"He's talking out of his a**" - Kelly Oubre Jr catches flak from Sopranos fame actor Steven Schirripa for dissing Knicks 'celebrity row'

Philadelphia 76ers standout Kelly Oubre Jr recently stirred up quite a bit of controversy when he took aim at the New York Knicks' celebrity row. Before the start of the New York Knicks vs Philadelphia 76ers first-round playoff series, Oubre spoke to media members about playing at the famed Madison Square Garden. While doing so, he took aim at the Knicks' celebrity row.

As he explained, the franchise gives away tickets worth hundreds of thousands of dollars to celebrities to sit in the front row. The comments caught the attention of both fans and celebrities, with famed actor Ben Stiller taking aim at Kelly Obre before the start of the series.

Now, another famous actor, Steven Schirripa, who famously played Bobby Baccalieri on the TV show The Sopranos, has weighed in. Speaking with the New York post in an interview, Schirripa defended the Knicks' celebrity row.

As a longtime fan who estimated that he has been to 300 Knicks games, Schirripa indicated that the celebrities commonly seen at Knicks games are longtime fans.

“He’s talking a little bit out of his ass there and he’s wrong, because they’re real fans. I don’t know who he’s talking about. The guys in the front row, they care. Tracy Morgan, a huge fan. Ben Stiller, Chris Rock, myself, Matthew Modine, John McEnroe, Fat Joe, all fans.

"They probably know more about basketball than him, believe it or not.”

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Another critically acclaimed actor takes aim at Kelly Oubre for comments about Knicks celebrity row

Apart from Ben Stiller and Steven Schirripa, another notable celebrity fan, Matthew Modine, took aim at Kelly Oubre in the aforementioned interview. As Modine indicated, since moving to New York in the late 70s at the age of 19, he believes he has been to more than 500 New York Knicks games.

As he explained, in some cases, he and other celebrities are given tickets to sit courtside on celebrity row for Knicks games. As he made clear, though, there are plenty of occasions where he isn't seated courtside as a guest of the team, and is simply there enjoying a game with his friends like anyone else.

“Sometimes I’ll go with some friends who might have tickets and sometimes I’m a guest of the Garden and they put me on the floor. I’m not particular.

"I think some celebrities feel that if they can’t have their feet on the wood, they feel slighted or insulted and I don’t care. I’m just happy to be there enjoying the experience."

With the series at 2-1 following a big Game 3 win by the Philadelphia 76ers, a sweep is out of the question. Given that, after playing Game 4 in Philly, the series will head back to New York, where the Knicks' celebrity row is sure to have their eye on Kelly Oubre Jr.

Of course, Kelly Oubre has been in headlines for more than one reason as of late, recently getting into a post-game car accident after reportedly running a red light. Thankfully for all involved, no injuries were reported, and the NBA vet is expected to play in Game 4.