Jordan Bell talks about stalker who forced him to move during his rookie year in Golden State
Jordan Bell’s rookie season with the Golden State Warriors had its ups and downs.
The second-round pick suffered an ankle injury and lost his rotation spot, only to carve out a role in the playoffs and NBA Finals en route to winning a championship.
That was one of the ups.
As for the downs. Well, his off-court situation trumped any sort of on-court growing pains he suffered as a rookie.
Stranger stalked Jordan Bell and his girlfriend
Bell had a stalker. He and his girlfriend were forced to move because of that stalker.
The San Jose Mercury News reported briefly on the stalker in June, but Bell opened up about the experience publicly for the first time with reporters on Tuesday.
At first, Bell was alarmed, but chalked his stalker up to just being an overzealous fan.
“I kept seeing him everyday,” Bell said, per NBC Bay Area. “He was standing outside, wearing glasses, had a backpack. I’m thinking he’s just a fan who wants an autograph. But he was there every single day … for a week, every day. I did it because I had just got here and I wasn’t signing autographs like crazy.”
Stalker forced Bell to move
When the man approached his girlfriend, it was time to move.
“And then, my girlfriend was walking our dogs outside and he came behind her and was like, ‘Yo, is Jordan here?’ And she was freaked out, and it’s dark, she’s by herself. … He was bigger than her, so she was frightened. She said he looked like a creep.
“So I had to move.”
Bell said that he had to fight to get out of his lease and is still dealing with that situation, but has avoided being stalked since the move.
This is Jordan Bell we’re talking about, a first-year player who averaged 4.6 points in 14.2 minutes per game. He’s a long walk from Stephen Curry or Kevin Durant in terms of star power.
But he is in the spotlight, and it only takes one “creep” to decide to make life uncomfortable or even dangerous.
“That was an ‘I don’t want to be in the NBA anymore’ moment,” Bell said. “That was crazy … you hear about stuff like that. I just think of that stuff on movies or shows — I don’t think it actually happens. Especially me. I’m not KD or Steph.”
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