Wizards apologize after scripted April Fools joke in which 'fan' thought they won $10,000 falls flat
The Wizards boldly decided to isolate the few fans they have left with this prank gone wrong.
The Washington Wizards are doing damage control after a scripted April Fools prank went wrong during Wednesday’s game. Following criticism and anger from fans, the team issued an apology Thursday after making it look like a fan missed out on winning $10,000. The prank occurred at halftime of the Wizards’ 153-131 loss to the Philadelphia 76ers.
The team ran a promotion where a blindfolded fan would win $10,000 if they hit a halfcourt shot. The fan missed the shot, but the team and the mascots on the court celebrated as if the shot went in and the fan won the money. Then, the team cruelly showed a replay of the missed shot, and announced that the fan didn’t actually win $10,000.
In the moment, it looked like a pretty nasty thing to do to someone who spent money to watch the Wizards in 2026. The Wizards made a fan think he won $10,000 in an April Fools prank by pretending he made a blindfolded half court shot 😭 pic. twitter.
com/MZEfAiGZKM — FearBuck (@FearedBuck) April 2, 2026 But that isn’t actually what happened. In their apology post Thursday, the team revealed that the entire promotion was scripted and involved members of their performance team — Wizards employees who run game-day operations or hype up the crowd. Statement on last night's April Fool's joke.