NBA Great John Stockton's Season Tickets Suspended Over Mask Refusal

Gonzaga University has suspended Basketball Hall of Famer John Stockton’s season tickets because he refused to wear a mask while attending games as required, The Spokesman-Review reported over the weekend.

“Basically, it came down to, they were asking me to wear a mask to the games and being a public figure, someone a little bit more visible, I stuck out in the crowd a little bit,” Stockton told the newspaper.

Stockton, who graduated from the university in 1984, is the NBA’s career leader in assists and steals after nearly two stellar decades with the Utah Jazz.

He’s more recently become famous for something else entirely: spreading wild and debunked conspiracy theories about the coronavirus and the vaccines, including an appearance in an anti-vaccine film.

Local CBS station KREM said Stockton has been seen at the games all season, sans mask, despite university rules requiring them for attendance at athletic events. The station said several fans had complained about Stockton.

Stockton told The Spokesman-Review he hopes to be able to return to the games “when the rules change.”

This article originally appeared on HuffPost and has been updated.