‘F--- it, we deserve this’: Kings fans have new motto after Nemanja Bjelica’s game-winner
The Kings’ most thrilling victory in recent memory was followed by one of live sports’ most noticeable F-bombs.
Both came courtesy of Nemanja Bjelica, Sacramento’s star-in-the-making power forward who drilled a game-winning, buzzer-beating, way-deep 3-pointer to cap a highly improbable road win Monday night over the Houston Rockets.
Bjelica summed up his reaction in a live postgame interview with NBC Sports California. He put it about as bluntly as possible:
“F--- it, we deserve this win, man.”
And with that, ”F--- it, we deserve this” became the instant motto for the 2019-20 Kings season (though it’s destined to stay an unofficial one).
Even the team called the statement “words to live by” on social media.
Less than a full day after Bjelica’s on-air comment to Grant Napear and the TV crew, local apparel vendor The People of Sacramento began taking preorders for a purple T-shirt with those words on the front. There’s no NBA or Kings logo in sight, but the “U” in a certain four-letter word is replaced by a simple graphic depicting Tower Bridge.
The People of Sacramento founder Zayn Silmi tweeted that all proceeds from the shirt sales would go to a charitable cause, but did not specify which one.
Noted KHTK-AM radio personality Carmichael Dave, whose real name is David Weiglein, tweeted his own mock-up design for a similar shirt, this one using the Kings’ official logo to censor the word, which drew several hundred likes and retweets. Then he made it his profile picture.
“Don’t be afraid to take my money, @SacramentoKings,” he wrote. “I have a feeling I’m not the only one.”
The phrase got plenty of play on social media for Kings fans, elated at a 119-118 win that dropped the Houston Rockets to 15-7 seconds after Russell Westbrook celebrated a go-ahead shot at the other end of the court, appearing on broadcasts to be declaring “Game over” while chest-bumping teammate P.J. Tucker.
Be warned: There’s profanity below.
Sacramento deserves Bjelica
Bjelica, 31, played in the EuroLeague before coming to the NBA in 2015, signing with Minnesota. He joined the Kings in 2018, signing a three-year deal during the offseason.
With Monday’s win, the Kings clawed back to a 10-13 record after starting the season 0-5. Just a day earlier, they had downed the 16-win Mavericks in Dallas, handing them their seventh loss. Bjelica was outstanding in that game, putting up 30 points including the last two of the game to close the door on the Mavericks’ 20-point comeback effort.
Honorable profanity mention: In a postgame interview after his own game-winning shot Monday, Detroit Pistons guard Derrick Rose proclaimed, “Excuse my English, but I’m born to do this s---,” ESPN reported.
Recent NBA history shows that a fine of $15,000 is typical for swearing in a live TV interview, as was given to Westbrook in 2017. As of Tuesday morning, there was no announcement from the NBA whether Bjelica or Rose would be fined.
This story was originally published December 10, 2019 at 11:41 AM.
