
Last playoffs, a Milwaukee fan posted a racist tweet at Toronto @Raptors Superfan Nav Bhatia.
This week, Nav flew there, bought him dinner, and got his whole family tickets.
The fan now says they're "friends for life" pic.twitter.com/GD27utdGol
Bhatia flew in, had dinner with the fan and his family, and was even able to get the fans' son to his first NBA game ever.
"See I didn't reward racism, I rewarded an incredibly brave and remorseful individual who made a mistake,"the Superfan said.
"Now as he said, we are friends for life."
Join the conversation Load comments