Distraught Tayshuan fan finally meets his Prince

Two weeks ago, Tayshaun Prince was traded from the Pistons to the Grizzlies. It was sad for many fans, though most recognized he had to leave for greener pastures. One man in particular took the news harder than most.

During the Fox Sports broadcast the night of the trade, Cory Brandt was spotted at Conseco Fieldhouse in a Prince Pistons jersey. As players came out for shootaround, Prince was nowhere to be found. But Brandt was a patient man and continued to wait, hoping to see his fair Prince in uniform.

It never happened.

We captured the moment in GIFs.

The wait

The wonder

The denouement

Minutes after our post, Brandt went viral. Images of him ripping off the Tayshaun jersey flooded the internet. Everyone wondered who he was and why he was so distraught. We caught up with Brandt today and he was kind enough to answer a few questions.

If you could, tell me what happened when you were on the phone at Conseco? Who were you talking to?

I was talking to a friend who was sitting in the suites and we confirmed he had been traded right before introductions. Probably 10 minutes before game actually started.

What was your reaction when you saw your face plastered everywhere from ESPN to SI?

I was a little embarrassed when I first saw the clips. It felt like I was a punch line for so many jokes. But the day after it was everywhere I started to embrace it and maybe something neat would happen. Little did I know how great it was going to turn out.

What was your wife’s reaction? Both after you threw down the jersey and when she found out the clip had gone viral? Does she think you take sports too seriously?

My wife’s reaction when I took off my jersey was she couldn’t believe he had just got traded right before the game we were at. She was shocked when the video went viral because she nor I had any clue we were being filmed. She does think I take sports too seriously. But she also knew how big the Kentucky Wildcats are a part of my life. She is also a sports fan so she understand this!

Memphis based Commercial Appeal and the Grizzlies set up a meet and greet with Brandt’s family and Tayshaun Prince. You can (and should) watch the heartwarming video here.

Special thanks to my dear friend Nikki Boertman at Commercial Appeal for making Cory available to us.