Viral Sixers fan caught sleeping during Game 4 says he was just taking ‘a catnap’

David Kelleher of David Autos, a local Dodge dealership in Glen Mills, stole the show during the Sixers' win over Miami.

David Kelleher (left) was caught sleeping during the final second of the third quarter of the Sixers' Game 4 win over the Miami Heat.Read moreTNT

by Matt Mullin and Rob Tornoe

Updated May 9, 2022, 3:49 p.m. ET

Published May 9, 2022, 1:48 p.m. ET

A Sixers fan was caught sleeping courtside during his team’s series-tying Game 4 win over the Miami Heat on Sunday night — and as one might suspect, it didn’t take long for the unlucky (and sleepy) fan to become the subject of some jokes on social media, and even on the postgame show.

But it turns out that’s not just any Sixers fan.

Upon closer inspection, that guy looks familiar — or at least he should to any local Sixers fan who has watched the team play on TV this season. That’s because it’s David Kelleher of David Autos, an official auto provider of the Sixers. And any Sixers fan worth their salt has seen him ring the bell countless times during the season as part of his in-game commercials.

And it wasn’t hard to tell it was Kelleher — he’s even wearing the same shirt as the one he wears in his commercial.

In an interview with KYW Newsradio, Kelleher said he had flown in from Atlanta the night before after traveling with his daughter for a college visit. After driving down and back from Annapolis to watch her soccer game Sunday morning, he attended a Mother’s Day brunch, where he admitted he “probably ate more than he should’ve.”

Then he went to the Wells Fargo Center to watch Game 4.

“I did have a drink or two, but not a lot… I do think that contributed. But I just took a catnap.” Kelleher said.

In a separate interview with PhillyVoice, Kelleher, who did not respond to requests for comment from The Inquirer, admitted to having more than just “a drink or two.”

“I’m a guy that knows how to knock a few back and stay up for hours and hours and hours,” Kelleher told PhillyVoice, admitting that he’d had four vodka and tonics. “It just hit me hard, and I closed my eyes — totally unbeknownst to me that it was caught on national television.”

Following the Sixers’ big Game 4 win, former Sixers great Charles Barkley, Shaq, and the Inside the NBA crew even took notice of the sleeping Kelleher.

Kelleher said his quick social media fandom has been amusing, but wasn’t thrilled Barkley referred to him as a drunk — even if his courtside nap was alcohol aided.

“I guess he knows Philly fans, and that’s his assumption, and I know Charles can play with the best of them,” Kelleher told KYW. “That was a little disappointing. I just fell asleep, I fell asleep for a quick nap. My sales director was with me. He nudged me, woke me up, and I watched the rest of the game, unbeknownst that I had become a viral sensation.”

The good news for Kelleher? Isn’t there an old saying about there being no such thing as bad publicity? And right now, David Autos is getting a ton of free advertising. Plus, these moments usually only last 15 minutes — and he should have no problem sleeping right through that.