The Cleveland Cavaliers said Thursday it was a "mistake" to air a video in their arena that made light of domestic violence.
The team drew widespread criticism for the advertisement, which ran in Quicken Loans Arena during Game 2 against the Chicago Bulls on Wednesday night.
In the video, which the team said was intended to be a "humorous spoof" of a recent TV commercial re-enacting a scene from the movie "Dirty Dancing," a man wearing a Cavaliers T-shirt throws a woman after seeing she is wearing a Bulls shirt.
At the end of the video, the woman is shown holding an ice pack on her head and wearing a Cavs shirt.
"While the video was not intended to be offensive, it was a mistake to include content that made light of domestic violence," the Cavs said in a statement.
"Domestic violence is a very serious matter and has no place in a parody video that plays in an entertainment venue. We sincerely apologize to those who have been affected by domestic violence for the obvious negative feelings caused by being exposed to this insensitive video.
"The Cavaliers organization has a strong and lengthy track record of supporting domestic violence-related causes and efforts. We will continue to proudly work with our regional partners at the Domestic Violence & Child Advocacy Center in support of their numerous programs to end domestic violence in our country once and for all."
The issue of domestic violence in sports has been in the headlines since the Ray Rice case in the NFL last year.
[SportsNetwork.com]
