Look, these inter-quarter games at NBA arenas can come with a lot of unanticipated stress. Not many people step in front of 20,000 fans on a daily basis and grab their full attention.
So you can see why things went so wrong during this game of tic-tac-toe between two Portland Trail Blazers fans.
The following video is pretty great in that it starts off slow, then seems pretty normal, then it all falls apart in a matter of seconds. There’s too much to explain here, but let’s just say it involves an inordinate amount of missed layups, tic-tac-toe pieces laid over the top of each other illegally, and a complete disregard for strategy.
Via Reddit:
The Blazers just hosted the worst game of tic-tac-toe EVER 😂
— Sports Illustrated (@SInow) February 9, 2018
(via Psychyed/Reddit) pic.twitter.com/tlOqAb0BbC
Oof. At least one of them figured it out eventually, but it was pretty hilarious that Portland’s Todd Bosma -- announcing this whole thing -- had to explain what would happen if nobody actually won.
Speaking to KGW in Portland, Morgan Maleta told the station that she sort of lost her concentration halfway through when she noticed some of the Blazers players were watching the game unfold.
“I’m focused on blocking [Grace] and I didn’t realize that spot was open,” she said.
She also got a little distracted.
“I catch Meyers and Ed Davis, or Caleb Swanigan, out of the corner of my eye watching and that’s just where my mind went out the window,” Morgan said.
Maleta got some sweet swag for eventually winning, and we got this video forever emblazoned on the Internet.
Now, here’s the whole thing set to Yakety Sax.
Ladies and Gentlemen: the most maddening game of tic tac toe you will ever watch, set to the tune of Yakety Sax pic.twitter.com/tS8Z9FTv04
— NBC Sports Northwest (@NBCSNorthwest) February 9, 2018