Warriors legend Tim Hardaway apologizes after ‘raping’ comment during live broadcast

Former Golden State Warriors star Tim Hardaway has apologized after referring to a player’s defense as “raping” during a live broadcast.

Hardaway joined his former Warriors teammates Chris Mullin and Mitch Richmond for the special broadcast for NBC Sports Bay Area on Monday, Nov. 14. The three were known as “Run TMC” when they played together for the Warriors in the 1990s.

But a comment from Hardaway during the second quarter of the Warriors’ game against the San Antonio Spurs marred part of the broadcast.

“So y’all thought that was great D? I thought that was just raping ‘em. I think they should call the police on that,” Hardaway said.

Hardaway, who was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame this year, later apologized.

“I used a poor choice of words earlier in the broadcast. I want to apologize for that,” Hardaway said, before quickly returning to game action.

It’s not the first time Hardaway has made a controversial statement. In 2007 when former NBA player John Amaechi came out as gay, Hardaway said he hates gay people and said they “shouldn’t be in the world.”

Hardaway later became an advocate for LGBTQ rights, the Miami Herald reported.

Hardaway played 13 years in the NBA, including six with the Warriors. He later joined the Miami Heat and was named to the NBA All-Star team five times during his career.

His son, Tim Hardaway Jr., plays for the Dallas Mavericks.