It was a rude (and racist) statement whether or not the guy's a Muslim. However, Islam does have a thing with racism toward descendants of Ham (including Africans).
It indeed was rude and racist, but I'm just wondering if he was trying to insult him because he's black or because he is an infidel.
This is most interesting, considering what brand of hyphenated americans tend to gravitate toward the name changing religion.
So, fans can taunt and harrass players' wives and children, call them "hoes", etc. without any consequence, but if they call a 7-foot multimillionaire a "monkey" they get banned from attending any game?
It sounds to me as if the animal name that we should be calling the NBA players and the league itself is one of a feline nature.